Resolving Conflict as a Facilitator
Students learn to lead conflict resolution between two peers, distinguish between conflicts and harm requiring adult support, use perspective-taking to help all parties understand each other, build and carry out a full restorative repair for significant conflict, and reflect on a conflict they managed well while naming an area still to develop.
Lesson Overview
What students will be able to do after this lesson: Students will be able to lead a conflict resolution conversation between two peers, distinguish between conflict and harm requiring adult support, help all parties understand each other’s needs before moving to solutions, carry out a full restorative repair including a follow-through check, and reflect on their facilitation skills with specific evidence and an honest development area.
Skill segments at a glance:
| Segment | Segment name | Primary standards |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leading the Conflict Conversation | RS-CFR-5-1 · RS-CFR-5-2 |
| 2 | Going Deeper | RS-CFR-5-3 · RS-CFR-5-4 |
| 3 | Looking Back | RS-CFR-5-5 |
Supporting standards reinforced:
| Code | Why it connects |
|---|---|
| SoA-EMP-5-4 | Perspective-taking is the engine behind both the understanding-first move in Segment 2 and the reflective look-back in Segment 3 |
| RS-COM-5-3 | Active listening skills drive the hear-and-summarize stages of facilitation throughout Segment 1 |
| SA-VAL-5-2 | Students recognize that competing values (fairness, loyalty, honesty) underlie many peer conflicts — this surfaces naturally in Segment 2 when needs are surfaced |
Key Vocabulary
- Facilitator — someone who helps two people work through a conflict without taking sides or having their own stake in the outcome
- Conflict — a disagreement between people that has a path to resolution through conversation
- Harm — a situation involving a recurring power imbalance, repeated mistreatment, or safety concern that requires adult intervention
- Restorative repair — a structured process for repairing a relationship after serious conflict: acknowledgement, accountability, a repair agreement, and a follow-through check
- Follow-through check — a brief, genuine conversation that confirms the repair agreement is actually working — not just assumed to be done
Materials
- Whiteboard or chart paper and markers
- Before the week begins: Post your unit anchor chart and I Can Statement where students can see them — you’ll reference both throughout the week.
- No additional printed materials required for the I Do and We Do
How this lesson is structured: Each skill segment below has an I Do (teacher models the skill with a realistic scenario) and a We Do (class practices together with your guidance). Independent practice — the You Do — lives in the practice resources that go alongside this lesson.
What Students Need Before This Lesson
- What’s inside
- What students should already be able to do
- Helpful to have in place
- 3 quick set-ups before the I DoA facilitator is not a judge · Conflict vs. harm — these are not the same thing · Perspective-taking means hearing what someone needed — not just what they said
- Rescue planIf students are significantly behind
This section opens when Grade 5 launches.
Introducing the Skill
- What’s inside
- Opening hook
- What we’re learning
- Why it matters
- Core sentence frameThe frame students use all week
This section opens when Grade 5 launches.
Leading the Conflict Conversation
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsTextbook example: facilitation done well across all three stages · Wrong version → fix: taking sides · Conflict or harm? Reading the situation correctly · Ordinary situation: facilitating a low-stakes disagreement
- We do: 4 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 5 launches.
Going Deeper
- What’s inside
- I do: 4 teacher modelsUnderstanding first: perspective-sharing done right · Wrong version → fix: jumping to solutions before understanding · Full restorative repair: all four elements including follow-through · Wrong version of repair: stopping after the first conversation
- We do: 4 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 5 launches.
Looking Back
- What’s inside
- I do: 3 teacher modelsStrong reflection: specific skill + evidence + honest development area · Wrong version → fix: the generic reflection · What a real development area sounds like — not a strength in disguise
- We do: 3 guided scenariosWith sentence frames, pacing notes and what to watch for
- Coaching in the momentWhat to say when students get stuck
This section opens when Grade 5 launches.
Closing the Week
- What’s inside
- 3 partner-share roundsOne for each segment, with the frame students say together
- Round 1 — Segment 1
- Round 2 — Segment 2
- Round 3 — Segment 3
This section opens when Grade 5 launches.
Practice for every skill segment
Each lesson comes with independent practice — the “you do” — for each of its 3 skill segments, in print and digital.
Printable practice
Ready-to-copy practice pages for each segment.
- View and print in your browser
- Answer keys for quick checking
Digital activities
Share one link — students open it on any device, and you see their answers.
- Works on Chromebooks, tablets and phones
- Students just type their name to start
While you wait: from the SEL Resource Library
Relationship Skills resources for Grade 5, ready to use today.
