What are Executive Function Skills?

Does home feel like a battleground? Does it feel like you and your child speak different languages? Does your student know how to do the work at school, but can’t seem to get it completed on-time, effectively, or without missing simple steps? Then Executive Functioning Coaching is the next step. EFC is a multi-systemic approach to address deficits in executive functioning skills. By tackling issues arising at home and school, this intervention provides students with the skills necessary to meet daily demands. It also empowers parents with ways to help foster their child’s growth.

What is executive function? And how does it affect learning?

According to the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD), “executive function (EF) is a term used to describe a set of mental processes that helps us connect past experience with present action.” Every day, each of us uses executive function skills in activities such as decision making, strategizing, troubleshooting, managing our emotions, paying attention, keeping “on-task” and remembering details.

Signs that your student may be struggling with EF:

• Chronic disorganization
• Difficulty with note-taking and study skills
• Problems with multi-step directions
• Losing track of time and little awareness of how to estimate how long work will take
• Difficulty with memorizing facts or recalling important information
• Trouble initiating activities or switching to a new subject
• Habitually losing or misplacing belongings
• Challenges with reading comprehension, math and/or writing

How can Executive Functioning Coaching help?

• Plan, organize and prioritize work
• Learn key time-management skills
• Self-advocate and know when to ask for help
• Improve working memory, prolong attention span and focus
• Self-monitor and evaluate behavior (think before acting, have awareness of how behavior affects self and others)
• Gain more effective study skills
• Regulate emotions while completing tasks
• Think critically and make corrections