🚀 Up-Regulation Activities

Effective Up-Regulation Activities for children: Boost Focus, Energy & Engagement in the Classroom | Evidence-Based Strategies for SEMH, ADHD & Autism.

Apr 06, 2025

👋 Welcome to SEMH Education!

Every week, I share insights, strategies, and tips from my experience working with children and professionals on social, emotional, and mental health in education. This week, we're exploring up-regulation activities and how to implement them effectively and appropriately in your setting!

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🤷 What Are They? 🤔

Up-regulation activities help children transition from low-energy, disengaged, or sluggish states into alert, focused, and learning-ready states.

These activities are useful for all pupils, particularly for children with SEMH needs, ADHD, Autism, or sensory processing differences, as they support focus, motivation, and overall engagement in learning.

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience

I've used these in my previous settings with impressive results. Many children (and adults!) struggle with low energy or focus at different times of the day - particularly first thing in the morning, after lunch, or during longer, more passive learning activities.

By implementing short, energising activities at strategic points throughout the day, I've seen significant improvements in engagement, participation, and overall learning outcomes. A quick 5-minute up-regulation activity can transform a sluggish, unfocused class into an alert, ready-to-learn group!

These activities work especially well at the start of the day, after lunch breaks, or when transitioning from passive to active learning tasks. They're perfect for those moments when you notice attention drifting or energy levels dropping.

Which activity will you use? Let me know in the comments!

🚀 Up-Regulation Activities

In this post, I will be outlining multiple up-regulation activities you may be able to use in your setting. I've worked in both mainstream and specialist settings therefore some of these activities may require some specialist resources. I have tried to be mindful of this and provided different options for each activity.

I know there are some of you out there who really appreciate the literature behind the technique too! So, again, I've included journal articles that reference each technique.

Just like last week’s post, this is NOT an exhaustive list so please feel free to comment any activities you use that I haven't mentioned!

🏃 Physical Movement

Physical movement is one of the quickest and most effective ways to increase alertness. These activities stimulate circulation, increase oxygen flow to the brain, and boost energy levels.

✔️ Jumping, running, or skipping – Activates the nervous system and increases blood flow.

✔️ Dancing or aerobics – Engaging music with movement boosts dopamine levels.

✔️ Animal walks (bear walk, frog jumps, crab walk) – Fun, energising, and engaging.

✔️ Balancing challenges (standing on one leg, walking on a line) – Increases alertness.

✔️ Obstacle courses – Encourages problem-solving and movement.

🔎 Why it works: Movement increases oxygen flow to the brain, boosting attention and executive function (Ratey, 2008).

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience: Similar to the writing playlist from last week, you might want to create a child-friendly upbeat playlist which you can quickly access. For other children, allowing them brain breaks between subjects really helped to refresh their concentration.

🎯 Sensory Stimulation

Sensory input plays a crucial role in regulation. Providing specific sensory experiences can help wake up the brain and encourage active participation.

✔️ Fidget tools (chewable necklaces, textured objects, resistance bands).

✔️ Cold water splash or scented wipes – Quick sensory wake-up tools.

✔️ Loud rhythmic sounds (drumming, clapping games, upbeat music).

✔️ Fast-paced tactile input (rubbing hands together, clapping games, finger-clicking).

🔎 Why it works: Stimulating the tactile (touch) system wakes up the brain and promotes engagement (Ayres, 2005).

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience: Having a small selection of sensory tools available has been incredibly helpful. Similar to the down-regulation sensory box, you could easily create a sensory box for up-regulation too! Scented wipes and fidget toys are great for this. I much preferred the fast-paced clapping and/or finger-clicking games as they’re obviously more accessible and easily changeable!

🧠 Fast-Paced Brain Activities

Quick-thinking activities can effectively activate the prefrontal cortex, encouraging cognitive flexibility and active engagement.

✔️ Rapid-fire games (Simon Says, category naming, quick math problems).

✔️ Memory recall challenges (e.g., "Name 5 animals in 10 seconds!").

✔️ Reaction games (clap when you hear a certain word, tap when you see a colour).

✔️ Word association chains – Encourages flexible thinking and verbal engagement.

🔎 Why it works: Quick-thinking tasks stimulate the prefrontal cortex, increasing attention and cognitive speed (Diamond, 2013).

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience: These activities are perfect for those moments when you need to quickly refocus a class. If you’re feeling lazy or think you’d get better engagement, there are loads of quizzes on YouTube! I’ve mentioned them previously here. The competitive element is engaging, and it gets their brains warmed up for the next task.

🫁 Energising Breathing Techniques

Controlled breathing can significantly impact focus levels. Certain breathing patterns can activate the sympathetic nervous system, helping children become more alert.

✔️ Balloon breaths (Big inhale, quick exhale like blowing up a balloon).

✔️ Fire breathing (Short, sharp inhales and exhales through the nose).

✔️ Power breathing (Deep inhale, hold for 3 seconds, strong exhale).

🔎 Why it works: Activates the sympathetic nervous system, increasing oxygen and heart rate for alertness (Porges, 2011).

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience: You can couple these breathing exercises with games like cotton-wool football. Essentially you create two goals with one person on each team. The children use straws and the breathing exercises above to take turns in trying to score a goal.

👥 Structured Social Interaction

Social engagement naturally increases motivation and alertness while strengthening communication skills.

✔️ Turn-and-talk partner activities (quick discussions before learning).

✔️ Call-and-response routines ("When I say 'ready,' you say 'to learn'!").

✔️ Peer-led energisers (one child leads a quick wake-up activity).

🔎 Why it works: Social engagement triggers dopamine release, increasing motivation and focus (Lieberman, 2013).

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience: Having children lead energisers has been a game-changer! It gives them ownership and leadership opportunities while keeping the class engaged. I rotate this responsibility, and it's amazing to see how creative children can be in coming up with quick, energising activities for their peers. Activities could include things such as; follow the leader, red-light green-light, hang-man, drawing guessing games etc.

🎨 Creative and Expressive Activities

Creativity activates multiple areas of the brain, helping children stay engaged while developing cognitive and emotional skills.

✔️ Fast-paced drawing or doodling (e.g., "Draw as many faces as you can in 1 minute").

✔️ Acting out emotions (children mimic expressions and movements).

✔️ Rhyming or rapping challenges – Verbal rhythm keeps the brain active.

🔎 Why it works: Engaging in multi-sensory creativity enhances cognitive flexibility and improves engagement (Multiple articles).

🧑‍🏫 Own Experience: Quick drawing challenges are perfect for those moments when you need to energise a class but maintain a relatively calm environment. I've found that giving children 60 seconds to draw as many different shapes, animals, or objects as they can gets their minds more active and prepares them for more focused work.

🎒 Primary vs Secondary Settings 🏫

The effectiveness of up-regulation activities depends on the developmental stage and setting:

🎒 Primary Schools: Younger children often benefit from highly physical, playful, and imaginative activities. Movement-based and sensory play activities are particularly effective, as they align with natural energy levels and shorter attention spans. Activities like dancing, role-playing, and fast-paced drawing games work well in this setting.

🏫 Secondary Schools: Older children may respond better to more structured activities with social or cognitive engagement. Energising breathing techniques, quick reaction-based games, and child-led energisers tend to be more effective. Providing choices in up-regulation strategies can help foster autonomy while maintaining engagement.

Opportunities to Implement Up-Regulation Activities in the Classroom

Now you've got the ideas, when can you implement them? I've outlined the key times and places I would target initially:

💡 Morning Routine Boosters – Start the day with an energising movement activity.

💡 Pre-Lesson Activation – Use quick games or breathing exercises before demanding tasks.

💡 After Lunch Energisers – Combat the post-lunch energy slump with movement or sensory activities.

💡 Transition Times – Insert short bursts of movement between learning periods.

💡 Child Choice – Offer different up-regulation strategies and let children choose what works best for them.

📝 Conclusion & Key Takeaways

Here we are then, up-regulation activities are essential tools for creating an engaged and focused learning environment. By incorporating strategies like physical movement, sensory stimulation, fast-paced brain activities, energising breathing, social interaction, and creative expression, you can help children maintain optimal focus-levels for learning.

These activities are particularly beneficial for pupils with SEMH needs, ADHD, Autism, and sensory processing differences, but can support all children in staying alert and engaged throughout the school day. The key is to find what works best for your setting and children. Whether it's a quick movement break in the morning, energising breathing before a challenging task, or child-led energisers during transitions, start small, be consistent, and observe the impact on engagement and learning.

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