Boosting Executive Skills in the Classroom: A Practical Guide for Educators

Students with weak Executive Function skills need strong support and specific strategies to help them learn in an efficient manner, demonstrate what they know, and manage the daily demands of school. This book shows teachers how to do exactly that, while also managing the ebb and flow of their broader classroom needs. From the author of the bestselling parenting book Late, Lost, and Unprepared, comes a compilation of the most practical tools and strategies, designed to be equally useful for children with EF problems as well as all other students in the general education classroom.

Rooted in solid research and classroom-tested experience, the book is organised to help teachers negotiate the very fluid challenges they face every day; educators will find strategies that improve their classroom "flow" and reduce the stress of struggling to teach students with EF weaknesses.

• Includes proven strategies for teachers who must address the needs of students with Executive Function deficits
• Contains information from noted experts Joyce Cooper-Kahn, a child psychologist and Margaret Foster, an educator and learning specialist
• Offers ways to extend learning and support strategies beyond the classroom
• The book's reproducible forms and handouts are available for free download

This important book offers teachers specific strategies to help students with EF deficits learn in an efficient manner, demonstrate what they know, and manage the daily demands of school.

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Table of Contents

About the Authors vii

Acknowledgments viii

Introduction 1

Part I Executive Functioning: The Basics 5

1 What Is Executive Functioning? 7

• Definition 7
• Core Executive Skills 9
• How Do Executive Skills Develop? 13
• To Sum Up 17
• Time to Reflect 18

2 Putting a Face on Executive Functions:

• Students Who Struggle 19
• Executive Dysfunction: A Description,
• Not a Diagnosis 19
• The Normal Variability of Executive Functioning 20
• The Vulnerability of Executive Functioning 21
• Poorly Targeted Instruction 33
• The Importance of Healthy Habits 34
• Assessment 35
• To Sum Up 38
• Time to Reflect 39

Part II Interventions That Boost Executive Functions 41

3 The EF-Smart Classroom 45

• The Tune-up Tools: Planning, Time, Repetition, and Mind-Set 46
• The Targets: Culture, Planning,
• Routines, and Classroom Design 52
• Planning for Change 72
• To Sum Up 74
• Time to Reflect 75

4 Supporting Students Who Need More Help 77

• Planners 78
• Materials 89
• Reading 91
• Writing 101
• Math 105
• To Sum Up 109
• Time to Reflect 110

5 The EF-Smart School 111

• ÒOld SchoolÓ to New Schools 111
• Faculty Meetings 115
• Gathering References 116
• The Magic Formula 118
• To Sum Up 119
• Time to Reflect 120

6 How the Specialist Can Help 121

• Examining the Learning Task and Its EF Demands 122
• Examining EF Skills for Levels of Automaticity and Independence: The Four-Quadrant Model 128
• Consulting with Teachers 134
• To Sum Up 136
• Time to Reflect 137

7 Planning for Change 139

• Defining a Problem of Practice 140
• Planning and Reflection Guide 141
• Using the Template and Guide: Case Examples 144
• Plan to Monitor 157
• To Sum Up 158
• Time to Reflect 158
• Conclusion: Helping All Students Blossom 159

Appendix A: The Top Three Accommodations for Students with EF Problems 161

Appendix B: Accessing the Online Materials 165

Endnotes 167

Index 171