Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) Lab at Utah State University

Persisting
Successful people do not give up easily.  Their persistence includes the ability to analyze a problem and create a strategy for solving it.  Our page on goal-directed persistence provides ideas and tools to help your child develop persistence.

Managing Impulsivity
Successful people tend to think before they act.  Though it is possible to "overthink" a problem, planning is often essential to success.  Our pages on planning gives you the opportunity to have your child assist with planning and tools to help manage impulsively.

Listening with Understanding and Empathy
Typically, successful people spend as much or more time listening than talking.  This is not politeness only, their active listening allows them to hear other perspectives or insights to add to their own.  That is why we encourage you to involve your child in the planning process.   Over time these conversations will help your child learn to view things from someone else's perspective and use what is learned to improve problem-solving.

Thinking Flexibly
Flexible thinking allows successful people to change strategies, perspectives, goals, and, sometimes, even their values.  This is a much higher level of flexibility than what is discussed in or pages on cognitive flexibility.  Still, some students must learn these basic self-regulations skills for flexibility before they can strive for higher levels of flexibility.

Thinking About Thinking (Metacognition)
Again and again research shows that successful people think about how they think.  "How did I let myself get stuck on the wrong process?"  "Why did I not see this problem from the perspective my friend was trying to share?"  "Whenever I get tired I make silly mistakes--I had best be sure not to make really important decisions while I am tired."  As you work through the thoughtful reflection step in the self-regulation process encourage your child to think about and analyze his or her own thinking.

Striving for Accuracy
People who are successful usually strive for accuracy, craftsmanship, or exceptional performance.  They are able to focus their attention on getting the done right.  As you work with your child on self-regulation, help him or her develop a focus on accuracy when monitoring and analyzing data.  In addition, help your child strive for integrity of implementation of the plan (carrying out the plan the way it was designed).

Questioning and Posing Problems
Successful people ask really good questions.  Their questions show they recognize gaps, inconsistencies, or inaccuracies in the information they receive or the understanding they have.  Questions are a way to gain the information needed to solve a problem.  Encourage your child to ask questions as you work with your child through the self-regulation planning process.  Show your appreciation of the questions and give recognition for particularly insightful queries---When you asked what to do about monitoring your homework during spring break it showed me that making the plan matters to you and that you understand it will need to be adjusted at times.

Applying Past Knowledge to New Situations
Learning from the past can often save us a lot of time, energy and heartache.  Use your own experiences to help yourself understand the complexities of changing a habit or acquiring a new skill.  The Changing Habits Parent Self-Reflection Activity provides an example of how you can draw on past experience.  Help your child draw on his or her own experiences when creating and implementing plans. 

Thinking and Communicating with Clarity and Precision
People who are highly rated in their field often have to communicate their ideas to their peers and also to people who are not as familiar with the subject area.  Using precise, clear language when providing explanations, asking questions, or telling a good story is important to success in the highly interactive world in which we all now live.  Your child will need to learn to communicate with you about his own thinking, behavior, values, and feelings.  It may not be easy at first.  It may take a while before your child can do it effectively.  But, once acquired, it is a skill that will be a boon to many endeavors.

Gathering Data Through All Senses
Our remarkably complex brains are constantly absorbing data and somehow making sense of it.  Slowing down to pay attention to our senses can actually have a calming effect.  Often, relaxation techniques discussed in our website ask students to visualize, listen, or be aware of  senses.  We do provide visual organizers for you and your child, but also encourage you to have conversations about your plans and your progress.  A hug from time to time will also add to the number of senses employed to make the desired change.

Creating, Imagining, Innovating
Creativity is a wonderful gift.  Successful people are able to harness that gift to create innovative and imaginative products, to write powerfully, to draw beautifully, or to dance with inspiration.  Self-regulation skills can help your child harness his or her creativity.  We want our kids to apply their creativity to become inventive and ingenious in their work.

Responding with Wonderment and Awe
Discovering a new idea, uncovering an unforeseen splendor, understanding a challenging concept, admiring a sunset, or following the hunt of an eagle can fill us with wonder.  Somehow, the sense that the world is filled with wonder and excitement becomes lost with some kids, and perhaps even more adults.  The distraction of facing our own personal challenges can prevent us from seeing the amazing all around us.  Celebration is a part of the wonderment.  A student acquiring a new self-regulation skills is showing grit and determination, growing new cells in his or her brain, rewiring other parts of the brain, and processing information in a brand new way.  It is remarkable.  A thing of wonder when you think about it.  Treat it as such. 

Taking Responsible Risks
Some parents and educators say they do not want their child, or any child, to be at-risk.  Yet, people who are successful have learned to measure how much risk to take and when best to take that risk.  They have also learned how to pick themselves up and start over when they take a risk and fail.  Encourage your child to draw on the courage needed to risk changing from familiar ways of doing things to less familiar, but more productive ways.  Help them to learn the difference between calculated risk and recklessness.

Finding Humor
Laughing can smooth over interpersonal tensions, release pent up frustration, secure a bond between people, and even improve our immune system (really, medical research has demonstrated this effect).  Humor can also be mean-spirited and used to maintain social biases, show disdain, or emotionally harm others.  Help your child find ways to use humor that supports others and helps them feel comfortable.

Thinking Interdependently
We often tout the virtues of independent thinking, but in an interdependent, highly connected, and fast-paced world our ability to think with a group, without succumbing to what is called "groupthink," is critical to success.  Groupthink is when this process goes awry and nobody is willing to challenge the common understanding or perception.  But, when interdependent thinking takes place with strong, confident thinkers who are willing to take risks, it can result in the kinds of inventions created over the last century.  Your child needs to be able to think interdependently enough to draw on the resources available to him or her rather than trying to silently change on his or her own.

Remaining Open to Continuous Learning
Octagenarians are now earning college degrees.  Some retirees embark on entirely new careers or become world travelers and learners.  Learning does not need to stop.  When your child achieves a goal it is not time to stop striving to acquire self-discipline.  Rather, it is time to reflect on the success and set new goals.  Those goals can be in the same domain or another aspect of life.  After all, whatever our skill level or our accomplishments, we can always strive to become more capable.