The Results
The impact was immediate. One of the biggest shifts James noticed was that students became more ready to learn. “Red2Blue helps students reset after the playground buzz. Before, teachers would jump straight into content—but now, we help them get back into the Blue first,” he says. Red2Blue has also been a powerful de-escalation tool. James recalls helping a dysregulated student to calm down simply by spending a few minutes with the map: “She was able to say, ‘I’m in Red head…I feel pretty angry.’” When he asked her ‘Where do you want to get to?’ she said, ‘To the Blue. That looks a lot calmer’, opening the door for James to have a proper conversation. Using the Control Circles, they talked through what she could and couldn’t control, and how she might respond differently next time.
James says teacher are using Red2Blue to manage their own mindset during challenging lessons. In the fast-paced and often reactive teaching environment, Red2Blue is helping them to make better decisions, from the Blue head, rather than the Red.
Red2Blue is now being used to coach Year 11s through exam pressure, preparing sports teams for big games, and helping the performing arts department gear up for a major production. “When someone comes to me with a problem, I’ll ask: What can you control here? And what can’t you? That opens up such a helpful conversation.”
