Middle school students at Georgia are exploring peacemaking circles and conferencing models with a restorative plan for classrooms that have a student who is referred by a staff member for a violation of school rules.

By definition, restorative measures represent a philosophy and a process that acknowledges that when a person does harm, it affects the persons they hurt, the community and themselves. Using restorative measures, an attempt is made to repair the harm caused by one person to another and to the community so that everyone can return to a safe, responsible and respectful learning environment.

Restorative models provide schools the opportunity to improve school culture by addressing the school-wide expectations and creating a forum for peaceful conflict resolution. Through support for restorative justice, our goal is to amplify peace in our schools and communities.

Middle school enrichment teacher Sandra Moulton has been working with students in her service learning class Restorative Justice. After weeks of learning the purpose and understanding the role of restorative justice, 7th and 8th grade students were then able to participate using a foundational component of the process, which a circle discussion format. In a 5th and 3rd grade classes, the service learning students initiated the process. Student leaders communicated the purpose of the circles, the guidelines, and the goals. This experience for both student leaders and the classes was extremely positive and both groups agreed to take the process to the next level going forward at GEMS.

Learning about school news and current events is wonderful, but being an essential part of the communication, editing, and publishing of information, on a weekly basis, is a prideful moment.

Each week the Georgia Innovation Lab broadcasts GEMS TV Express!

It is a weekly newscast that provides upcoming school events, student recognition, and celebrations, along with all the wonderful learning experiences that are occurring across the elementary school.

Middle school students work collaboratively with Elementary students to produce a high quality, informative, and entertaining news broadcast that is aired weekly for all student classrooms Pk-4.

Through close facilitation and coaching, the innovation lab staff (Dayle Payne and Eric Hadd) guide students in their rehearsal, production, and editing of every final product.

Students take ownership, are thoroughly engaged, problem-solve continuously while communicating effectively and are building upon transferable skills for life.  It is real-world learning that is taking place each week with phenomenal results of the final product created.

Elementary students viewing the news feed are excited each week and look forward to the upcoming broadcast.  The following quotes were taken from Elementary students:

“I love seeing my friends”

“This is awesome”

“Look! That’s me”

We all wait patiently anticipating what will be in our next GEMS TV Express.

Until next time…

Welcome to GEMS Preschool!  The first days of school are all about relationship building, meeting new peers, and learning about routines throughout the day. It is the start of an educational journey that determines who we are in life and it is so important for social, emotional, and academic growth.

In PreK classrooms, it is imperative to provide opportunities for children to play, interact, cooperate, and be able to express their needs respectfully. But this takes time developmentally and adults must facilitate these learning opportunities for success to occur.

The use of imagination, role-playing, and experimentation are approaches to learning that promote creativity, innovation, and problem-solving.

In early years we educate children about self-awareness, emotions and self-regulation and the tools in the classroom to assist.

It will be a great year with my new friends!