Lindsey Pointer - The Little Book of Restorative Teaching Tools: Games, Activities, and Simulations for Understanding Restorative Justice Practices

Published titles include:

The Little Book of Restorative Justice: Revised & Updated ,
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The Little Book of Restorative Discipline for Schools ,
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The Little Book of Restorative Justice for People in Prison ,
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The Little Book of Dialogue for Difficult Subjects ,
by Lisa Schirch and David Campt

The Little Book of Victim Offender Conferencing ,
by Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz

The Little Book of Restorative Justice for Colleges and Universities ,
by David R. Karp

The Little Book of Restorative Justice for Sexual Abuse ,
by Judah Oudshoorn with Michelle Jackett and Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz

The Big Book of Restorative Justice: Four Classic Justice & Peacebuilding Books in One Volume ,
by Howard Zehr, Lorraine Stutzman Amstutz, Allan MacRae, and Kay Pranis

The Little Book of Transformative Community Conferencing ,
by David Anderson Hooker

The Little Book of Restorative Justice in Education ,
by Katherine Evans and Dorothy Vaandering

The Little Book of Restorative Justice for Older Adults ,
by Julie Friesen and Wendy Meek

The Little Book of Racial Healing ,
by Thomas Norman DeWolf and Jodie Geddes

The Little Book of Race and Restorative Justice,
by Fania E. Davis

The Little Books of Justice & Peacebuilding present, in highly accessible form, key concepts and practices from the fields of restorative justice, conflict transformation, and peacebuilding. Written by leaders in these fields, they are designed for practitioners, students, and anyone interested in justice, peace, and conflict resolution.

The Little Books of Justice & Peacebuilding series is a cooperative effort between the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding of Eastern Mennonite University and publisher Good Books.

Copyright 2020 by Lindsey Pointer, Kathleen McGoey, and Haley Farrar

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Good Books, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

Good Books books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Good Books, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or .

Good Books is an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation.

Visit our website at www.goodbooks.com

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Pointer, Lindsey, author. | McGoey, Kathleen, author. | Farrar, Haley, author.

Title: The little book of restorative teaching tools : games, activities, and simulations for understanding restorative justice practices / Lindsey Pointer, Kathleen McGoey and Haley Farrar.

Description: New York, New York : Good Books, [2020] | Series: The little books of justice & peacebuilding | Includes bibliographical references.

Identifiers: LCCN 2019049285 (print) | LCCN 2019049286 (ebook) | ISBN 9781680995886 (trade paperback) | ISBN 9781680995893 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Critical pedagogy. | Restorative justice. | Youth with social disabilities--Education. | Activity programs in education--Social aspects. | Educational games.

Classification: LCC LC196 .P64 2020 (print) | LCC LC196 (ebook) | DDC 370.11/5--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019049285

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019049286

Series editor: Barbara Toews

Cover design: Mona Lin

Cover photograph: Howard Zehr

illustrations: Colleen McGuire

Paperback ISBN: 978-1-68099-588-6

eBook ISBN: 978-1-68099-589-3

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Introduction

H ave you ever sat down in a class or training, excited to engage in a discussion about important issues, only to experience a long lecture with PowerPoint slides, ending in an unstructured invitation for Questions? or Thoughts? Have you noticed that it is the same few voices that always chime in, while the rest of the class is silent?

Have you ever been part of a class or training where the teacher begins a conversation on a controversial topic without first taking the time to build the relationships, trust, and structure for that conversation to be respectful? Have you noticed feelings of exclusion, shame, misunderstanding, or intimidation in yourself and others?

Have you ever spent a day in a class or training participating in engaging activities, building trust and relationships with other participants, and left feeling happy and connected, only to realize that the group never talked about any important or meaningful topics? Have you wished that you could have engaged in an open conversation about issues that really matter with that supportive group?

Most of us have experienced all three of these learning scenarios at one time or another. Sometimes relationship and trust building are missing, and as a result, the class lacks the sense of safety necessary for a productive conversation to occur. Sometimes a well-structured and intentional framework to dialogue about important issues is missing, and the group loses the opportunity to learn from each others experiences and perspectives. Sometimes both of these important factors are missing. Even within the restorative justice community, where cultivating relationships, respectful communication, and ensuring equal voice are central goals, teaching spaces still often fall into one of these traps and fail to deliver the connected, courageous, honest, and empowering learning experiences we need.

The use of games and activities as teaching tools offers an antidote to this problem. Games are interactive and fun and naturally build relationships in a group, creating a strong foundation of trust and comfort that makes respectful conversations about challenging issues possible. The shared experience of a game presents a clear structure and entry to begin important dialogue that allows participants to learn from each other. Students leave the class feeling engaged, informed, and energized, as does the teacher. Our hope is that this book will encourage you to experiment with this style of teaching and provide helpful insights and example games to get you started. Be prepared for an increase in laughter, fun, and deeper, more impactful learning experiences.