Self-regulation
What is Self- Regulation?
Self-regulation is the ability to control ones thoughts, emotions and behaviours. Good self-regulation skills allow us to maintain attention, plan effectively and solve problems. As children grow and their brains develop, they become better able to manage their thoughts, emotions and behaviours. The development of self-regulation skills starts from a very early age. As these skills are practised they form pathways in the brain which increase a child's ability to manage stress and times of dysregulation more effectively.
Why is the Ability to Self- Regulate Important?
These skills help us to lead a balanced life and have positive relationships with others. Self-regulation affects health and wellbeing in both the short and long term. Good self-regulation skills can also be a predictor of how well children perform in school and further education. By teaching children and young people to be better self-regulators, we can improve their chances of being healthier, having better relationships with peers and teachers, and help them cope with stressful situations.
How does Self-Regulation Develop?
The foundations of self-regulation skills begin to develop in early childhood. The way in which caregivers support a baby to feel safe and secure (e.g. being held closely, smiling at one another, using soothing vocal tones) begin to establish neural networks that allow us to achieve the calmly focused state described earlier. Also underpinning early self-regulation skills is how the adults around respond when an infant is in distress and indicating they have a need to be met (e.g. a baby may cry when it is wet and needs changed, or a toddler may scream and throw themselves to the floor when they are told no). Routines and consistent ways of responding help children to create strong pathways in their brain with ways in which they can be soothed and supported to achieve a balanced state again.
Practitioners in education would explicitly teach children and young people how to perform mathematical calculations, read by blending sounds, or actively demonstrate the rules of a new game in P.E. We would suggest teaching self-regulation skills in the same way; through practice, modelling and direct instruction. This can be done through a variety of methods detailed below.
Things You Can Do:
Scaling. Scaling resources provide a visual representation of the difference between emotional states (such as happy, worried, angry) and behavioural states (such as calm, agitated, out of control). These tools support children and young people to make sense of abstract ideas. By drawing a child's attention to where they are on their scale, you not only support their understanding of different emotions, but you can then support them to try strategies to help them move back down the scale.
Movement breaks: All children benefit from regular opportunities for movement breaks to help support their focus and attention. This can be anything from a classroom job, whole class activities such as Go Noodle or Cosmic Kids yoga, or some quick star jumps or chair push ups!
Sensory breaks. Some children may benefit from additional sensory input to support them to feel regulated. This booklet from Falkirk Council 'Making Sense of Sensory Behaviour' is excellent and can help staff start to understand and respond to sensory needs. Movement breaks can help children feel more alert when they are lethargic or losing focus. Calming sensory activities can soothe and support anxious or overwhelmed pupils. Proprioceptive and vestibular activities can help ground children before tricky times in the school day (e.g bunny hops or trampoline, resistive bands exercises, monkey bars).
Emotion Coaching. Emotion coaching supports children's understanding of their emotions and helps them to self-regulate. Our page on Emotion Coaching has a video explaining more about the approach, some classroom activity ideas and further ideas for calming activities.
Mindfulness. Attention and the ability to regulate negative emotions have been proven to be increased by using mindfulness. These approaches teach young people to focus on the present by bringing focus to the body, in order to help gain control.
Staff self-regulation
Self-regulation is a necessary skill that can ensure our wellbeing. From an emotional point of view, self-regulation is the ability for oneself to think and respond flexibly to our emotions and feelings. It is important for school staff to be able to cheer themselves up when they are down and settle themselves when they are upset or under pressure. From a behavioural perspective, self-regulation is the ability for us to act and respond in accordance with our own professional and personal values.
Why is the ability to self-regulate important for school staff?
Stress is one of the most commonly reported challenges teachers face. While it is a natural human response which has evolved to help us survive, we need to find effective ways of managing it. Stress can be beneficial as it can motivate us to achieve things, exercise and better ourselves. This is often referred to as 'Eustress'. However, when school staff become overwhelmed, it can have a detrimental impact on their wellbeing, their role and on student achievement. When practitioners are able to keep calm they are more equipped to think rationally and problem solve effectively. However, when we are overwhelmed by stress, practitioners are less rational, more prone to burnout and less effective in their roles. This is why it is crucial to recognise and highlight the importance of our school staff having a strong foundation of self-regulation skills.
Mindfulness
"Mindfulness is traditionally taught through structured contemplative practices in which attention is focused intentionally and nonjudgmentally on present-moment somatic and mental experience in the form of bodily sensations, feelings, mental images, and thoughts" (Young, 2011). The practice of mindfulness has proven to improve a variety of factors for school staff, which include:
Improved personal wellbeing
Reduction in mental health difficulties
achievement of personally relevant goals
Enhanced ability to cope with the demands of teaching in a modern school
Coaching
Coaching is an emerging sub-discipline within the field of Educational Psychology. It has roots in positive psychology, is goal-oriented and solution-focused. Coaching differs from other forms of support psychologists provide that you may be familiar with (e.g. consultation) where we tend to support individuals indirectly. Coaching emphasises equality within the coach-coachee relationship and is more direct in its aim to support change. Some of the benefits associated with coaching include:
Improved self-esteem and self-direction
Improved resilience
Higher levels of subjective wellbeing
Increased goal attainment
'Emotionally regulate before we educate'
The British Psychological Society (BPS) state that emotionally regulated adults are able to calm children and young people who are emotionally dysregulated. They also found that adults who are dysregulated emotionally are unable to calm children and young people who present in the same way. Therefore, it is important that school staff are proactive in recognising the signs of stress in their pupils but also in themselves. Stress tolerance will vary greatly from person to person, however some of the common signs to look out for include: sleeping difficulties, overeating, avoiding people, restlessness and difficulties with concentration. Some people may start to think more negatively about themselves and notice physical differences (e.g. increased muscle tension, feeling tearful and frequent headaches).
Self care
Self-care is an important element and can help us education staff self-regulate. It is important for adults to take account and be mindful of how they will look after themselves, particularly during times of uncertainty. Strategies like healthy eating, drinking a lot of water, finding time to engage in activities you enjoy, spend time with friends (even if it is virtually through Microsoft Teams/Zoom), spend time in nature, and get plenty of exercise. Staff can decrease their stress hormones by making sure they take time to be kind to themselves which can help those around them feel calm too.
Connect and communicate
The British Psychological Society (BPS) have offered guidance highlighting the importance of school leaders and school staff fostering a sense of belonging and connectedness. This is particularly important when staff teams are working remotely. The BPS have identified four key relationships that are vital to building teacher resilience:
1) Teacher-Headteacher relationships
2) Teacher-Teacher relationships
3) Teacher-Student relationships
4) Teacher-Personal relationships
Schools are also advised to encourage and promote help-seeking as research has shown that school staff who seek help and those who are able to give help contribute to their own resilience.
The advice published by the BPS entitled ‘Teacher resilience during coronavirus school closures’ can be found here: Teacher resilience during coronavirus school closures.pdf (bps.org.uk)
Safe space
School leaders may wish to carefully consider implementing a safe space within their establishments. These spaces typically offer an open and safe forum for staff teams to focus on their psychological needs (e.g. belonging and nurture). Safe spaces have been shown to create a greater sense of community within school settings and promote greater opportunities to problem solve.