Today was April Fools’ Day. Usually for us, April Fools’ Day is a PA Day or weekend, so this is the first one that I’ve experienced as a junior teacher. My students were excited to pull a little practical joke on me. They wrote me a note on the board, typed another one on my computer, hid a couple of my devices, and left me a box full of a nice, muddy surprise. The Grade 5’s thought that this was hysterical, and I couldn’t help but laugh along with them. 🙂

Then came the problem though of a very excited class, one last period to work, and a lesson in which I really needed them to calm down. What to do? Their volume was up, and I could feel my stress level rise. I’ll admit that when this happens, my initial instinct is to talk over the students — get louder to quiet them down. But this is when I can’t help but think of Stuart Shanker and self-regulation. As a teacher, this is when I feel as though I need to self-regulate. So I resist the urge to “talk above” and instead I “go below.”

• I take a deep breath.
• I get really quiet.
• I try to keep my tone even.
• I use as few words as possible, and I often give additional wait time to get students thinking.

And as someone that has used this same strategy from Kindergarten to Grade 6, the results are always the same: the students quiet down. The students calm down. The students become ready to listen and learn. And I feel my stress level quickly decreasing.

Self-regulation is something I also need to consider in other facets of my job. I find myself self-regulating during meetings and inservices: I’m a passionate person and an emotional person. For me, often the two go hand-in-hand. I will always speak up to support students, and I will always contribute if I feel strongly about an issue. I don’t like admitting it, but many times these contributions come with tears. I start to talk and I can feel that lump in my throat: I know that the tears are coming quickly if I want them to or not. This is when I have to self-regulate.

• I may stop talking altogether, or if not, I try to keep my tone low.
• I think carefully about my words.
• I try to sum up my thoughts quickly, so that I can stop talking before the tears start.
• I take a deep breath.
• I get up, leave, and try to find just a little alone time.

If I think that speaking up may lead to tears, I plan in advance what I’m going to say. I try to create a script. And, if need be, I sit back, smile, and bite my tongue (literally) — re-thinking if I really want to say anything. Depending on the situation, I may also tweet: not in a negative way, but in a positive one. Tweeting or blogging make me feel better, and this matters!

I share this post because as I read more of Stuart Shanker‘s Calm, Alert, and Learning, I see all of his references to “adult self-regulation” and this can be hard. As adults, we’re often trying to multi-task, we’re feeling the impact of multiple stressors, and we want to remain calm, but this can be a challenge. I believe though that really reflecting on how we self-regulate will make us more aware of strategies we can use in different situations to keep calm: benefitting not only us, but our students. How do you emotionally self-regulate? What are the benefits in doing so? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!

Aviva