In the Australian Curriculum, students develop personal and social capability as they learn to understand themselves and others, and manage their relationships, lives, work and learning more effectively. Personal and social capability involves students in a range of practices including recognising and regulating emotions, developing empathy for others and understanding relationships, establishing and building positive relationships, making responsible decisions, working effectively in teams, handling challenging situations constructively and developing leadership skills.

At St Clare’s there are many ways we teach and support students to develop personal and social capabilities.  One way is through the Zones of Regulation curriculum.  This program supports students to learn how to identify their emotions and the emotions of others.  By identifying which “zone” the emotion is located, students can more readily identify learnt strategies to help them self-regulate and to be “ready for learning.” 

One of the strategies students learn when they may be in the Red or Yellow Zones is Lazy 8 breathing.  The Red Zone typically represents heightened states of alertness or very intense feelings.  The Yellow Zone is also used to describe a heighted state of alertness but is less intense and includes feelings of frustration, anxiety, excitement, silliness, confusion and nervousness.

Many students have been learning to use the Lazy 8 breathing to assist with regulation.  It is important to practice this technique regularly and when students are not experiencing a Red or Yellow Zone emotion.  This practice supports mastery so students can access the technique when they have heightened emotions.