by Andrea Van Sice

“Before we can teach content, we need to ensure that our students are available for learning” (Lipsett, 2011).

When I began teaching in an urban setting, I knew there would be challenges. However, I never foresaw that my students’ ability to regulate their emotions would be our classroom’s biggest challenge.

You may be able to think of a student you have had in the past who had trouble with anger, anxiety, or outbursts—these are some internalizing and externalizing behaviors that show an imbalance in emotion regulation. A child’s ability to regulate their emotions is essential for their academic, behavioral, and social development.

After teaching a class of students who struggled with emotion regulation, I wanted to research and find what a teacher can do to support these students so they are better prepared to learn.

Emotion Regulation: Key Function of the Brain
I discovered that emotion regulation is one of the seven key executive functions of the brain; executive functions are the processes by which we manage ourselves and our resources in order to achieve a goal (Galinsky, 2010). Without executive function, doing everyday tasks and staying organized is nearly impossible.

Students in Urban Poverty at Risk
I also found that students living in urban poverty have a higher risk of low emotion regulation abilities due to a higher exposure to traumatic events, inadequate nutrition, lower socioemotional abilities, and a higher risk for emotional, academic, and behavioral problems (Bradley & Corwyn, 2002; Duncan & Brooks-Gunn, 1997; Herman, 2015; Kenney, 2012). Poverty affects the whole child, so the whole child needs to be supported in the school environment.

One intervention for emotion regulation may not be enough for students in urban poverty. Many environmental factors in their lives are working against them, so the interventions and support need to be comprehensive to support the whole child (Bronfenbrenner, 1977).

Three-Tiered Model of Support
I recommend using a three-tiered model of support, which provides prevention, intervention, and ongoing assessment of every student’s emotion regulation skills, with support increasing from tier I to tier III.

Tier I includes whole-class prevention and intervention; examples may be social-emotional learning integrated into the school day, breathing exercises at the beginning of the school day, or emphasizing a school-wide culture of self-control and healthy emotion regulation behaviors.

Tier II supports may be integrated literacy and emotion regulation skill small groups, emotional literacy social stories, or targeted self-control small groups. If a student is still struggling to regulate emotions after tier II interventions, the next step would be to implement tier III interventions.

Tier III may include regular meetings with a counselor or psychologist, or one-on-one social emotional learning lessons. Intensive trauma counseling may also be needed.

While this is a quick overview of what the three-tiered model might look like, the goal here is to support students with longevity and according to their need.

Research: Small Group Intervention
As part of my research, I implemented a small group intervention that combined literacy skills and social-emotional learning skills. In the primary grades, literacy can be the most common source of frustration for learners. Especially in urban poverty, the students who are struggling emotionally or behaviorally are most likely doing so, in part, because they are also struggling academically.

The goal for this intervention was to lessen internalizing and externalizing behaviors and to develop on-grade level readers. The result: 75% of students improved their literacy levels and began reading at an appropriate level.

Results
I observed that the most beneficial aspect of the small groups was rapport building with the teacher. Students who struggled with internalizing behaviors such as withdrawal and anxiety benefited immensely from building trusting relationships with the teacher and group members.

Rapport building was also important for students with externalizing behaviors. As the group progressed, students recognized the expectations for behavior and were motivated to improve as rapport was built. Small group literacy and emotion regulation skill integration is a great tool to use to support struggling readers and those struggling with emotion regulation.

With a concerted effort and a plan in place, schools can promote emotion regulation and better prepare students for academic, behavioral, and social success in the classroom environment. Schools might also consider how they can reach out into communities of urban poverty to support children and families outside of the school setting, specifically in ways that are negatively affecting children and their ability to regulate emotions.

CLICK HERE to read Andrea’s entire Capstone project.

Andrea Van Sice (’14, ’18) recently completed her MS in Education with an instruction emphasis. She’s also taught in various WELS schools.

We want to hear from you: 

• What classroom strategies have you found useful to help students regulate their emotional behaviors?
• What activities could help develop a classroom culture of mutual trust, thus preventing (to some extent) behaviors that indicate an imbalance in emotional regulation?
• How can the radical, unconditional love of our Savior lay a foundation for improved emotional regulation in struggling children?

References
Bradley, R. & R. Corwyn. (2002). Socioeconomic status and child development. Annual Review of Psychology. Vol. 53.

Bronfenbrenner, U. (1977). Toward an experimental ecology of human development. American Psychologist. Cornell University.

Duncan, G. J. & Brooks-Gunn, J. (1997). The effects of poverty on children. The Future of Children. Vol. 7. No. 2.

Galinsky, Ellen. (2010). Mind in the Making. Harper Studio Publishing: New York.

Herman, K., Reinke, W., & Stormont, M. (2015). The overlooked children: How teachers can support children with internalizing behaviors. Internalizing Behaviors. Vol. 24. Iss. 2. 39(6).

Kenney, M. K. (2012). Child, family, and neighborhood associations with parent and peer interactive play during early childhood. Maternal and Child Health Journal. Doi:10.1007/s10995-012-0998-7

Lipsett, A. (2011). Supporting emotional regulation in elementary school: Brain-based strategies and classroom interventions to promote self-regulation. LEARNing Landscapes. Vol. 5. No. 1.