A Whole Classroom Approach to Self-Regulation

1. A Whole Classroom Approach to Self-Regulation Presented by: Meg Niesen, School Psychologist 8/31/09: MMSD Leadership Conference

2. What is self-regulation? Self-regulation is… the ability to regulate feelings and actions in a socially appropriate manner. EMOTIONAL REGULATION BEHAVIORAL REGULATION

3. Self-regulation Emotional Regulation…the ability to label feelings, express feelings safely, and regulate one’s internal reactions to situations SO AS TO not be overwhelmed by our feelings in negatively perceived situations. Behavioral Regulation….capacity to “read” social situations and adjust behaviors accordingly SO AS TO meet the demands of environmental and social interactions.

4. Positive Behavior Supports

5. Why is self-regulation important? • Improved self-esteem • Increased learning • Improved self-control • Increased positive relationships • Improved self-directedness • Increased engagement

6. Why do some kids just not get how to self-regulate? Biologically speaking, Neurological Differences Psychologically speaking, Disturbed Attachment Relationships Practically speaking, Need for Explicit Instruction

7. The Self-Regulation Curriculum 5 core lessons (CPRED) with optional extension activities C Calm-Down Spot P Positive Words R Relax E Express Yourself D Distract Yourself Each lesson utilizes activities that promote the development of emotional regulation and behavioral regulation skills.

8. Introducing the 5 Do Somethings Whenyoudon’t feel good, it’s yourjob to Do Something to make yourself feel better.

9. Lesson 1: Calm-Down Spot

10. Lesson 1: Calm-Down SpotEmotional Regulation “Positive vs. Negative Feelings” Rationale: Children must first learn to differentiate feelings that make themselves and others feel “good” and feelings that make themselves or others feel “not good.” Explicitly teaching children the verbal and nonverbal cues we use to make these differentiations is key.

11. Lesson 1: Calm-Down SpotEmotional Regulation “Positive vs. Negative Feelings” Activity: Thumbs Up-Thumbs Down Show children feeling face pictures and ask them: • Does this person feel good or does this person feel not good? • Would you want to feel this way or would you NOT want to feel this way? • Does feeling not good mean that you are “in trouble”?

12. Lesson 1: Calm-Down SpotBehavioral Regulation “Find Your Spot” Rationale: A variation on “fight or flight,” the calm-down spot teaches students to utilize an adult-approved flight strategy to avoid potential problems. Emphasize to students that a calm-down spot is not a specific place but rather a choice to retreat from a conflict and return to a state of calm.

13. Lesson 1: Calm-Down SpotBehavioral Regulation “Find Your Spot” Activity: Calm-Down Pictures Identify calm-down spots in the classroom and around the building Practice being calm in your special calm down spot for 5 minutes (or longer) Take pictures of students looking calm in their calm down spot.

14. Lesson 2: Positive Words

15. Lesson 2: Positive WordsEmotional Regulation “Feelings Continuum” Rationale: Students learn where they are on the feelings/ arousal continuum so that they can begin to make their own adjustments or allow adults to make adjustments in the environment so as to bring students back to a calm and comfortable states.

16. Lesson 2: Positive WordsEmotional Regulation “Feelings Continuum” Activity: Feelings Thermometer • Students order 4-6 feeling faces on a continuum (e.g., a thermometer) • After ordering faces, students attach corresponding labels to each face

17. Lesson 2: Positive WordsBehavioral Regulation • “Use Your Words” • Rationale: • Cognitive behavioral psychology teaches us that how we think about a situation influences how we feel about that situation and how we feel about a situation predicts how we will behave in the situation. Therefore, by changing our thoughts and/or feelings about a situation, we can alter our behavior. • Hence, positive words directed toward ourselves (by ourselves or by others) can positively impact our cognitions, feelings, and actions.

18. Lesson 2: Positive WordsBehavioral Regulation • “Use Your Words” • Activity: Positive Memories • Note: Incorporate calm picture from Lesson 1 • Younger Students: • Smile File Collage (drawings or cut-out pictures) • Older Students: • Picture/words/saying sheet

19. Picture-image-saying

20. Lesson 3: Relax

21. Lesson 3: RelaxEmotional Regulation “Name That Feeling” Rationale: As children come to learn more about how different emotional states can feel within themselves and others, they need to develop a vocabulary that will allow them to express their feelings with a compatible level of complexity. Emotional labeling activities allow children to discover how different feeling words connotes different intensities of emotions.

22. Lesson 3: RelaxEmotional Regulation “Name That Feeling” Activity: Feelings Charades Option 1: Using a set of feeling face cards, say the name of each feeling and have the students copy the face they see displayed on the card. Require the students to be quiet, so that it is a non-verbal experience. Teach students to wipe their faces “calm” between each feeling face they make..

23. Lesson 3: RelaxEmotional Regulation “Name That Feeling” Activity: Feelings Charades Option 2: Using a set of emotional vocabulary words, read out a word and have students make the face that the word conveys to them. As the activity progresses, have students try to guess what face other students are making. Ecstatic Perturbed Mellow Miserable Disgusted Contented

24. Lesson 3: RelaxBehavioral Regulation • “Mind-Body Connection” • Rationale: • Our mind works together with our muscles to create both physical and mental health. Movement that is performed in a conscious, controlled manner– whether it be fast or slow – helps to establish balance within our systems. Breath creates a rhythm for fluid movement and if we allow it, we can use breath to slow ourselves down and relax.

25. Lesson 3: RelaxBehavioral Regulation • “Mind-Body Connection” • Activity Choices: • Yoga • Breathing • Stretching/ Exercising • Positive Visualization • Stress Balls & Fidget Toys • Progressive Muscle Relaxation • Wall Pushing

26. Lesson 3: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Mind-body menus Make a “menu” of mind-body activities that your class has learned and schedule in 2-3 mind-body breaks per day. Make a mind-body activity strip that student can attach to their work area or keep on their notebook/ clipboard.

27. Lesson 4: Express Yourself

28. Lesson 4: Express YourselfEmotional Regulation “Where Do You Feel Your Feelings?” Rationale: Our bodies undergo marked physical changes in response to a wide range of emotions (from the subtle blush of embarrassment to the bulging neck veins of rage). Understanding these body cues can help students “catch” and “cope” with their negative feelings while they are still small and manageable.

29. Lesson 4: Express YourselfEmotional Regulation “Where Do You Feel Your Feelings?” Activity: A Picture of Me Upset Identify areas in our body where we might feel negative feelings: • butterflies in the stomach • headaches • rapid heart beat • weight on the chest • shaky knees • hands in fists • heavy eyes • tight mouth

30. Lesson 4: Express YourselfBehavioral Regulation • “Creative ( & Safe) Self-Expression” • Rationale: • Art and music therapy have a long-standing history of helping children give meaning to emotions and experiences that are hard to capture in words. When overwhelmed and over-stimulated, many children need a release that allows them to experience competence and pleasure in order return to a state of self-control.

31. Lesson 4: Express YourselfBehavioral Regulation • “Creative ( & Safe) Self-Expression” • Activity Choices: A Picture of Me NOT Upset • Using the flip side of the “A Picture of • Me Upset” worksheet used for Lesson • 4’s Emotional Regulation activity, • have students draw a picture of • themselves wearing the clothes, hair, • shoes, jewelry, and other accessories • that best express who they are and • how they want others to see them.

32. Lesson 4: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Self-Expression Sampling

33. Lesson 4: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Self-Expression Sampling (continued)

34. Lesson 4: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Self-Expression Sampling

35. Lesson 5: Distract Yourself

36. Lesson 5: Distract YourselfEmotional Regulation “Feelings Fun” Rationale: In the previous emotional regulation activities, students have learned how different emotions feel and have been taught vocabulary for labeling feeling. The previous behavioral regulation activities have shown students that they can tolerate emotional states without losing control. Now, it’s time put all that together.

37. Lesson 5: Distract YourselfEmotional Regulation “Feelings Fun” Activity: Mood Monsters With your class, talk about the emotions that we sometimes attach to different colors, shapes, and line. Make a “legend” of what feelings you attach to each. Then, have students create their own personal mood monster that is an expression of themselves.

38. Lesson 5: Distract YourselfEmotional Regulation “Feelings Fun” Activity: Mood Monsters

39. Lesson 5: Distract YourselfBehavioral Regulation • “Forget About It” • Rationale: • The psychoanalytic branch of psychology talks about people consciously or unconsciously employing “defense mechanisms” to deal with emotions that are too much to handle. One of these defense mechanisms is sublimation – directing your energy into a useful alternative for an unacceptable goal. Distracting yourself is similar to sublimation.

40. Lesson 5: Distract YourselfBehavioral Regulation • “Forget About It” • Activity Choice: Break Boxes • Break boxes are a collection of low cost, small activities that students can do on their own to help themselves feel better. This activity gives students a chance to explore what’s in your “industrial strength” classroom break box (more about that later) and decide what they might like in their own personal break box.

41. Lesson 5: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Distraction Stations Similar to Self-Expression Sampling, this activity offers students a chance to proactively practice several different “distracting” activities and decide which ones they like the best. As with the Self-Expression Sampling, be sure to give students a method for recording how well each activity worked at getting their minds off of what is bothering them.

42. Lesson 5: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Distraction Stations

43. Lesson 5: Extension ActivitiesBehavioral Regulation Distraction Stations (continued)

44. Moving Forward: Summative Activities Do Something Plans

45. Self-Regulation Tools Sensory Equipment “I’m Stuck” Kits HELP! I’m STUCK! Break Boxes

46. Is it Sensory or Is it Behavior? Behavior is a learned coping strategy. Behavior is quickly learned when it is followed by success at meeting need and/or is rewarded Repeated use of learned behaviors creates established behaviors (i.e., habits) Once a behavior is established, it may look willful but often times the child has little conscious control over that behavior. To keep a behavior from being learned, either don’t let it occur or don’t let it be repeated.

47. Sensory Equipment Rationale: Sensory and social-emotional needs that might typically interfere with academic performance and social competence are met through the implementation of relatively inexpensive and easy-to-implement techniques and tools. IMPORTANT: Self-regulation tools should be available on an as-needed basis or at a scheduled break time. These tools should not be withheld as a consequence or used as a reward.

48. Sensory Equipment:BALANCE DISKS Seat cushions for students with a high need for movement (the wigglers) or those who are need a lot of tactile input (kids who are crashing and banging into objects, adults, and each other). One side of the disk is like a porcupine and the other side is slightly bumpy.

49. Sensory Equipment:WEIGHTED LAP CUSHION • This small pillow fits in a student’s lap and is filled with 5 pounds of aquarium rocks (and a little bit of padding). Weighted cushions are effective with students who have a high need for movement or those who need a lot of tactile input. The weight on the lower body can be very calming for some students and can help them stay in their seat to complete work. It can also keep them from moving about during carpet/ circle time. The weighted cushions can be used with students who need to do some "heavy work" activities - moving something heavy up and down a hall to burn off extra energy or get some pressure into the shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints.

50. Sensory Equipment:HEADPHONES Sound-blocking headphones are helpful for students who are easily distracted or bothered by external noises (the hallway, the room next door) or classroom chatter (e.g., teacher talking to other students, students working together on partner work).