Hampstead Hill Academy is committed to building a caring, inclusive school community based on positive relationships and respect. Through Restorative Practices, HHA takes a whole school approach to strengthening relationships, building community and reducing conflict.
Restorative Practices in Action
➤ ➤ Staff are guided by best practices from the International Institute of Restorative Practices (www.iirp.edu). HHA provides staff with training and support to better meet the needs of students and families. The specific restorative practices used at HHA includes:
- Community-building circles conducted by homeroom teachers designed to build connections in the classroom.
- Affective statements (“I feel ___when___”) and questions (“How do you think ____ felt when _____?”) that help teach empathy and address off-task behavior.
- Informal ‘breakfast clubs’ and ‘lunch bunches’ that help build social skills and self-confidence and enhance peer interactions and create or strengthen friendships.
- Responsive circles and restorative conversations facilitated by staff members to address a harm that has occurred.
➤ ➤ Questions typically asked during these responsive circles and restorative conversations include:
- What happened?
- What were you thinking/feeling at the time and/or what was your motivation?
- What have you thought about (or how have you been feeling) since?
- Who has been affected by what happened? In what ways?
- What do you need to do to make things right?
Think Time worksheets and Behavior Reflection forms incorporate these questions and are generally completed independently by a student, and then sent home to be signed or reviewed by a parent/guardian. In addition to these strategies, the Leaders Go Places (LGP) program for middle school serves as a great motivator to help our students excel academically, socially and behaviorally. Hampstead Hill Academy also follows the Baltimore City Schools Code of Conduct. Please familiarize yourself with these rules and consequences.
Social and Emotional Learning
Community-building circles help meet the unique social and emotional needs of our students. To that end, circles/homeroom blocks have been built into the daily schedule. While most circles will feature fun, get-acquainted prompts (e.g., If you had to pick an outfit to reflect your mood, what would it be?), others may incorporate mini lessons on social and emotional learning (SEL) skills or mindfulness practices.
Many teachers use resources from the Second Step (www.secondstep.org) and/or Sanford Harmony (www.sanfordharmony.org ) programs to teach or reinforce important social skills like empathy, emotion management, impulse control, and social problem solving. In the same way that restorative practices help build and repair relationships, SEL teaches the behavioral and social skills necessary for students to succeed in school and in life.
Mindfulness Practices
Mindfulness has been shown to be a powerful tool to help decrease stress and anxiety and strengthen attention and focus. Mindfulness incorporates a variety of skills, including breathing, stretches and movement. Every day begins with a minute of schoolwide mindful breathing on the morning announcements. Homeroom and classroom teachers may also incorporate breathing exercises or other mindful movement exercises throughout the day using a variety of online resources and apps.