TGlearn has partnered with Nashville Christian School to provide executive function coaching to students and families. Every month, we send out an informational email based on a specific executive function skill. In January, the skill was response inhibition.
View the send out below:
February: Emotional Control
Upper/Middle School
What is Emotional Control?:
The ability to manage emotions to achieve goals, complete tasks, or control and direct behavior. (ie: a teenager is able to manage the anxiety of a game or test and still perform)
Tips:
Identify Triggers
Have the student work to understand what causes him/her feel strong emotions (anger, fear, sadness) so you can emotionally prepare before entering these situations.
Communicate
When a student is feeling emotionally overwhelmed, have him/her share with someone you trust. Sometimes, just talking it out can alleviate strong negative feelings.
Use Positive Coping
Positive coping skills can be used in the moment to help calm the nervous system (body and mind). Coping skills include progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, breath work, and more! Different coping skills work for different people.
Plan Ahead
Poor emotional control often occurs when something triggering happens unexpectedly. Preparing for the day/week can help reduce how often the unexpected occurs, and allows the student to feel more confident and prepared when it does.
Why?:
Control your emotions, or let them control you
When we are not in control of our emotions, they often control us. Everyone can think of a time in their life that their emotions got the better of them and they said or did something they did not mean to.
Better relationships
If we do not have emotional control, we are not communicating effectively. If we are not communicating effectively, our relationships will suffer. By learning emotional control and tolerance, we can strengthen our relationships by building trust, understanding, and mutual respect.
Success
Learning to control your emotions is imperative to your success in the workplace/school. Emotional outbursts, warranted or not, are not appropriate in these environments and could harm one’s eligibility to continue.
Lower School
Emotional Control At-Home:
Model the behavior
To get kids’ to “buy in” to emotional control, they need a positive model. Children are less likely to control and regulate their emotions if the figures of authority in their life do not do the same.
Process together
Oftentimes, emotions are big! Just sitting down with the child after an emotional outburst to help them process what happened and how it made them feel can positively impact their reactions in the future.
Give praise
When children regulate their emotions well (ie: able to calm down quickly when something upsets them), make sure to congratulate them! Positive reinforcement goes a long way.
Make your expectations clear
Sometimes, kids act out emotionally when they do not know what is expected of them, or what an appropriate reaction is. Sit down with them to discuss appropriate responses to big emotions.
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