Restorative Circles • WorkshopBank
Restorative Circles • WorkshopBank is a circle dialogue exercise for constructive conflict: it helps participants surface tension or disagreement in a structured way.
How to run it
- Restorative Circles are a structured dialogue process that brings together three groups of people affected by a conflict or harm: the person who acted, the person directly impacted, and members of the wider community who have a stake in the outcome.
- Participants speak as equals, and the process ends only when all parties have agreed on a plan that serves everyone involved.
- Space: A room large enough for all participants to sit in a single circle with no tables between them Chairs arranged in a circle (no gaps, no furniture barriers) A private, quiet space free from interruptions A separate space nearby for anyone who needs to step out temporarily
Run this exercise live
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Materials:
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Prompts to use +
Restorative Circles are a structured dialogue process that brings together three groups of people affected by a conflict or harm: the person who acted, the person directly impacted, and members of the wider community who have a stake in the outcome.
Participants speak as equals, and the process ends only when all parties have agreed on a plan that serves everyone involved.
Space: A room large enough for all participants to sit in a single circle with no tables between them Chairs arranged in a circle (no gaps, no furniture barriers) A private, quiet space free from interruptions A separate space nearby for anyone who needs to step out temporarily
Run this with your AI assistant +
Works with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or your own local model: paste this prompt and your AI will co-facilitate this exercise with you.
Adapt this exercise for my exact room. Exercise: Restorative Circles • WorkshopBank. Readiness: Publishable Draft. Core moves: Restorative Circles are a structured dialogue process that brings together three groups of people affected by a conflict or harm: the person who acted, the person directly impacted, and members of the wider community who have a stake in the outcome.; Participants speak as equals, and the process ends only when all parties have agreed on a plan that serves everyone involved.; Space: A room large enough for all participants to sit in a single circle with no tables between them Chairs arranged in a circle (no gaps, no furniture barriers) A private, quiet space free from interruptions A separate space nearby for anyone who needs to step out temporarily. Return a concise facilitator script with timing, wording, safety notes, and remote/in-person adjustments.
Origin unverified
- Where we observed it: The strongest current observations come from WorkshopBank; aggregators are listed as additional observations, not origin proof. (1 source observed, including WorkshopBank.)
- What that means: we track where an exercise has been observed in public sources. We do not claim to know who created it, or how popular it is.
- No efficacy claims: appearing in this library is not a claim that the exercise is proven effective. Facilitator judgment and context decide whether it works for a given room.
- Method lineage: this exercise shares its method name with work attributed to Howard Zehr and Dominic Barter in our people index. That is a name match, not an origin claim.
- Corrections: if you have evidence of an earlier or more accurate source, read our methodology and trust boundary and tell us.