- Evidence shows that educators can implement approaches that benefit young children’s self-regulation and/​or executive function. The EEF’s Early Years Toolkit estimates that self-regulation approaches may also be effective in promoting successful learning.
- While there is evidence that implementing these approaches could have a positive impact on children’s self-regulation and/​or executive function outcomes, there are still some questions that are unanswered and so more research is needed.
- Some approaches educators use to support self-regulation and executive function require explicit teachingFormal educator-directed approaches in which educators explicitly support children to develop specific ideas and skills. and modelling. Others require educators to intentionally structure experiences for children to facilitate development during play, enabling them to practise and try out different strategies.
Self-regulation enables children to monitor their emotions and thoughts and choose how to adapt their behaviour towards a goal. This may be a goal they have chosen for themselves, or one guided by a suggestion or request from an adult. Very young children begin to develop their self-regulation, in part, through close support from the adults around them. Through teaching, modelling and practice, children gain an increased capacity to regulate their thoughts and emotions. This enables them to adjust their actions as they work towards a goal.
Self-regulation is supported by children’s executive function. Executive function refers to a set of skills which are often used together. These require teaching and modelling, practice, and repetition to develop. Executive function can help children resist their impulses and control how they direct their attention. Executive function also helps children to hold information in mind so they can apply it, such as remembering the rules of a game whilst they play.
Self-regulation and executive function are closely interrelated and often rely on each other. They are typically applied together to help children gain greater control over their thoughts, actions, and emotional responses. Children’s ability to apply these skills can be influenced by their early experiences, their current state of well-being and levels of motivation. Supporting the development of these skills may mean children are more likely to do better later in school.
Within the statutory Early Years Foundation Stage Framework, developing self-regulation is recognised as part of a child’s Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED). The approaches for teaching self-regulation and executive function are complementary to some approaches within the Personal, Social, and Emotional Development (PSED) theme. You will find this theme both within the PSED section of the Evidence Store and accessible as a standalone resource. Do consider exploring the approaches here and within the PSED theme.
A child’s ability to regulate their own thoughts, feelings and behaviours and their executive function is supported by responsive interactions with others. Caregivers, such as parents and educators, play a large role in providing these crucial, regulation-supporting interactions, but siblings and peers can provide them too.
When adults create consistent, predictable routines and have clear, developmentally appropriate expectations, they help to create an emotionally safe environment where children’s development of goal-orientated behaviour is more manageable. The approaches and practices summarised in this theme of the Evidence Store highlight the different ways educators can teach and coach self-regulation and executive function during interactions with children.
Teaching and coachingCoaching typically involves an expert coach providing peer support and assistance on a one-to-one, regular, and sustained basis. self-regulation and executive function take place across the different contexts for teaching and learning in the early years (see Pedagogical continuum). For example, an educator can:
- Deliver an adult-led session using action rhymes to explicitly teach and practise executive function, for example, by changing the speed or actions being used, or missing out words (e.g. heads, shoulders, knees and toes);
- Prompt and support children to use calming techniques while guiding children’s play, in response to peer conflict;
- Coordinate and signpost peers to follow through on a shared plan for their independent play.
Co-regulation is when an adult provides responsive support to bridge the gap between the child’s current and their potential capacity to regulate in a particular task or situation.
The level of the support required by the adult during co-regulation depends on:
- the child’s developmental stage and level of self-regulatory skills
- their experience with the task/​situation
- their emotional and cognitiveRelated to the mental process involved in knowing, understanding, and learning. state in that moment.
An adult’s role in co-regulation is larger when enabling children who typically have limited or lower self-regulation skills, such as babies and toddlers, to manage a situation or task. For example, the adult observes a toddler hitting out towards another child who has tried to take the toy they are playing with. The adult responds by engaging the child at their level, acknowledges and articulates what has just happened, and then sensitively offers the child reassurance and a hug. The adult then uses the moment to expand the child’s knowledge of self-regulation strategies, for example, by firstly calming them by suggesting they take a deep breath, then modelling how to gesture ​’stop’ to the other child. Finally, the adult finds another toy so both children have enough resources to play with.
Adult support can reduce in intensity as children’s experience of self-regulation in different contexts increases. For example, the adult provides reassurance when a child is frustrated that another child has gotten on the bike they wanted first. They remind the child of a strategy they can apply to help them regulate. After taking a few deep breaths, the child asks for a sand timer to make sure they have a fair turn.
You can see from the examples above that there are broadly two components to the interaction:
- responding by acknowledging the situation and providing emotional support if needed
- expanding the interaction to include an opportunity to develop self-regulation skills by either modelling the application of a strategy or suggesting the child could apply one.
It is important to plan adult-led opportunities to teach self-regulation strategies, in addition to responsive co-regulation. This enables children to develop a repertoire of strategies to draw on, facilitating the reduction in the intensity of the educator’s support. The adult can remind the child to use the strategy rather than apply it for them.
To teach self-regulation and executive function, a gradual and intentional reduction in the level of adult scaffoldingGuiding a child through a task that they would not be able to access fully without help. over time enables children to take more responsibility for applying strategies to regulate themselves.
Even children who appear to have mastered or frequently use self-regulation strategies may require more intensive co-regulation with an educator in some instances. For example, if they are tired or upset. Similarly, the educator’s level of self-regulation may also fluctuate throughout the day and over time, influencing their capacity for co-regulation with a child. An educator’s knowledge of the child’s existing skills, the current context and their well-being are valuable to effectively tailor the intensity of the support offered.
For more information about how educators can implement high-quality responsive and learning-focused interactions with children across all areas of learning, please see additional guide(to be shared soon). . It includes how to integrate the approaches and practices summarised in the Evidence Store into interactions with children and how to reduce level of adult support to promote children’s independence.
During planned opportunities and responsive interactions with children, there are several approaches that educators can use to develop the self-regulation and/​or executive function of children, these include:
- Creating and navigating challenge:
Creating developmentally appropriate challenges for children to develop and practice their skills in different contexts. - Teaching self-monitoring and self-awareness:
Helping children to develop an awareness of their own thoughts and emotions, including how their feelings - Creating a community of collaborative learners:
Facilitating collaborative groups of learners where adults and children cooperate and work towards shared goals. - Promoting physical activity: Educators proactively and regularly organise opportunities for children to engage in physical activity.
- Facilitating talk to communicate about learning:
Encouraging talk that enables children to plan and reflect on their thinking and learning, including how they plan to approach or adapt an activity and evaluating this afterwards.
The page for each approach has two sections. The first is called​‘What does the evidence say?’ In this section, we share key messages about the approach from the research. The second section is called​‘Approach in action.’ This section provides practical examples of how the approach could be implemented in settings. It draws on the experience and expertise of educators.
In addition to the above approaches, the evidence also revealed broader strategies that support children’s self-regulation and/​or executive function. These include:
- curriculum;
- professional development for educators; and
- music.
Curriculum
There is mixed evidence on curricula that focus on self-regulation or executive function through a planned set of activities and instruction. Some studies found that these curricula can support children’s self-regulation, executive function and academic skills. However, other studies found no impact. Some studies found a positive impact of self-regulation curricula on children from lower-income families. However, the research does not say whether they benefit more, less, or the same as their more affluent peers.
One curriculum, Tools of the Mind, has been studied more than others. This curriculum promotes the use of role-play and encourages children to plan and reflect on their play and learning. There is some evidence that this curriculum may have a positive effect on children’s self-regulation, executive function, and attainment. However, more research is needed to be confident of this effect.
Professional development for educators
Some of the studies that look at the impact of educators’ practice on children’s self-regulation and executive function involve the educator receiving professional development or training. There is some evidence that professional development focussing on self-regulation and executive function can improve children’s executive function. This included training and mentoring educators to create a calm, organised learning environment and to promote socio-emotional development. There is also broader evidence that general professional development for educators can improve outcomes for children in the early years. You can read more in our Guide to Effective Professional Development in the Early Years to consider key features of professional development that are associated with improved outcomes for children.
Music
There is a small amount of evidence that shows that music activities can support children’s self-regulation and executive function. The most effective music activities included movement, took place in small groups or were done regularly and over several weeks and months.
The ​‘self-regulation strategies’ strand of the EEF Early Years Toolkit summarises the best available evidence from 15 self-regulation studies. These studies show that self-regulation strategies can have a positive impact of three months on children’s learning and may be a cost-effective approach for raising attainment. However, the evidence base is limited in the early years.
This booklet on ​‘Supporting children’s self-regulation’ is part of the Early Years Library developed by the Early Intervention Foundation and PEDAL, the Play in Education, Development and Learning centre at the University of Cambridge. It provides suggestions for educators to support self-regulation in early years.