Green OR Blue

If anyone has had an opportunity to work in a classroom full of students diagnosed with Autism, they would have heard of the 'Zones of Regulation'. I am almost always in the Green Zone. That means I am calm and happy and ready to learn.

Today, we had a very chaotic morning. We have a student "visiting" us from the other ISP classroom, and he is as confused as our students. He got into a tussle of sorts with 3 of our students, one at a time, and one after the other. All 3 of them got dysregulated right away, and there was no way any learning was going to happen. Michael made a call to take all the students (5+1) to the Sensory Room. I was glad he made the call and supported it 100%.

When we got back, we were good to go! We start our school day by checking where each of us is ... in terms of the 4 Zones. Today, we were spread out over the 4 of them. We knew whom we could nudge a little and whom to not nudge at all.

Despite the rough start, we had some spectacular moments in the school day. We love when we end the school day with all students going home safely and happily. Some days, we do some debriefing. Today, Michael told me that I can't be in the Green Zone all the time. His rationale is that students need to see us in other Zones. Today, he felt I could have been in the Blue Zone since I worked late last night on the Individual Education Plans (IEPs) for our students that are due tomorrow, and I didn't sleep well, and I had a rough morning! Michael felt that I could do some role modeling for our students - like letting them know it is okay to be in the other Zones. I got his point; however, I truly was in the Green Zone!

I had to let Michael know that I am annoyingly positive. Honestly, I love my job. I love my students (maybe not the most politically correct thing to say, but I do). I always think of how a parent would want their child treated, and since I am a parent, I would want a loving and caring adult taking care of my kids, especially if they also have special needs.

Once I am in my classroom, and I see my 1st student, it is showtime! They get the best of me. I come home, and I have no energy left for my child. It is wonderful that he doesn't need me anymore! 

At this point in this post, I will purposefully digress ... 

Recently, I watched this special on Barbara Walters. She apparently had a child, and she prioritized her job over her parental duties. Within the special, I got to hear Oprah Winfrey's thoughts about that. She shared that Ms Walters encouraged her to have a child; but Ms Winfrey decided that it is best not to since she only had time for her work or something like that! And I got that ... I don't believe Ms Winfrey was saying she made a better choice, I believe she was saying she made a different choice that works for her. Well, some of us are lucky to have the ability to make choices, and I am thankful I am one of those lucky ones!

At the end of the day, it is about women not judging other women. It is also about men not telling women what they should do and how they should feel about the choices they make. When I choose to be in the Green Zone, I could also be role modeling to students that we can continue to be positive regardless of how terrible things get.