In our local school districts, The Zones of Regulation by Leah Kuypers is one of the most popular emotional regulation curriculums used with students. As with any curriculum, it is important that the Zones of Regulation is implemented with fidelity to ensure student success. Keep reading to see how we have broken down the Steps to Successful Implementation of The Zones of Regulation in today's Executive Functioning Forum!
Step 1: Provide Direct Instruction
Adults often expect executive functioning skills, including emotional regulation, to develop naturally as a student gets older. With our autistic students in particular, this is unlikely due to their difficulties with implicit learning. This is why it is so important to explicitly teach the skills we want our students to demonstrate.
Zones of Regulation author Leah Kuypers emphasizes in her trainings that it is important to teach and reteach the skills and strategies outlined in the curriculum. If a student isn't grasping or generalizing a certain topic, go back and reteach it! The curriculum is not a scripted, linear lesson plan but rather a guide of lessons that can be used to directly taught to address specific skills.
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| Red Zone Art Project Learning Center- West, MCESC |
Another important thing to note is when introducing the curriculum you do not want it to develop a negative association. This can sometimes happen if the student is fixated on being "right" or struggles with threats to self-image. Often, they will insist they are in the "green zone" because they feel this is the "right" answer. Emphasis needs to be made on validating all feelings and zones as being ok. One way to do this is to take the pressure off the student initially and relating feelings and zones instruction to familiar characters or special interests.
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| Book Character Zone Sort |
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| Special Interest Zones Lego Men |
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| Zones Posters with Inside Out Characters Melissa Wells Miamisburg Middle School, Miamisburg |
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| Zones Posters with Inside Out Characters Cassandra Hebauf Northmoor Elementary, Northmont |
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| Zones Posters with Inside Out Characters Clark Shawnee Elementary |
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| Zones Posters with Inside Out Characters Ruthann Hill Greenon Elementary, Greenon |
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| Zones Posters with Inside Out Characters Washington Primary, Piqua |
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| Zones Bulletin Board with Superheroes Megan Logano Clark ESC |
Step 2: Incorporate Check-Ins into Daily Routines
Just like we provide opportunities for students to practice their math and reading skills daily, we need to mindfully plan when we will practice emotional regulation skills proactively throughout the day. This will build critical mass and make the application of strategies overwhelming in difficult moments when they are needed most.
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| Google Slide Group Check-In Lydia Smith Greenon Elementary, Greenon |
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| Google Slide Group Check-In Learning Center-West, MCESC |
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| Check-In on Classroom Door Argyroula Diamanti Cleveland Elementary, Dayton |
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| Zones Check-in Bracelets Ruthann Hill Greenon Elementary, Greenon |
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| Check-In with Emojis Nichole Dunn Miamisburg Middle School, Miamisburg |
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| Zones Check-In on Name Tag Julia Spencer Learning Center-West, MCESC |
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| Zones Meter Check-In with Emojis Stacie Depew Valley View Elementary, Valley View |
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| Zones Check-In on Sensory Room Door Cleveland Elementary, Dayton |
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| Zones Visuals Rachael Bissett Springcreek Primary, Piqua |
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| Zones Meters with Emojis Granville Bastin Wogaman Middle School, Dayton |
Step 3: Incorporate Tools Into Check-Ins
One misconception we see with implementation of the Zones of Regulation is that teams wait until emotion and zone identification is mastered before ever introducing tools and strategies for regulation. In order to get buy-in and make the curriculum meaningful, begin exposing students to tools as soon as possible and quickly link tools to the check-ins so that students understand the process of self-regulating.
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| Yellow Zone Tools Visual Choice Board Carolyn Nevels Learning Center-West, MCESC |
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| Zones Bookmarks |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Nichole Dunn Miamisburg Middle School, Miamisburg |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Sandy McIntosh Trotwood Middle School, Trotwood |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Emily Beck Bradford |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Katie Ross Greenon Elementary, Greenon |
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| Zones Check-In Bulletin Board with Tools Brantwood Elementary, Mad River |
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| Zones Flip Ring with Tools Susan Cutshall Eastmont Elementary, Dayton |
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| Zones Check-In Folder with Tools Kelly Coppess Madison Park Elementary, Trotwood |
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| Zones Tools in Labeled Drawers |
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| Personalized Zones Check-In Supports Sara Harris Kettering Middle School, Kettering |
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| Zones Check-In Bulletin Board with Tools Nichole Dunn Miamisburg Middle School, Miamisburg |
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| Individual Zones Check-In with Tools Kim Coyle Saville Elementary, Mad River |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Pam Ellender Mad River Middle School, Mad River |
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| Zones Check-In Bulletin Board with Tools Tracey Cooper Tecumseh, Clark ESC |
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| Zones Check-In Bulletin Board with Tools Nikki Tinnermann Kleptz ELC, Northmont |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Taylor Ruef Stevenson Elementary, Mad River |
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| Zones Check-In Ring with Tools |
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| Zones Check-In with Tools Heather Balkcom Springcreek Primary, Piqua |
Step 4: Data Collection
Again, just like we take data on the success of academic lessons on student goals, we should also take data to determine the effectiveness of implementing the Zones of Regulation. Areas to evaluate are:
- Are students identifying their own emotions?
- Are students able to identify which zone they are in?
- Are there enough proactive check-in times scheduled throughout the school day?
- Are the tools identified to regulate students in each zone actually effective for them?
- Are students applying these skills and strategies when dysregulated?
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| Zones Student Reflection Data Sheet Ms. Durkle Normandy Elementary, Centerville |
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| Zones Student Reflection Data Sheet Allie Clements West Carrollton Intermediate, West Carrollton |
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| Zones Student Reflection Data Sheet Haley Urschel Perrin Woods Elementary, Springfield |
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| Zones Student Reflection Daily Graph |
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| Zones Daily Graph |
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| Break Sign-In Sheet with Zones Katie Ross Greenon Elementary, Greenon |
For more ideas related to implementation of the Zones of Regulation, check out the curriculum website and our previous posts:
