Broadway Middle School has an introduced a new program to help students, particularly those whose history involves trauma, acquire the tools for identifying and regulating emotional extremes to promote their overall wellness and academic success.

Counselor Natalie Dyroff and assistant principal Steve Sherren gave a presentation on the middle school’s recently established calming room, which the students chose to call The Cove, during the Seaside School Board’s regular meeting Nov. 20.

The space — similar to ones incorporated at The Heights Elementary School and Gearhart Elementary School in 2017-18—is set up with various stations and activities for students who need to take a 10- to 13-minute break and refocus themselves. The middle school team, which includes educational assistant Amber McCanna, developed on the program implemented at the elementary schools as part of the districtwide embrace of trauma-informed care practices. They worked to tailor the middle school space for the older students and began rolling out the program in early November, wanting to ensure they had “the correct processes in place,” Sherren said.

Among the different grade levels there is common language regarding four “zones” of self-identification. Students are in the blue zone when they feel sad, sick, tired, or bored, and they are in the yellow zone when they feel frustrated, worried, or wiggly. The goal is to help them return to the green zone, where they feel calm, happy, focused, and/or ready to learn. The calming room is not designed for students who are in the red zone and experiencing extreme emotions that limit their ability to learn strategies for self-regulating. When students reach that level, the primary goal is de-escalation.

When students go to The Cove, either by election or at the direction of a teacher, they identify the zone they are in and select the station at which they would like to spend time. There are stations for movement, art, sensory stimulation, fidgeting, relaxation, and playing brain games. Based on what the student is feeling or how they are struggling, McCanna gives them suggestions on which station might be helpful but ultimately allows them to choose.

After their session in The Cove, the students once again self-identify what zone they are in. The educators also engage the students in a discussion about what similar strategies they could employ on their own at home or in the classroom without being a disruption, Dyroff said.

Although they were concerned at first the calming room would be used merely as a way for the students to get out of class, the results so far show otherwise.

“They don’t try to manipulate the system,” Dyroff said. “It’s well-respected.”

Eventually, the administration plans to put small spaces in each room that emulate the calming room, often called peace corners, where students can move to for a few minutes to “go reset,” Sherren said.

In other news:

• The board accepted a gift offer from Rack Room Shoes of $7,740.43 worth of shoes for elementary students. The administration takes recommendations from teachers about which students are in need and then purchases the shoes and distributes them.

• The board approved a request from the nonprofit organization Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) to place exchange students at Seaside High School. The district has established guidelines for whether they agree to work with an exchange organization that include the organization is a nonprofit; has local representation or coordination; requires J-1 visas from students; and is approved under the Council on Standards for International Educational Travel. CIEE meets these guidelines.