Regulation and participation in Tier 1 of the MTSS is becoming an increasingly important focus within schools as educators and therapists look for proactive ways to support student learning, emotional well-being, and classroom success. During the 2026 Inclusive Classrooms Summit, occupational therapist Dawn Paulson explored the critical connection between regulation and participation in Tier 1. She highlights that dysregulation affects far more than behavior alone. It can influence a child’s ability to learn, participate, build relationships, and engage throughout the school day.
Dysregulation is often only addressed once students have already reached a crisis point. During her session, Dawn emphasized the importance of proactively supporting regulation at the Tier 1 level, where all students can benefit from classroom-wide strategies that strengthen participation, emotional awareness, and readiness to learn before challenges escalate.
How Dysregulation Impacts Learning and Participation
A child’s state of regulation directly affects their ability to access the curriculum. When students are dysregulated, their nervous systems are focused on survival rather than learning, making it difficult to concentrate, problem solve, manage emotions, or participate meaningfully in classroom activities.
While dysregulation can stem from many causes, trauma is increasingly common among students today. Dawn explains that trauma occurs when a child perceives their emotional or physical wellbeing to be threatened. Importantly, trauma is based on the child’s perception of safety, not on how adults interpret the situation. What matters is how the child perceives the experience and what happens within their nervous system in response to it.
Children who have experienced trauma often function near the upper edge of their “window of tolerance,” meaning it takes very little stress to push them into fight, flight, or shutdown responses. This state of dysregulation can significantly impact academic performance, emotional regulation, and social participation.
Dawn describes how dysregulated students may struggle with:
- Attention and concentration
- Problem solving and executive functioning
- Emotional control and impulse regulation
- Coping with stress
- Peer relationships and social interaction
- Confidence and self-esteem
She also highlights that school is not only about academics. Students spend many hours each day learning how to interact with others, build relationships, and develop social-emotional skills. Dysregulation can interfere with a child’s ability to participate in these experiences, sometimes causing withdrawal, frustration, or conflict with peers.
Looking Beyond Behavior
One of the key themes Dawn emphasizes is the importance of understanding the “why” behind student behavior.
Educators and therapists may not always know the experiences students have had or the situations that have made them feel unsafe. Seemingly minor events can be processed by a child’s nervous system as threatening experiences. Because of this, Dawn encourages educators to approach students with curiosity rather than judgment.
She explains that what may seem insignificant to an adult can still be coded by a child’s nervous system as a threat to their emotional or physical safety. Dysregulation is not always connected to the “big” experiences we commonly associate with trauma, such as abuse, divorce, violence, or the death of a loved one. Sometimes experiences adults may overlook can still leave a child feeling unsafe, overwhelmed, or alone. What matters is how the child perceives the experience and what happens within their nervous system in response to it.
When educators notice students becoming easily dysregulated, it is important to remember that we often do not know their full story or the experiences that may have shaped their nervous system responses.
She also emphasizes the protective power of relationships. Trauma is often amplified when children feel alone in difficult experiences, while co-regulation and supportive relationships can help buffer the impact of stress on the nervous system. When children have trusted adults who attune to them, support them, and help co-regulate alongside them, those relationships can become powerful protective factors.
There is real hope and potential for caregivers, teachers, educators, and therapists in that we can co-regulate, and in doing so can help to mitigate the impact of trauma.
The Development of the 1-2-3 RESET Framework
Together with fellow occupational therapist Heather Schmidt, Dawn developed the 1-2-3 RESET framework after seeing a growing number of referrals for dysregulation within schools. Many students were struggling behaviorally and emotionally, yet not all qualified for special education services.
Rather than continuing to rely solely on pull-out interventions, Dawn and Heather began asking an important question: What if regulation support happened inside the classroom for all students?
This shift in thinking led to the development of an eight-week Tier 1 classroom intervention focused on whole-class regulation and participation support. The eight-week timeline is no co-incidence – it ties in perfectly with MTSS. Over time, the framework evolved into a practical curriculum, complete with lessons, handouts, and teacher-friendly resources that could be implemented by occupational therapists, speech therapists, physical therapists, social workers, and educators.
The RESET acronym stands for:
- Relationship
- Environment
- Self-Regulation
- Empowerment
- Task
These five pillars form the foundation of the framework and provide a broader lens for understanding and supporting regulation in schools.
Considerations for Supporting Regulation in Schools
Dawn emphasizes that supporting regulation requires a broader lens than simply teaching calming strategies or mindfulness exercises. While self-regulation tools can be helpful, dysregulation is often influenced by many different factors, including relationships, the classroom environment, a student’s sense of empowerment, and the demands being placed on them throughout the school day.
She encourages educators and therapists to think more holistically about what may be contributing to a student’s regulation challenges and how the school environment can better support participation and learning.
Relationships and Co-Regulation
Supportive relationships play a foundational role in regulation. Through attunement, co-regulation, and intentional interactions, adults help students feel safe, connected, and understood.
Building trust throughout the school day can help students remain within their window of tolerance and better engage in learning experiences.
The Classroom Environment
The physical classroom environment can also significantly impact regulation and participation. Dawn encourages educators to consider sensory differences among students and reflect on factors such as:
- Classroom setup and positioning
- Visual clutter and distractions
- Sensory supports and movement opportunities
- Use of visual schedules and supports
By intentionally designing supportive environments, schools can reduce overwhelm and improve participation for a wider range of learners.
Self-Regulation and Interoception
Dawn highlights the importance of helping students build awareness of their bodies, emotions, and nervous systems. Interoception plays a big role in encouraging students to notice physical sensations, connect those sensations to emotions, and identify strategies that may help them regulate.
Students can explore tools such as:
- Breathing exercises
- Mindfulness
- Rhythm and music
- Movement activities
- Bilateral integration activities
- Drawing and creative expression
Embedding these supports into everyday classroom routines can make regulation strategies more practical and accessible for students.
Empowerment and Student Agency
Students who experience chronic dysregulation or trauma may often feel powerless or out of control. It is important to create opportunities that build confidence, agency, and empowerment.
The goal is to help students feel capable, valued, and successful within the classroom environment.
Task Demands and Participation
Educators and therapists should think carefully about task demands and how activities may impact regulation. When students become overwhelmed, learning becomes significantly more difficult.
Adjusting tasks to support participation may involve:
- Breaking activities into smaller steps
- Reducing cognitive load
- Providing additional supports
- Modifying expectations when needed
Rather than expecting students to simply “push through” dysregulation, these adjustments can help students remain engaged and available for learning throughout the school day.
A Tier 1 Approach to Regulation
Dawn shared an example of how she implemented the RESET framework into a school where there were a lot of referrals for regulation. There was no MTSS structure currently in place and there was one teacher in particular who was really battling and had a number of referrals. Dawn proposed a weekly half-hour push-in session for the whole classroom which the teacher agreed to. So instead of focusing solely on the individual students who were referred, Dawn was able to provide lessons for the whole class which were focused on:
- How the brain and nervous system work
- Emotional awareness and vocabulary
- Mindfulness and interoception skills
- Practical regulation tools and strategies
Importantly, the lessons were experiential and integrated into daily classroom routines rather than isolated interventions.
Teachers were actively involved throughout the process and received follow-up guidance between lessons to help reinforce strategies during the school day. By the end of the intervention, the classroom culture itself had shifted, creating more consistent support for regulation and participation long after the eight weeks ended.
Supporting Regulation Across the Entire School Community
Regulation is not simply an individual student issue. Dysregulation can affect participation, learning, relationships, and the overall functioning of the classroom environment.
By approaching regulation through a Tier 1 lens, schools can move beyond reactive behavior management and instead create proactive, supportive environments that benefit all learners.
Educators and therapists should be encouraged to look beyond isolated strategies and consider the broader factors influencing participation and regulation, including relationships, classroom environments, student empowerment, and task demands.
As schools continue to see increasing referrals related to behavior, sensory needs, and emotional regulation, proactive classroom-wide approaches may offer a more sustainable way to support both students and educators within inclusive learning environments.
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About Dawn Paulson
Dawn Paulson brings over 30 years of experience providing occupational therapy services to children and families across home, clinic, and school settings. Known for her creativity and program development, she integrates her work as an OTP, coach, mentor, and marriage and family therapist. A lifelong learner, her career includes co-founding multidisciplinary and movement-based programs serving diverse communities.
Website: https://1-2-3reset.com/