This self awareness relationship impacts attention, learning, and emotions. Self Awareness and Self Regulation A classroom teacher may help learners analyze regulation strategies and tools that may include wellness activities, mental health and wellbeing, mindfulness, movement-based, sensory-based, play-based, thinking strategies, and healthy relationships with others. Pupils negotiate which Zone(s) would be regulated by each tool, creating a system to use tools to regulate a zone or shift from one to another. Eventually, they develop a mind-map or cognitive pathway and their individualized toolbox to guide them to regulate their Zones.

One of the common self-regulation programs is the Zones of Regulation. Zones of Regulation Information We want children at Holybrook to grow into successful teenagers then adults. Teaching the children at a young age about managing their feelings will support them in later life so that they don’t turn to negative coping strategies which affect their mental and physical wellbeing. In this article, we covered the connection between executive functioning skills and emotional regulation. I recently overheard a teacher discussing ‘zones of regulation’ with a parent. She described it as a ‘behaviour management tool.’ I can see why she came to this conclusion, but honestly, it’s not a behaviour management tool. Zones of Regulation is actually a curriculum that is designed by Leah Kuypers. The curriculum is to help the individuals develop skills to help regulate themselves. Self-regulation is really important for our children, and the zones of regulation helps to promote this.Be consistent. You don’t want to confuse anyone, so make sure to be consistent with your Zones of Regulation and how you use them, across all settings. This popular, easy-to-use regulation framework and award-winning curriculum teaches strategies for managing emotions and sensory needs to children, students, and clients ages 4+. Rooted in cognitive behavioural therapy, The Zones framework uses four colours to help individuals identify how they are feeling in the moment given their energy, emotions, and level of alertness, creating a coloured system to guide them to metacognitive strategies and tools to support regulation. By understanding how to read their bodies, detect triggers, think about the social context, and consider their reactions, individuals learn how to increase their ability to regulate their emotions, manage their sensory needs, and become more self-aware and skilful problem solvers. Activities and reproducible handouts and visuals are included in the curriculum along with instructions for digital access. All products which extend teaching about The Zones of Regulation require the use of this curriculum to teach with fidelity. The Zones of Regulation is a popular framework and self-regulation curriculum to teach regulation strategies for managing sensory needs and emotions to students, children, and other individuals aged 4+. Providing regular proprioceptive input and heavy work activities during the day to support body awareness and modulation. One of the most important steps to self-regulation is having the self-awareness that something is “off” and we need to do something physically emotionally, or cognitively and that a change must happen. This is where understanding the nervous system is important for the adult in the situation. Understanding what is happening behind the limbic system, the vestibular system, proprioceptive system, and overall sensory processing systems are key.

Teach your child which tools they can you. (eg: “It’s time for bed. Let’s read a book together in the comfy chair to get you in the Blue Zone.”) Learners explore regulation tools and strategies that can include mindfulness, sensory-based, movement-based, play-based, thinking strategies, wellness activities, and healthy connection with others. Learners negotiate which Zone(s) each tool would help regulate, building a system to use tools to manage a Zone or move from one to another. Ultimately, they create their individualised toolbox and develop a cognitive pathway or mind-map to guide them in regulating their Zones. Integrating cognitive behaviour therapy principles, learners build skills in consciously regulating their feelings and actions, managing their sensory needs, problem solving, and developing executive functions and social competencies. To deepen learners’ understanding of how to regulate, the lessons set out to teach a number of skills, including reading others’ facial expressions and body language, recognising a broader range of emotions in others and themselves, noticing the body signals that come with their feelings, understanding the context of the situation, insight into events that trigger their less regulated Zones, when and how to use regulation tools, and why regulation matters in relation to their overall wellness and personal goals. The framework is designed to help move learners toward more independent regulation while also honouring and respecting each unique individual. Concepts from the Social Thinking® Methodology are incorporated throughout the curriculum to help learners develop perspective taking, as well as understand the social context of a situation, both of which are factors that come into play when determining how to regulate oneself.Know yourself and how you react in difficult situations before dealing with your child’s behaviours.