Before we begin, I encourage you to take a Meta Moment. Marc Brackett, Founder and Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, defines this as; a time to pause and activate our best self.
If you remember from our Meta Mindfulness, this was a loving-kindness mindfulness. Meta, means showing love and kindness. Taking a meta moment means showing this love and kindness to yourself, allowing your emotional regulation to be in the green and yellow sections of the mood meter (refer to last week's blog).
When we are our best selves, we then allow others the space to be their best selves.
As I continued my course Managing Emotions in Times of Uncertainty and Stress I was presented with information which helped me see how I present my emotions when working with students. The concept of emotional co-regulation is one that stood out to me. This is the idea that as social creatures we respond to the emotions of others. Studies have shown this to be a truth over and over again.
When we take time to reflect on the Mood Meter and check our own emotions we then create a safe space for our students to feel and properly identify their emotions. We model what we want them to know. This can easily be done in the classroom through checking in throughout the day with students and letting them know where you are on the mood meter. This is also something that should be done when utilizing Inner Explorer. Taking this time to engage in the activity with your students, rather than having them do it on their own while you play paperwork catch up.
Think about a challenging time in class....transitions from lunch, recess, or specials back to core educational topics... this is a time for co-regulation, not command. Let the students know that you see they are at a high level of energy and that you want to help them and prepare to move toward a lower energy for greater focus. This is the perfect time for mindfulness and Inner Explorer.
Studies have shown that most students cannot identify a "safe adult" in school. This means that students feel they have never been allowed or encouraged to give voice to their feelings. When we see a student yell, we tell them to stop. We assume anger behind the yell. In SEL the idea is presented that Behavior does NOT equal Emotion. Most of the time we need the story to truly understand. Take time to listen to the student and their story. Really hear them without judgement.
RULER is a way to help students with understanding and regulating emotions.
In this video, RULER you have an opportunity to hear from school staff and students about how utilizing RULER has be beneficial.
R: Recognizing emotions in oneself and others
U: Understanding the causes and consequences of emotions
L: Labeling emotions with a nuanced vocabulary
E: Expressing emotions in accordance with cultural norms and social context
R: Regulating emotions with helpful strategies
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