A Primer on Executive Function

Stay in your seat.
Think before you act.
Get a hold of your emotions.
Organize your materials.
Manage your time.

Sounds familiar? These are just a few statements repeatedly shared with some students. At the root of the problem are skills collectively known under the category of Executive Function. Executive function skills develop naturally and through experience. Student needs to work on their executive functioning skills, just like they need to work on their math facts, reading understanding, and other learning objectives we present to them. If we are to extend this thinking, do we then have a duty to help students develop these skills? 

Executive functions are processing skills that help us get things done. Every classroom has a wide range of students with different levels of executive functioning skills. Skills such as starting a task, organization, metacognition, inhibition, planning and setting priorities, time management, emotional control, sustained attention, flexibility, and goal-directed persistence are more developed in some students while others are at the emerging stages. Developing these skills in middle school is critical, and below are strategies for your consideration. Many of them are already in place in specific classrooms.

For activities that will last a long time, use planners and checklists. Split big chores into smaller steps students can take and monitor by establishing checkpoints.

  • Use visible timers to help students track time while they work. Also, tell the kids to keep an eye on the time.
  • Model. Show and talk out loud about how to organize things like sorting papers.
  • Find and discuss natural outcomes that are linked to bad time management.
  • Play games that make students think and remember things and control their impulses.
  • Encourage brain breaks, such as timeouts when students can move around.
  • Help people think about what helps and what hurts.

For those looking to investigate this vein of practice further, consider these quick views and reads…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4YIHrEu-TU 

https://childmind.org/article/helping-kids-who-struggle-with-executive-functions/

https://www.ssdcougars.org/uploaded/District/Student_Services/Special_Education/Strengthening_Executive_Functioning.pdf

https://mcgt.net/priorlake/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Tips-for-Parents_-Executive-Functioning-at-Home-and-School.pdf

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