Resources that fit

A conflict unit and three companion units

The conflict resolution unit is the core. The other three cover skills that make circles easier to run: planning and self-management, wellbeing, and checking what students read and share.

Conflict Resolution and Restorative Circles | 8 Lessons, 4 Facilitator Cases & Project | Grades 6–8

Eight lessons, four facilitator cases and a project on restorative circles.

Grades 6–8$24.99

Executive Function and Study Skills | 8 Lessons, 4 Planning Tools & a Project | Grades 6–8

Planning and study habits that support self-management.

Grades 6–8$24.99

Sleep, Nutrition and Wellness | 8 Lessons, Label Comparison & Project | Grades 6–8

A factual health unit on sleep and labels, with no medical advice.

Grades 6–8$24.99

Spotting Misinformation and Deepfakes | 8 Lessons, 6 Verification Files & a Project | Grades 6–8

Checking claims, which helps when a conflict starts with a rumor.

Grades 6–8$19.99

Middle School Life Skills Bundle | Misinformation, Study Skills, Wellness & Conflict Resolution | 4 Units | Grades 6–8

All four units together, for a full term of advisory.

Grades 6–8$59.99

Quick comparison

Which unit for which situation

Buying the four units in the Middle School Life Skills Bundle saves $34.97 compared with buying the units separately. Whichever route you take, read the teacher guide before you start.

Where to start

School procedures come first

Before any circle, know what your school already requires. Many schools have set steps for fights, bullying, harassment and threats, and a named person who handles them. A restorative conversation does not replace those steps and should never be used to avoid them. If a student says they are unsafe, or a conflict involves a threat or violence, you report it the way your school asks. Write down who that contact is before the unit begins, so you are not looking it up in the middle of a lesson. Tell students early, in plain words, that some things cannot stay inside a classroom circle.

Classroom lessons on conflict are a different thing. They teach vocabulary and practice using invented situations, so that students already have words when real conflicts come up. The Conflict Resolution and Restorative Circles unit is written this way. It is classroom teaching material, not mediation or counseling, and it does not replace school counselors. Its cases are practice cases, not work on real incidents in your class. That keeps the focus on skills, and it keeps students from feeling that a lesson is really about them. If a case does bring up something real, you can step out of the exercise and deal with it the way your school expects.

Teaching sequence

From conflict to repair in eight lessons

The unit starts with a distinction that is easy to skip: a conflict is not the same as harm. Students then learn steps that lower tension, practice active listening as a skill, and work with restorative questions that clarify responsibility without blaming anyone. Lessons 5 to 8 cover how a circle is prepared, with roles and rules, how repair agreements are written, how to check later whether an agreement was kept, and how to look back at what was learned without assigning blame. The order matters because each step depends on the one before it. Students who cannot yet listen well to each other will not get much from a circle, so do not skip ahead to the circle lessons because they sound like the main event.

Each lesson has an introduction page, a practice page and a case card where students solve a task and justify their approach. Four facilitator cases follow: Materials dispute, Targeted threat, Unfinished repair and Rumor. The teacher guide gives a separate key for each. You can teach the lessons in order or pick single ones, which suits a tight advisory schedule, and the unit closes with a learning check, a project and a reflection page. The case cards and the project give you evidence of what students can do, beyond whether they can repeat the vocabulary words.

Handling the hard case

Using the targeted threat case with care

Most of the cases are low stakes. The Targeted threat case is not, and the unit says it should be used only with preparation. Read the case and its key yourself first. Think about whether any student in your class might recognize their own situation in it, and plan what you will do if one does. Tell your counselor or administrator beforehand if that seems wise. Decide too whether you want to run the discussion with the whole class or in small groups, since a smaller group is easier to supervise.

It also helps to keep the purpose clear for students. The case is there to practice thinking about what a facilitator should and should not do, including when a situation is beyond a circle and needs an adult with authority. Students who see that limit in a practice case are better placed to use it later. If your class is not ready, skip the case and return to it another term. Nothing else in the unit depends on it, and the other three facilitator cases give you plenty to work with in the meantime.

Around the circle

Skills that make circles work

Circles go better when students can already manage their own work and attention. The Executive Function and Study Skills unit covers planning backward, retrieval and reflection, and ends with a project, which gives students a calm, concrete way to practice self-management. A student who can name their next step is less likely to react in the moment. The Sleep, Nutrition and Wellness unit looks at sleep, label reading and realistic goals. It gives no medical advice and does not judge bodies. Sleep and routine are often part of why a bad week turns into a conflict, so a short factual unit here can help.

Many middle school conflicts begin online or with a rumor. The Spotting Misinformation and Deepfakes unit teaches students to separate claims from evidence, trace original context and correct false information without shaming anyone. Students often find this easier to talk about than a conflict of their own. Its last lesson pairs well with the repair work in the circles unit. For more options across the year, see our page on middle school SEL activities, or plan a longer arc with the whole-year SEL program page. Pick the companion unit that matches the habit your class is missing most.

In practice

Planning the first four weeks

1. Check your proceduresRead your school's policy on conflict, bullying and threats, and note who to contact.
2. Preview the unitRead the teacher guide and the case keys. Decide which cases suit your class.
3. Start with Lessons 1 to 3Teach conflict versus harm, de-escalation and listening before any circle work.
4. Practice with a low-stakes caseUse the Materials dispute case first, then add others as the class gets comfortable.
5. Review and follow upUse the learning check and reflection page, and return to listening skills when needed.

Questions teachers ask

Frequently asked questions