Research School Network: What do nursery songs and self-regulation have in common? How early years practice supports self-regulation, and what practitioners can look out for to focus more in this area

Sara Baker is a researcher at the Centre for Play in Education, Development and Learning, University of Cambridge, and a UNESCO Science of Learning Fellow. Following her stint as ​‘researcher in residence’ at Sheringham Nursery School and Children’s Centre, she reflects on self-regulation as a lifelong learning skill.

A self-regulating child is able to adapt their behaviours in the moment, moderate their emotional reactions so they are not overwhelmed, and to think about themselves as learners. In this blog, I describe how certain practices are already likely supporting self-regulation, and what practitioners can look out for if they want to do more of this.

As children grow, self-regulation leads them to be able to make plans for their own learning, choose good strategies (for example when learning to read), build positive relationships with adults and other children, and express themselves in ways that can mean their needs are met. When they enter school, self-regulated learning helps children keep track of what is working well for them and to keep up their good work; it also means they can see when a certain strategy is not getting them closer to a goal (for example in a maths problem) so they can change direction. In these ways, self-regulation is a lifelong learning skill that has its foundations in the early years.

Self-regulation is not just compliance. On the contrary, self-regulation gives learners the key to driving their own learning, noticing when they might want to make adjustments and choosing the best path forward (rather than just being told what to do).

Developing self-regulation

Everyone struggles with self-regulation at times, not just young children. We have all had the experience of giving in to temptation when at the same time we know that waiting might have been a ​‘better’ choice. Young children’s brains are still developing and so they are more likely to be caught up in the moment, and are not always able to slow down, step back and choose a different approach. For some children, difficulties with self-regulation make it hard to adapt to changes in routine (for example autistic children); for other children, difficulties with self-regulation make it hard to know what to prioritise (for example children who find it hard to listen because they are distracted by something across the room).

To some extent, the ways a child uses their self-regulation is determined by their own unique characteristics, how they are feeling that day, patterns that have been practiced with family at home over long periods of time, and also the immediate surroundings. For example it’s clearly harder for a child to concentrate and follow through completing a puzzle when they are feeling unwell, haven’t slept properly, if they have not had much opportunity to practice focusing for long periods of time, or when there are other children running across the puzzle and calling out.

Alongside some of these influences on the child, there are things adults can do to support self-regulation in learning. In a nursery setting, practitioners make many choices every day about their practice, each of which could be looked at through the lens of supporting children’s self-regulation.

Supporting self-regulation

Self-regulation can be practised, and research shows that it grows according to the ​“Goldilocks” principle: when children experience challenge that is ​‘just right’. This depends on adults’ careful scaffolding, which means making things a little easier or a little harder to keep an activity within reach of the child and sometimes stretching their abilities.

Self-regulation is best developed in meaningful contexts that are motivating for children, like when they are playing and enjoying themselves or talking about things that interest them. Much like learning about adding and subtracting, when children learn to use self-regulation in circumstances that matter to them, they are more motivated and dedicated to what they are learning, which means it is more likely they keep trying when it gets tricky, and build on the experience in new situations. For example, brainstorming different ways to get a toy down from where it is stuck in a tree can be a fruitful opportunity to discuss strategies and talk about how there are different ways of doing things.

Opportunities for practising self-regulation are present throughout the day, from putting one’s coat on a peg to sitting and joining in at group time. Self-regulation can be practised in a variety of ways on a regular basis, rather than having time set aside and reserved for self-regulation practice.

I noticed recently during my time as ​‘researcher in residence’ at Sheringham Nursery School and Children’s Centre that songs and dancing used within typical daily routines often have a strong self-regulation component. Songs and dancing are fun and so children are usually interested in joining in. Songs are often used at group time, at the end of a session before lunch or ​‘going home time’, which means there can be an especially fun way to practise self-regulation throughout the nursery day. 

Songs with verses need working memory to keep in mind recent verses and to select a different one that has not yet been sung:

• Biquette ne veut pas sortir du chou
  
• Baa Baa Blacksheep 
• Old MacDonald
• Sal de ahí chivita
  
• If You’re Happy and You Know It 
• Tommy Thumb
• Το Ντίρλι
  
• Five Currant Buns
• Five Little Monkeys Jumping on a Bed

Physical songs need self-regulation to join in with the group and keep together:

• A Ram Sam Sam
• Wheels on the Bus
• Incy Wincy Spider
• Chaque matinée cocorico
  
• Wind the Bobbin Up
• Pin Pon
  
• Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
• Hokey Cokey
• 정글 숲을 지나서 가자
  
• Hop Little Bunnies
• Ring a Ring o’ Roses

Certain songs also provide opportunities for building relationships between the children and with staff. Songs that involve saying good morning to each person in turn, for example, mean the whole group joins in acknowledging every person who is present. Strong positive relationships provide a foundation for children’s sense of belonging, their motivation to learn and are also associated with children’s self-regulation in the long run.

Songs are probably part of what you are already doing on a regular basis with young children. Has your team recently looked at the songs you do through the ​‘self-regulation’ lens?

Check out the free ​‘inspiring ideas’ in the Early Intervention Foundation’s Early Years Library for more information on regulating emotions and broader self-regulation.