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The Zones of Regulation

The Zones of Regulation

The Zones of Regulation® is s digital program that helps students understand and manage their emotions using color zones and interactive lessons.

  • Online

Pricing: Paid

Origin: Developed elsewhere but applicable for Australian schools

Product type: Program; Posters; An App; Online resources (e.g. videos, games, tools, readings); Activity sheets; Student activities; Professional learning; Whole school approach or initiative; Learning modules; Class lesson plans

Contact details

The Zones of Regulation

https://zonesofregulation.com/digital-curriculum/

info@zonesofregulation.com

Focus areas

  • Positive relationships

  • Belonging and inclusion

  • Mental health literacy and life skills

  • Self-regulation and engagement

Curriculum alignment

Prospective users

Audience: Whole school universal (Tier 1), Whole class universal (Tier 1), Targeted small group early intervention (Tier 2), Intensive individualised approach (Tier 3)

Communities: Diverse cultures or language groups, Neurodiversity or disability

Context: School or centre-based, Outside School Hours Care (OSHC), Home-schooling, E-schools

Main beneficiaries: Early learning, Foundation/Prep, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4, Year 5, Year 6, Year 7, Year 8, Year 9, Year 10, Year 11, Year 12

Delivery style: Classroom teacher is trained

Aims & approach

The Zones of Regulation® is designed for educators, clinicians, and caregivers supporting learners ages 4 and up.

The Digital Curriculum fosters self-regulation, emotional awareness, and executive functioning through structured, developmentally aligned lessons. The curriculum includes a progression of lessons, visual tools, and interactive activities, adaptable for whole-class, small group, or individual use.

Implementation can vary in duration with flexible pacing based on learner needs. Direct instruction is recommended for at least 40 minutes per week.

Optional training is available for professionals to build fidelity, deepen understanding, and explore real-world strategies for classroom and clinical settings.

Cost per user for an annual subscription with discounts available for bulk purchases. While it was developed in the US, is is suitable for Australian classrooms and has been widely used.

Implementation support

  • Access to professional facilitator, instructor or mentor
  • Implementation training webinars or modules
  • Ongoing helpdesk, email or phone support
  • Regular webinars or access to community of professional practice

Evidence

The Zones is grounded in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Social Emotional Learning (SEL), and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and informed by evidence-based approaches of developmental psychology and neuroscience.

CBT principles help learners recognise the connection between their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours, and develop strategies to manage their responses. The Zones also aligns with the five core SEL competencies outlined by CASEL (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making) and provides a structured way to build these skills.

The curriculum incorporates UDL principles to ensure accessibility, offering multiple means of engagement, representation, and expression to meet the needs of diverse learners.

The Zones reflects a developmental understanding of self-regulation, acknowledging that these skills evolve over time through co-regulation, modeling, and practice. It incorporates frameworks such as Kopp's Phases of Control and insights from executive functioning research. The framework integrates knowledge about brain development, emotional regulation, and sensory processing, supporting learners in understanding how the brain and body work together during emotional experiences.

The program was recently trialled in ASPECT classrooms to support students with autism: Zones-of-Regulation-report