Window of Stress Tolerance
In the book Help for Billy something called a window for stress tolerance was described (p. 18). As I read this it made so much sense for some of the kids that walk in our doors each day. The window of stress tolerance is defined by the student's ability to withstand pressure, overwhelm and fear without becoming dysregulated and without reaching his "breaking point". Each one of us have a certain level of stress from which we operate, as well as a point at which we reach complete overwhelm, where we essentially "blow".
This figure shows the difference between 2 students stress windows. When a student has a large window of stress tolerance, he has the ability to function in life and at school. Andy can navigate his way through his academic day with ease and flexibility. However, Billy has a very small window. He lives only moments away from his breaking point. His executive functions are not on line because he is too stressed out to think clearly and rationally. He is living from a much deeper emotional place of internal chaos, fear and survival.
CHANGING THE WINDOW: When a child is placed in an environment that keeps him in his window without reaching his breaking point he has a chance to increase his window of tolerance.
After thinking about this please share a way or ways that you think would work well to increase students like Billy's window of tolerance. You might have had a student like Billy and did something that kept them from their breaking point. Or maybe you read something, or heard another teacher mention something that you would like to try. Please share and/or comment to others.
I have had some of these students in the past and I have had some success helping them to know when they need a break. They need the opportunity to take a break or "time out" when they feel they are getting near that breaking point. Sometimes I initiated the time out but after a while they knew when they needed it and would tell me or just move to a chill out table in my library. In a more extreme case a student took a sign I made that said "I need a break" to take to the office or the counselor for a few minutes until they were ready to rejoin our classroom. Redirecting them and using them as a helper was also effective.
ReplyDeleteI like what Sharon said she did. I saw it help the student, and her, with a break from each other. I thought what the book said about keeping a calm voice helps the child and it would also help me and my blood pressure by remaining quiet and try to understand what the child is going through. I did use a paper with a student this year. Together we came up with some choices the child could do after they earned a break. When they were able to do three things that were appropriate in the classroom, they earned the break and could go over and chose an item off the paper to do. I had a sand timer by the area and the child knew to flip it over and they would have 3 minutes to do the activity. They would then rejoin the group as if they never left. It was a nice way to have the student learn responsibility and to be able to make the choices they wanted.
ReplyDeleteI loved this part of the book! Learning about behavior and understanding it is my favorite. Also, my favorite speaker is a woman by the name of Jill Molli and she presents on conscious discipline. Her idea is that kids need to feel safe first, have a connection with the teacher and peers, and then once they have those established then they can learn to problem-solve. If a child's brain is not in the correct state of mind then the first thing that needs to be done is to calm it. I have learned over the years that trying to solve the problem right away is not the correct direction, the brain needs to be calmed first. As the book mentioned our brain works best when we are using it top down because our pre-frontal cortex is the "CEO" of our brain where are the decisions are made. If we aren't in that top part then obviously no problem-solving will be done.
ReplyDeleteShe spoke at a conference I was at in April! She is fascinating. I would love to go to the conscious discipline workshops.
DeleteThis visual really made sense to me as I was reading this part of the book. We expect so much of our kiddos, yet sometimes we forget that they are under stress too. I'm sure my window of stress goes up and down several times a year...grade, conferences ;) and all I ever say during those times are, "I JUST WANT A BREAK!" Ha! Our kids feel the same way as we do, even the "Andys." I think it's important to have times built in when everyone in the class participates in a brain break. As others have mentioned, there are time when breaks needs to be initiated by the student or teacher. Asking my kids to take a walk to the water fountain, deliver a note, go down to the gym to run laps, do a job around the classroom, play with that cool sand stuff, go watch the fish, anything that took them away from the task that was increasing their stress to an activity that felt calming. I also like what Laura said about, calming before trying to solve the problem. That's so important and I remember learning that the hard way! :)
ReplyDeleteI think that the comments are great! I think about what I do when I am stressed; make lists. Even though as I am making the list I become anxious and more stressed! It is crossing off things on the list that bring me relaxation. I know it sounds a little crazy, but we all enjoy crossing things off our list. I relate this to students by trying to help them put what is most important first and realizing that there is an end in sight. Stress comes when we are overwhelmed. If we break it down into simple, manageable steps, our students can see they can cope and accomplish the unknown. Sometimes just seeing the steps helps to ease the anxiety. I do think that having breaks, either built in or spontaneous, are helpful for students as well as teachers. It helps to break tension and clear everyone's head. Sometimes all that we need is a fresh start!
ReplyDeleteI am a list person too, Nicole! I actually feel less anxious once I make my lists because seeing it laid out helps me feel in control and able to conquer each individual task.
DeleteI see this so often with the students I work with, especially those on the spectrum. As hard as it is, I think it is important to understand that each of our students' are different. Some kids can breeze through a school day without a problem, while others are dealing with sensory overload, dyslexia, hunger, whatever it may be. Though we may want to try and force all of our kids to follow the same rules, it is not going to result in success. I think simple things such as visual schedules and break cards are great for kids that have low tolerance windows. Additionally, we may need to teach the students how to read their own feelings and provide them with strategies for when they are getting overwhelmed. Being calm and treating each student as an individual is so important!
ReplyDeleteRight now I'm thinking about my window of stress tolerance... Usually it looks like Andy's but this summer it looks more like Billy's! Haha! My boys have pushed me to my breaking point quite a few times this summer between stitches and 11:00 bed times but I still love them like crazy!
ReplyDeleteBut for real, when thinking about past students I've had, I wish I would have had read this book. I totally agree with what the book said and what Laura mentioned, instead of trying to solve the problem right away make sure they are feeling safe and connected. For me, thinking before speaking would be very helpful. Sometimes I would make a snap comment because in the moment not finishing their homework or returning that permission slip I had been asking for day in and day out was so important but in reality it's NOT. What's important is that we need to think of that child, what does that child deal with day in and day out? Is me harping on them about their homework, permission slip really going to make things any better, solve their problems? NO!! Kids like Billy would expect someone to jump all over him for not doing his homework or returning the note but if he saw that I cared about him, make him feel safe, over time he would be able to handle me asking about his homework, etc. And I think it's important to constantly remind ourselves that they are KIDS and some of these kids deal with so much at their age that I can't even imagine dealing with as an adult.
I also really enjoyed this part of the book! At the beginning of this year I wanted to solve the major issues my kids were having, but there was so much that had to be done first. 1. They had to know what was going to happen, and that it was going to be consistent. This includes our academic schedule, our routines, and behavior consequences (good and bad). This along
ReplyDeleteWith a strong relationship. You really learn your students and their stress tolerance-when they need a break and when you can push them a little bit further. Sometimes it is a guessing game. Time outs are so necessary, we all need them in life
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DeleteMy favorite part was how they stressed relationships so much. I felt I had so much more control without having to do anything this year because the relationships were so strong in our Class. I was mind blown that I had one student I could just look at and he would calm down. Superhuman powers!
One of the things that really struck a chord with me was the idea of what trauma is. It was a great reminder that trauma is in the eye of the beholder, not a set list of events that we may label traumatic. If the child doesn't feel safe or is fearful, then they are in traumatic state. It saddens me deeply to know that many of our kiddos live in traumatic states day in and day out. One thing I'm going to try next year is "Instead of asking children to make a better "choice" in their behaviors, it is time that we ask ourselves to make a better choice in the creation of their environments." pg 21; I am going to strive to remain calm, remember that this child doesn't know any differently, and that in order to break this cycle, I need to build a safe, nurturing relationship and ask them what they need right in the moment.
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