Supporting Self-Regulation at Kaikorai

To guide our tamariki in navigating their emotions and behaviour, we use two interconnected tools—The Zones of Regulation for feelings and our 'Check My Temp' plan for actions

The Zones of Regulation

We use the Zones of Regulation to help students identify and talk about how they are feeling on the inside.

• Blue Zone: Low energy (tired, sad, bored).

• Green Zone: Good to go (calm, focused, happy).

• Yellow Zone: Elevated energy (frustrated, worried, silly, excited).

• Red Zone: Intense energy (angry, terrified, elated).

The most important rule of the Zones is that all Zones are okay. It is perfectly normal to feel angry (Red Zone) or frustrated (Yellow Zone). Our goal is not to stop children from feeling these emotions, but to teach them how to manage them safely.

This is where the concept of "choice" comes in. While a student might be in the Red Zone (feeling very angry), hitting a classmate or damaging property is a behavioural choice. We teach our students that no matter what Zone they are in, they are still responsible for the choices they make with their words and their bodies.

"Check My Temp" - Our Schoolwide Behaviour Plan

To support this work and clearly outline expectations and responses to behaviour, we have introduced our schoolwide visual behaviour plan titled “Check My Temp.” While our Zones focus on feelings, "Check My Temp" focuses entirely on our choices and actions, categorised into three colour-coded levels:

• 🟡 MINOR (Yellow) Minor behaviours include hurtful words, disrupting learning, or forgetting to keep hands and body to oneself. Students are supported to reflect, talk with their teacher, take a break if needed, and try again using our KAIK values. This often happens when feelings from the Yellow Zone start to spill into our actions.

• 🟠 MAJOR (Orange) Please note: Orange is not a Zones of Regulation colour, but rather a specific step on our behaviour thermometer. Major behaviours include repeated unkindness, physical actions that make others feel unsafe, property damage, or ignoring teacher reminders. Students move to a different space, speak with a school leader, and parents are contacted. Follow-up and tracking occur.

• 🔴 CRISIS (Red) Crisis behaviours involve serious safety concerns such as harming others, threatening language, leaving school grounds, or damaging property in a way that makes the space unsafe. In these cases, students move to a safe space immediately, meet with the principal, and a formal plan is put in place. This may include time away from class or being sent home.

Our goal is clarity, consistency, and fairness. “Check My Temp” helps students understand that behaviour is a choice, that every choice has a next step, and that adults are here to guide, support, and teach safer ways to respond.

By the end of next week, I will have visited all of our classrooms to introduce or review the Zones of Regulation and show them our new 'Check My Temp' behaviour plan.

To support this, every classroom is equipped with a visible copy of the behaviour plan, which is worded in child-friendly language, a Zones reference display, and a dedicated 'Zones Box' filled with calming tools and fidgets. For those moments when a student needs a quieter space to reset, they also have access to our sensory room, Rūma Rangimarie.

We encourage you to ask your child about 'Check My Temp' and the Zones of Regulation at home! If you have any questions or would like to know more about how we are supporting our students, please don't hesitate to reach out.