Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you caught a case of the giggles and just couldn't stop—even when you knew it was completely the wrong time to be laughing?
Or perhaps you've felt utterly exhausted, lethargic, or simply low in body and spirit?
Maybe you've woken up feeling refreshed and ready to tackle anything that comes your way?
Or surely you've experienced frustration to the point where you just wanted to scream?
Well, your tamariki have certainly felt all of these emotions!
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| One of our tamariki re-designed our Zones of Regulation poster! |
That is why, in Autahi this week, we have been exploring The Zones of Regulation. This comprehensive framework is specifically designed to support tamariki in understanding and managing their emotions, behaviors, and sensory needs. The framework is divided into four distinct zones:
Green Zone: Happy, calm, focused, and ready to learn
Yellow Zone: Energetic, excited, silly, annoyed, or worried
Blue Zone: Tired, unwell, down, or low in energy
Red Zone: Angry, panicked, terrified, or out of control
As adults, we have had years of experience navigating these emotions and developing a personal toolkit to support us across different zones. For tamariki, however, this journey is just beginning. They are only starting to learn how their emotions affect their body, how their body affects their emotions and what strategies to use when facing lots of these new experiences - like starting school!
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| These books by Michael Rosen have been a great way to support tamariki in learning about the Zones of Regulation - particularly, knowing how their bodies might react when they are in each zone. |
The most productive learning takes place when tamariki are in their Green Zone. When we feel calm and settled, our minds are ready to absorb new information. Getting into the Green Zone looks different for everyone. For some, doing some simple breathing exercises, like 5 finger breathing, does the trick. For others, maybe settling down with a picture book, or a sketchpad and a pencil helps them to return to the Green Zone.
We asked our Autahi tamariki if there was a place within the classroom that they like to go to when they need help getting back into their Green Zone. The most popular response was our library corner! So we then decided that if our library corner was a safe and calming space for Autahi, then maybe we could also use it as a check-in space...
And thus, the Wall of Regulation was born! The idea behind this wall is that tamariki can take their new face/name-tag (the one with a pink dot) and place themselves in the zone that they are feeling.
We know that some mornings can be tricky! Sometimes our tamariki arrive at school in their Blue or Yellow Zone. Encouraging everyone to place their face in a Zone when they arrive at school helps us notice how everyone is feeling right from the start of the day. From there, we can support them with strategies to get back into their Green Zone, ready for a great day of learning!
We encourage you to chat with your child each morning about how they are feeling and which zone they might be in. If they aren't feeling in the Green Zone, you could try a calming activity together—like reading a story, drawing, or checking in directly with one of their kaiako. A gentle start helps set them up for a successful day!
