Executive Functioning
A new school year is always full of excitement and possibility, but it can also bring with it some fear and anxiety. Whether you are a student, parent, or teacher, the beginning of a new school year brings a unique sense of anticipation. This can be especially true for students starting in a new school or a new grade. What are the teachers going to be like? Will the other kids be friends with me? These are questions students might be asking themselves. As parents, we know you want your child to be happy and successful. Let’s explore six tips to start the new school year strong for parents and students. 1. Embrace Change Every new school year is a chance to start over. You can think of a new school year as a fresh start, a time to embrace the “what-ifs” and potential for growth. Though new beginnings can be…
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I was a backpack stuffer. All the papers I received during the day were crumpled and stuffed at the bottom of my backpack, crushed by the weight of objects I didn’t need. I couldn’t find anything. Homework assignments were turned in late or not at all. Permission slips never made it to my parents. And I would rather not discuss what happened to my lunch. I failed every binder test. I didn’t know how to put papers in my binder or manage my time. I couldn’t break down long-term projects into manageable chunks. I struggled. All of this conspired to tank my self-esteem. I wanted to do well in school but didn’t know how. Does this sound familiar to anyone? Looking back, I now know I needed help with executive functioning. Executive functioning is managing time, focusing attention, remembering instructions, prioritizing, and completing multiple tasks. This applies to school, home,…
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Executive functioning skills are all the skills needed to engage in goal-directed behavior, such as planning a vacation or organizing a birthday party. We use them every day, throughout the day. Many people think of it as organizational skills, but it’s much more. Executive functioning skills also help us with emotional regulation. The Three Categories of Executive Functioning Skills: Executive Functioning is Situational If we think about a student being given an assignment or an activity to do at school, we can describe several different executive functioning skills needed to complete this task successfully. The student first needs to select an approach and figure out how to start the activity. Once they have started, how do they sustain focus and motivation? If they have questions or get stuck, can they ask for help? Then, how do they know when they’re done and have satisfied the requirements? Another area that requires…
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Shifting to distance learning has been an adjustment for students, staff, and parents. At The Sycamore School, we offer individualized instruction, so our unique challenge was determining how to offer the same level of support remotely, recognizing that: Many of our parents work full time, so they have limited ability to monitor and check in on their students while they’re working from home. Many of our students struggle with executive functioning skills, so we had to figure out how to get them into a routine that worked for them and their family; Once it became apparent distance learning was not a short-term endeavor, we divided up our students between our staff. Each staff member was the point person for a small cohort of 10 students, checking in with them daily and helping them create and maintain a daily schedule. While this was a good starting point, it wasn’t always enough.…
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Late, Lost or Missing Homework? Uncovering and Addressing Executive Functioning Struggles In Students Another week and another missing assignment in the grade book for your student. It seems like all their peers complete and turn assignments in on time, so why is it so hard for your child? Late, lost or forgotten homework can be a sign that your student is struggling with executive functioning skills, which are the building blocks of productivity. Executive functioning allows you to organize your day, plan long and short-term projects, and remember to complete tasks. The National Center for Learning Disabilities defines “Executive Function” as a “set of mental processes that helps us connect past experience with present action.” How do you determine if your student’s struggles are age-appropriate or if they are a symptom of an executive function issue? One option is to ask your school to do an evaluation, or student…
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What to do when a fun activity turns into a gripe fest? Turn to leadership. I’m not sure if it was due to spring fever, or typical adolescent waxing and waning maturity, but our students’ behavior reminded me of children who get dessert every day and then start to complain about the flavor of ice cream being offered. But instead of dessert, our students were griping about field trips. Since we are committed to experiential learning, we aren’t going to take away field trips; instead, we put the students in charge of running the trips. At the beginning of each week, we ask for a volunteer student leader who is responsible for organizing the logistics of the trip. We’ve already chosen the destination (which correlates to our curriculum) but how we get there and the details of how we organize our group are up to the trip leader. Our leader…
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This article first appeared in early March 2017 in the Arlington Sun Gazette and InsideNOVA. The 2017-18 school year will bring the arrival of a new option in local education with the opening of The Sycamore School – a nonprofit, independent secondary school in Arlington. The inaugural class will include students in grades 6 to 8, eventually growing to 12th grade. Learning will be self-paced, and the school is “a good fit for students who are bright, curious and may not be thriving in their current school environment,” school officials said. The Sun Gazette recently queried Dr. Karyn Ewart, the founder and head of The Sycamore School, about how the institution will stand out among public and private education in the community. Questions and answers are below. One Arlington political leader used to always ask, when tackling an issue, “What problem are we trying to solve?” What problem, or challenge, in…
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