Zones of Regulation is used to teach self-regulation by categorizing all the different ways we feel into four concrete colored zones.

5 Simple Games to practice your child's ability to inhibit impulses, use listening skills, control emotions, use teamwork and social skills, resist temptations, and use self-control.

Check out the movie "Inside Out" for a fun family movie night that illustrates emotions and feelings! Here are some questions to further discussion about feelings:

1. What emotion do you feel most often?
2. Can you name a “core memory?” Why does that memory stick out to you? What emotion do you associate with that memory?
3. Why did the core memory change when sadness touched it?
4. What personality islands do you have?
5. Joy eventually realized the importance of Sadness. Why do you feel that other emotions are important?
6. What emotions do you feel are easy to express?
7. Are some emotions bad?
8. What are some ways you cope with sadness? Anger? Fear? Disgust?
9. When Riley gets angry at the dinner table, did that help her situation? How could she have expressed her emotions to her parents in a helpful way?

Following directions may sometimes be more difficult for some children. Many different skills go into following directions: mental flexibility, attention to details, listening skills, receptive language skills, verbal reasoning, and expressive language skills. There are also many types of directions: one step, multi-step, sequential, conditional, etc. All of this can make understanding how to help your child follow directions confusing and overwhelming.

Understanding why your child doesn’t follow directions can help you find solutions. Some kids who don’t follow directions may actually be struggling with focus. Some directions are more complicated than they seem, and your child might not fully be understanding what you're asking of them. The best way to increase their ability to follow directions? PRACTICE!

Here are some fun activities to help your child build their skills in following directions! There are many levels of following directions, so not all of these examples may be appropriate for your child's level. Please use these as general examples, and reach out to our Behavior Support Team if you would like them adapted to your child's specific level.needs.

Executive function is a set of mental skills that include working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control. We use these skills every day to learn, work, and manage daily life. Trouble with executive function can make it hard to focus, follow directions, and handle emotions, among other things. Below are some examples of what deficits in Executive Functioning might look like, some simple supports, some common accommodations you can provide your child and additional websites/resources for activities and games to help build skills in Executive Functioning. There are also 3 handouts, organized by age, listing MANY activities and games to do with your child to continue to strengthen their skills!

What is Functional Communication? Functional communication refers to the most basic of communication skills. This type of communication gets one's basic wants and needs known. Things like requesting desired items/activities, escaping undesired tasks/activities, and gaining attention/interaction from others. Many children who have difficulty communicating those wants and needs develop challenging behaviors in order to get their needs met. Through the teaching of functional communication (Functional Communication Training), children can gain access to and/or escape things more appropriately, therefore reducing the need for challenging behavior.

• Choose a mode of communication. It should be easy for the child to use and it should be easily prompted.

  • Visual (e.g. picture icon, AAC, etc)

  • Gestural (e.g. pointing, signing, etc.)

  • Predetermine phrase (verbal label or approximation)

• Choose highly desired items that your child will be motivated to request. The desired item should be out of reach of the child but visible.

• Initially, model the request with FULL prompting, by labeling the item and giving it to the child, associating the word with the item. As you continue to teach, fade back prompting (e.g. saying the first letter, requiring him to say the word to gain access to the item), until he is requesting the item independently.

• Take time to practice this skill multiple times within a sitting, and create more opportunities within the environment: avoid meeting the child's needs before they ask for items or activities, and limiting access to highly desired items in order for them to practice requesting.

• Choose a mode of communication. It should be easy for the child to use and it should be easily prompted.

  • Visual (e.g. Break Card, picture icon, AAC, etc.)

  • Gestural (e.g. pointing, signing, etc.)

  • Predetermined phrase (e.g. "I need a break" vs. "I don't want to")

• Provide needed materials (icon/visual/AAC) and teach the appropriate phrase ("I need a break").

• Use modeling to teach the child to request the break. (You may need to model what you do during the break as well.)

• Present an activity that may elicit a need for a break. Prime (or remind them at the beginning): "When you're all done, ask for a break".

• When the child is showing signs of needing a break, prompt the student to use the icon or phrase previously taught.

• Allow student to take a break from the task and praise them for asking for a break (instead of challenging behaviors)

• Choose a mode of communication. It should be easy for the child to use and it should be easily prompted.

  • Visual (e.g. picture icon, AAC, etc.)

  • Gestural (e.g. waving, signing, etc.)

  • Predetermined phrase (e.g. a greeting,

• Provide needed materials (icon/visual/AAC) and teach the appropriate behavior (e.g. waving, tapping shoulder, etc.) or phrase (e.g. "Hi!").

• Use modeling to teach the child to engage in the appropriate attention seeking skill (e.g. waving, touching shoulder, saying "hi", etc.)

  • you may need a 3rd person to prompt, besides the person who you are trying to gain the attention from.

• Initially, model the request with FULL prompting and immediately accessing the attention of the other person. As you continue to teach, fade back prompting (e.g. nudging their arm for a wave, saying first part of phrase, etc.), until he is seeking the person's attention independently.

• Praise and/or reinforce the appropriate behavior by giving the child attention!