Zones of Regulation
Supporting Emotional Regulation at Marsh Gibbon CE School
At Marsh Gibbon, our Christian vision is "Succeeding Together – fostering a love of learning within a nurturing Christian community to bring out the best in everyone." Guided by our values of love, compassion, respect, and forgiveness, we believe that emotional wellbeing and resilience are fundamental to children’s success and spiritual growth.
The Zones of Regulation is an internationally-recognised approach that helps children understand and manage their emotions—what we call ‘self-regulation’. This is about helping children reach the best state of alertness for any situation—whether they need to focus in class, participate actively in sport, or calm down after feeling upset.
Windows, Mirrors and Doors
Our ApproachAt Marsh Gibbon, we aim to equip all children with practical strategies to manage their feelings, helping them to:
Our CommitmentWe understand that everyone—children and adults alike—sometimes finds it hard to manage strong feelings like worry, anger, or fatigue. Our goal is to support children in developing strategies that help them feel calm, safe, and ready to learn—whether in the classroom, on the sports field, or in everyday life.
By fostering emotional wellbeing rooted in faith, we help children grow into resilient, caring individuals, equipped to face life’s challenges with confidence and hope—walking their own path of faith, growth, and self-discovery.
At Marsh Gibbon, our Christian vision is "Succeeding Together – fostering a love of learning within a nurturing Christian community to bring out the best in everyone." Guided by our values of love, compassion, respect, and forgiveness, we believe that emotional wellbeing and resilience are fundamental to children’s success and spiritual growth.
The Zones of Regulation is an internationally-recognised approach that helps children understand and manage their emotions—what we call ‘self-regulation’. This is about helping children reach the best state of alertness for any situation—whether they need to focus in class, participate actively in sport, or calm down after feeling upset.
Windows, Mirrors and Doors
- Windows: The Zones open windows to understanding others’ feelings and perspectives. When children learn to recognise and respect their own emotions and those of their peers, it fosters empathy, compassion, and a deeper understanding rooted in faith.
- Mirrors: Our school reflects each child's emotions and experiences. By teaching children the language of feelings and self-regulation strategies, we help them see themselves as capable of managing their emotions—mirroring God’s love and patience for each of us.
- Doors: Self-regulation acts as doors to growth and resilience. It provides children with the tools to handle difficult feelings—such as worry, anger, or tiredness—and to return to a calm, focused state. These skills open pathways to positive behaviour, better learning, and lifelong emotional strength, supported by God’s love and guidance.
Our ApproachAt Marsh Gibbon, we aim to equip all children with practical strategies to manage their feelings, helping them to:
- Tackle challenges with resilience instead of giving up
- Develop self-control, impulse management, and self-awareness
- Recognise when they need to pause, breathe, or seek support
- Cultivate resilience to face future challenges with confidence
Our CommitmentWe understand that everyone—children and adults alike—sometimes finds it hard to manage strong feelings like worry, anger, or fatigue. Our goal is to support children in developing strategies that help them feel calm, safe, and ready to learn—whether in the classroom, on the sports field, or in everyday life.
By fostering emotional wellbeing rooted in faith, we help children grow into resilient, caring individuals, equipped to face life’s challenges with confidence and hope—walking their own path of faith, growth, and self-discovery.
Our Intent is to help children to:
Our intent is to focus on helping children recognize and navigate their emotions through the Zones of Regulation, which act as doors to self-awareness, empathy, and resilience. Our goals are to:
- Recognise when they are in different Zones and learn how to change or maintain their emotional state
- Increase their emotional vocabulary so they can confidently explain how they are feeling, reflecting their inner spiritual journey of understanding and expression
- Recognise when others are in different Zones, fostering empathy, kindness, and respect—values rooted in our Christian faith
- Gain insight into what might cause them to move between Zones, understanding how emotions, sensory experiences like sleep or hunger, and their environment influence their feelings
- Develop problem-solving skills and resilience, trusting in God's strength to face challenges
- Identify calming and alerting strategies that support their emotional regulation, helping them stay calm, focused, and ready to learn in line with the whole child's development
What are the different zones?
Blue Zone: low level of arousal; not ready to learn; feels sad, sick, tired, bored, moving slowly.
Green Zone: calm state of alertness; optimal level to learn; feels happy, calm, feeling okay, focused.
Yellow Zone: heightened state of alertness; elevated emotions; has some control; feels frustrated, worried, silly/wiggly, excited, loss of some control.
Red Zone: heightened state of alertness and intense emotions; not an optimal level for learning; out of control; feels mad/angry, terrified, yelling/hitting, elated, out of control.
Green Zone: calm state of alertness; optimal level to learn; feels happy, calm, feeling okay, focused.
Yellow Zone: heightened state of alertness; elevated emotions; has some control; feels frustrated, worried, silly/wiggly, excited, loss of some control.
Red Zone: heightened state of alertness and intense emotions; not an optimal level for learning; out of control; feels mad/angry, terrified, yelling/hitting, elated, out of control.
