Images by Julia Wishart, purchased on Teachers Pay Teachers I am offering a critical reflection about a Program that I have used in different roles and settings – as a Family Support Worker running small social skills groups with children in Nanaimo schools in 2015; during my 5th year grade 1 practicum in 2016; and again over the summer of 2016 while supporting an 8 year old boy in foster care.
The Zones of Regulation is an evidence-based framework to foster self-regulation and emotional control. 'The Zones' as they are commonly referred to, have been developed by Leah Kuypers (www.zonesofregulation.com) as part of her MA in Education and work with children with Autism. 'The Zones' Program is based primarily on evidence that is backed up by cognitive behavioural science. There are a number of research projects currently in progress that are exploring the impact of 'the Zones'. There are many ways to engage with 'the Zones'; on Facebook, through their mobile app, by buying the manual and posters, and through their online webinars and training sessions. The first thing I want to say is that I love 'the Zones' because they align so well with my credo and guiding principles! Yes! The great thing about being an educator is I get to select tools that align with my values! I believe in the research that shows that emotional regulation is a pre-cursor to cognitive function. This means that children learn best when they are in control of their thoughts and emotions, and don't learn at all if they are dysregulated by strong feelings of anger, sadness or fear. This is not just common sense, it is reflected in the research. So what are the Zones? In a nutshell, 'the Zones' are a method of categorizing emotional and cognitive states into 4 categories. The Zones teaches that all feelings are normal and ok, and that we can develop the ability to control our feelings and move between zones. Here is a screenshot of one of the posters that is used to teach the 'zones' to children in schools. I have used this poster in small group work with primary students, with a whole grade 1 class and with an individual child. The Zones Program can be implemented at the district, school or classroom levels, and the creators believe it works best when the whole school is engaged in the Zones. The Program also encompasses cognitive tools and strategies for moving between zones. There are many videos on YouTube that show the Zones in use on a school wide level. One of the things that has struck me the most about using the Zones and zones language with children, is the ease with which they understand the zones, and the immediacy with which they start using the zones language. Embracing all feelings as normal and ok empowers children to feel accepted even when they are dysregulated. This helps them feel safe enough to identify and express their feelings through using the Zones language. Teaching the strategies for moving between the Zones empowers children to be in control of their thoughts and feelings. I believe that the Zones help children develop self awareness and emotional intelligence, which in turn supports their mental health. How have I used the 'Zones'? During my practicum in a Grade 1 class, I found that the children often came in from outside recess dysregulated and unable to regulate themselves for learning. When I realized that I did not yet have the credibility or trust with the children to intervene appropriately, I asked my sponsor teacher if I could implement the Zones as part of my classroom management strategy. She was familiar with the Program and had used it before. I created a Zones chart with a cup for each zone and a name stick for each learner. In the mornings when the children came into class they put their name sticks into one of the zones and I checked in with the children as a group, often focusing on those who had put themselves in the blue, yellow or red zones. We would problem-solve together how to support each learner to get into the green zone. I found that this helped 'gather' the students at the beginning of the day and built a sense of empathy in the classroom. This only took about 5 minutes of time and I found it to be a very powerful way to communicate care and concern for all students. I also used the Zones language during transition times between recess and learning time. I knelt at the classroom door, made eye contact and asked each learner what zone they were in as they came in from recess. Learners in the Green Zone entered the classroom while learners in the yellow or red zones (I rarely had blue zone when they came in from recess), stepped to the side so I could discuss what had happened. I found this to be a very effective classroom management tool because I was able to quickly identify who was coming in the door dysregulated. Often, telling the story and being heard helped diffuse the feelings and the child was able to get into the green zone very quickly. Some children who needed more attention from me would change the location of their name stick or come up to me and tell me that they were going into the yellow or red zone. For me this was a miracle! Imagine a 6 year old child with low impulse control being able to stop and identify their feeling state before choosing an action! On a few occasions I experimented with the 'zones' language to let the learners know how I was feeling. I said, 'I'm starting to feel frustrated because of the noise level. I feel like I might be going into the Yellow Zone". I found this grabbed the children's attention so that I could model a strategy such as taking a few deep breaths. The children really seemed to be fascinated by my use of the Zones and it helped bring the noise level down. I truly believe that they did this out of a sense of empathy for me rather than to make me happy or because I am an authority figure. Demonstrating my own use of 'the Zones' is another way I bring the Zones into a social context, which I believe starts to create a classroom culture based on empathy and compassion for others, which is a core value for me as a teacher. I could go on and tell more Zones stories, but I think I have illustrated how even a simple use of 'the Zones' can bring about profound changes in the classroom. 'The Zones' seems to be in common use throughout the Nanaimo School District, as I observed when I worked in many different Nanaimo schools as an EA. I strongly recommend to any educator to take a closer look at the Zones and find out how the Program can support you and your students to become more emotionally intelligent, compassionate and regulated learners.
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Video by Sephelonor on Pixabay, CCO
Heather Fisher
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