Self Regulation Strategies
Self-regulation is the ability to focus and prioritize tasks, stay organized and manage time. It also requires self-awareness. Self-regulation skills help students be more successful academically as well as socially. The ability to self-regulate also influences a student’s behavior. Educators, parents, and other professionals can provide self-regulation strategies to help their students succeed!
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Self-regulation skills are important to possess because they can help students set themselves up for future success.
There are many different ways to self-regulate such as prioritizing tasks, deep breathing, staying calm, and more. As a preventative measure, it is also good to take breaks when you feel overwhelmed or frustrated.
Benefits of Teaching Self-Regulation Strategies
It is beneficial for teachers to explicitly teach lessons in small groups or to the entire class to encourage the development of self-regulation skills.
According to Dr. Richard Davidson, positive emotions contribute to success, and people with self-regulation skills are more likely to be open to new experiences and opportunities. People who have higher levels of self-regulation find it easier to postpone gratification or act in spite of fear. People who possess these skills also tend to be less impulsive and better able to control themselves emotionally.
When students are able to self-regulate, their grades can improve—students with higher levels of self-regulation tend to perform better academically. Students who lack self-control may appear unmotivated, disrespectful, or disengaged.
Self-regulation skills also help all learners build social skills and connect with peers.
Students can begin developing self-regulation skills early on by working with their parents to establish routines and schedules. It also helps to give them opportunities for success at an early age so they learn how to take pride in their accomplishments, identify what works for them and learn from mistakes. Parents will need to have the patience to be able to step back and let the children learn these self-regulation techniques rather than do it for them.
When students learn self-regulation ad coping skills, they also gradually learn the importance of taking responsibility for their actions and how they affect those around them.
Self Regulation Strategies and Suggestions
If you want to help your students in the classroom, here are some suggestions. First and foremost create an environment that promotes learning to help your students succeed.
Student Voice
Provide your students with a voice. It is important for children to feel that they are heard and can be a part of the learning process.
For example, if your student is struggling to self-regulate to complete assignments, perhaps allow the student to provide input into where assignments will be completed (i.e., in class or at home) and when (before or after school). Specify this information in the IEP/504 Plan to help implement a time management system for completing homework assignments.
Self-Advocacy for Students
Offer Clear Instructions
Provide clear instructions about what needs to be learned, how it will be assessed, and what accommodations will/will not be made before the student begins the assignment. Providing this information reduces emotions about receiving low grades due to misunderstanding expectations.
Give frequent instruction on class preparation too (e.g., what needs to be done before coming to class; e.g., bring pencils).
Movement Breaks and Brain Breaks for Self Regulation Strategies
Your students need to regulate before you can educate them. You can get the brain ready to work by providing physical activity breaks throughout the day. Yoga is an excellent way to help students learn about self-regulation. Check out a huge collection of brain breaks here.
Self-Regulation Strategies for Younger Children
Children LOVE to play games. Incorporating games that require children to develop impulse control and waiting to take their turns is an excellent way to build self-regulation skills in kids. Check out these 10 games to encourage self-regulation skills that require no equipment.
Try Small Group Work
Sometimes frustration can set it with students when working in a large ground setting. It can be overwhelming and loud. Assign group work with one or two students so they can practice self-regulation skills in a smaller setting.
Work Together to Set Goals
Work with your students to establish specific goals regarding self-regulation such as completing assignments independently without redirection or practicings self-regulation skills during transitions.
Positive Goal Setting
Teach Your Students How to Self-Monitor
Give students opportunities for self-monitoring where they use a checklist to assess their progress. Always provide detailed feedback about what students did well or need to do differently in order for them to improve.
Targeted Skill Practice
Provide opportunities for practice of targeted skills during class time through the application of new concepts. Try this self regulation puzzle for practice.
Teach Your Students How to Identify Emotions
Being able to identify and recognize our emotions are a critical first step to emotional regulation. You can help students develop these skills with this free printable on emotional regulation.
Teach Deep Breathing To Add To Your Students Self Regulation Strategies Toolkit
Children will be able to master certain deep breathing techniques better than others. Teach various deep breathing exercises to children so they can determine which ones are most beneficial.
Breathing Breaks Deep Breathing Exercises
Use Helpful Study Strategies in Class or at Home
Implement study strategies such as organizers, graphic organizers, cue cards, note cards, and flashcards.
Provide Feedback
Provide frequent feedback by way of redirection if the student is off task If you expect students to complete most work independently.
Try creating a signal to use with a student so that you can discretely remind them to return to the task at hand.
Modeling
Modeling any task prior to asking students to do it by themselves can be extremely beneficial.
Use Positive Self-Talk
Self talk is a mental strategy using self addressed cues (short phrases or a few words) to trigger appropriate responses by focusing attention on the skill or behavior to help improve performance. Read more here.
Monitor and Re-Teach Skills
Monitor and re-teach skills until they have been mastered so that the targeted skill is being used in all academic situations. You can use rubrics to monitor a student’s progress.
Make sure that the student consistently receives feedback about their performance. This approach will help build confidence and persistence when learning new material or skills.
Student Self-Regulation Rubrics
Provide Additional Support If Needed
Provide opportunities for students to work with a peer tutor, another teacher, or professional (such as an Occupational Therapist to help with emotional regulation, organizational skills, motor planning, etc) to provide assistance if the student struggles to complete tasks independently.
Resources to Help with Students with Self Regulation Strategies
Yoga in the Classroom will help you bring yoga into the classroom, therapy room or clinic with this wide variety of digital downloads including books, cards, and posters! You’ll have the confidence and new ideas to hit the ground running!
Move~Work~Breathe is a self-regulation curriculum designed by a school based occupational therapist, Thia Triggs. It can be used with elementary age children with Autism, Emotional Behavioral Disturbance, Intellectual Disabilities, ADHD, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Sensory Disregulation, and more.
This curriculum provides an effective, time-efficient structured system to provide classroom breaks, improve self-awareness and self advocacy and teach specific self-regulation skills so that kids have tools to use in their classrooms. This system will get kids moving, give them the benefits of a brain power boost [from getting their heart rate up], give them heavy work and isometrics to help them calm down, and help them learn techniques to quiet and control their bodies in order to return to their academic work. FIND OUT MORE.
Created by a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant, this Sort and Match Emotions and Self Regulation Strategies Activity is a great addition any self regulation/behavior/social emotional learning curriculum (How Does Your Engine Run™, PBIS™, SEL™, Zones of Regulation™…) for fun ways to review and master the material.
Read More About Self Regulation Strategies
Games to Practice Self-Regulation
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