SELF REGULATION

What exactly is self regulation?? Self-regulation is the ability to monitor and manage one’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. (Ctte for Children, 2012)] Give example…if I really want my classmates toy, I’m going to take it! Or have a meltdown when I don’t get it. (a child without self reg skills) BUT if I really want that same toy, I have to the ability to STOP and think about the consequences of taking that toy. I also can use self talk to tell myself that that toy isn't mine. I don’t have a meltdown because I can think to myself how I have a really great toy sitting right in front of me, or I can go home and tell my mom about that really great toy that I saw today, maybe I could get it for my birthday! (a child with self reg skills) Self-regulation, more than intelligence or motivation, predicts long-term academic success and other life outcomes. (Blair & Razza, 2007; Howse, 2003) ----WOW----

Low SES and Self-Regulation Sadly, research has shown that children from low SES families end up going to school with little to no self regulation skills. The older a child is, the harder it is from them to know and gain these skills. That is why it is SO SO SO important that they learn them early on.

It is important… That children understand what “emotions” are. How they should react appropriately to any situation How they can stop and think about how they should be acting or reacting That they understand how to use “self talk”

How can we teach them these skills?? It is so simple to teach these skills to students! We easily self regulate every day and we don’t even realize it. Example: “teacher meeting reschedule” if I really need to change a meeting time, but Dr. Dezutter can’t meet any other time but then, because I have Self regulation skills I can calm myself down and look at my schedule to re- arrange my time of when I will work on things. Games and specific instructions work the best! The Wiki that Dr. DeZutter and I have created has really great ideas! And you are all welcome to use it

What can we do to PREVENT temper tantrums and meltdowns from happening? (which are the results of not having these skills) Relaxation exercises (yoga) Music in the classrooms Breaks to walk around Talking out the emotion wheel with the teacher Doing breathing exercises Watching videos that center on self-control Use emotion tools (these can easily be created)---they are faces that can be drawn on spoons/paper plates that are all the different faces of our emotions. Use them to figure out what a child is feeling.

Dr. Shanker Podcast on Wiki “every child deals with stress differently. And every child has different triggers that are stressors for them that might not be the same for another child.” Give sound sensitive example: “one child might be extremely sensitive to sound, and a child sitting right next to him might not be sensitive to sound at all. The first student is using twice as much energy to block out sound distractions, when the other student doesn’t have to work at that at all.” “They themselves don’t understand why they are lasing out or misbehaving or not paying attention.” –that is why it is important for them to learn which emotions are which.

Dr. Shanker continued… “What drives this process is that children WANT to be clam and alert. You don’t have to talk them into wanting to feel calm, you just have to MAKE THEM REALIZE when they are NOT being calm. Its all about realization of ones own emotions and what makes them feel calm and un-calm.