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SELF-REG HAVENS
Havens are our dream for all schools, early childhood centres, homes — everywhere! A Self-Reg Haven is a place where everyone feels safe in every way: physically, emotionally, socially, and culturally.
Places, spaces and relationships that embrace the new and hopeful science of stress, self-regulation, and co-regulation, using Self-Reg as a foundational framework for all they do, are on the Self-Reg Haven journey.
In Havens we apply Self-Reg in layers, starting with the universal layer—everyone—and including not just children but every staff member and extending to parents and the community. No two Self-Reg Havens are alike and they all are continually evolving, but we can tell you this: you know one the moment you are in it.
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Early Years
Parents
Schools
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SELF-REG HAVEN FEATURES
I Know a Haven When I Find One
I’ve been thinking a lot about Self-Reg Havens these days as we get ready for the new school year. One big question that is not so easy to answer is: what makes a home, an early childhood centre, a school, or a community a haven? Stuart Shanker says…
The Self-Reg View of: Schools as “Self-Reg Havens”
“What,” Susan asked me, “do you mean when you talk about schools becoming ‘Self-Reg Havens’ and why is this so important?” My immediate reaction was: Ask me an easy one why don’t you! But the fact is, our experience…
Self-Reg RADAR: A Tool to Help With the “How” of Becoming a Haven
A Self-Reg Haven is a school where everyone feels physically and emotionally safe, where students and staff alike feel connected to the school and to each other. But the big question is the “How?”. I get asked questions like…
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MOST RECENT SELF-REG HAVEN BLOGS
What Does Self-Reg Look Like When It Starts to Change a Whole System?
One educator learns Self-Reg. They start seeing things differently. They share what they are noticing with a colleague. The colleague reads something. Attends a workshop. Tries it with a student. Brings it back to a team meeting. And slowly, almost without anyone...
For the Educational Assistants Who Hold Everything Together
There is a role in schools and early childhood settings that is often invisible in professional development conversations. The person who is frequently right there when everything escalates. Who is sitting beside the child who cannot hold it together in the large...
What Happens When “Soft Eyes” Are Not Enough
There is a phrase that circulates in Self-Reg communities: "soft eyes." It is a reminder to look at a child's behaviour with compassion and curiosity rather than judgment. It is a good reminder. An important one. And it is never the whole answer. At some point, most...
Co-Regulation Is Not a Calming Strategy. It Is a Relationship.
A lot of people come to Self-Reg having already heard the phrase "co-regulation." They might even feel like they know what it means: helping a child calm down, using a quiet voice, getting down to their level. Those things are not wrong. But they are the surface of...
The Arc of the Day Is Not Just a Schedule, It Is a Stress Plan
The Arc of the Day Matters More Than We Think Picture a kindergarten classroom at 2:00 in the afternoon. Or a middle school hallway right after lunch on a Friday. Or a Grade 3 class in the third week of November. If you have spent time in schools or early childhood...
What Behaviour Is Really Telling Us: A Closer Look at the Five Domains
Think about a student you have found yourself puzzling over. Maybe they shut down mid-task for no apparent reason. Maybe they explode over something that seems tiny. Maybe they are just... unreachable some days, even when everything looks fine on the surface.Self-Reg...