Zones of Regulation- YELLOW

The Zones of Regulation is a tool that is used in many different places and may be something you have heard of before. We see it used a lot with kiddos in the school and we use it right here at Therapy OPS! But what are the zones and what does this program help with? For the month of June, our blog posts are going to focus on the different zones and what each one means and what emotions are part of each one!

The Zones were created as a tool to help with understanding and reacting to our own emotions. This is a great way to work towards self-regulation. By using color categories, it helps children begin to organize the different ways they are feeling and their different states of alertness. Once the children begin to recognize their zones and emotions/behaviors, the Zones introduces strategies to help with controlling their emotions, help them out and recognize their sensory needs and assist with problem solving. The main goal of the Zones is to teach kiddos to identify their feelings, understand how behaviors impact those around them and finding tools to manage all of this!

The four zones are red, yellow, green and blue. Today we will focus on YELLOW.

With today being the last day of school for so many, we thought the yellow zone would be a good fit. The YELLOW zone is when kiddos are feeling big emotions but still mostly in control. Feelings in this group may include anxiety, excitement, being silly, nervous and stress. Kiddos may be overly excited for summer break but also feeling nervous about a lack of routine that summer brings or being nervous about the upcoming new school year!

The tools that work for this zone will be different for each kiddo but could include things such as belly breathing or blowing bubbles! If you have specific questions about controlling emotions or reactions, please give TOPS a call to talk to an occupational therapist today at 651-455-0561!