I love the Zones of Regulation. Through it, Michelle Garcia Winner and her colleagues incorporate all the things I’ve learned about sensory processing, emotion regulation, and self-care. I can’t recommend the Zones curriculum highly enough for all SLPs or, really, anyone working with children. I found when using the tools from this book I needed a check-in sheet for everyday use with kids who don’t necessarily need the rest of the curriculum or kids who have already gone through the curriculum. So I used parts of the Zones of Regulation curriculum book to make this Zones Check-In sheet. When each kid comes into my room we do a check-in: they choose their current emotion, which of the zones that emotion belongs to, and then a tool to help them get their work done. I’ve added my own tools: the kids’ favorites are the weighted Zooey lap buddy, having a snack, wiggle cushions, the mermaid pillows (which the kids can make angry faces on before they make them fight), and the quiet tent.
Here are some more regulation tools…