Executive+Functioning

toc =Introduction= To many people, being able to get organized, setting and actually meeting goals, beating off procrastination, and so forth, are things learned by osmosis. For others, however, these skills are not the least bit intuitive. If you look up executive functioning, you will find that it is strongly associated with ADHD, Aspergers, and other disabilities, but it is likely to happen in just about any person. When you see a student who is struggling with executive function, be assured that it is not because the student is lazy or careless. Most people want to function well and find executive dysfunction to be painful and embarrassing; this is not a problem of defiance but a problem of not knowing where to begin and how to keep going from there. We are going to focus on what it is and how to address it so that people learn the skills they need in order to succeed.

A note...to the person who has poor executive functioning (such as your teacher here), focusing on disabilities just adds to the sense of helplessness. Instead, focus on things a person can do well and how new skills can add to those things. I've tried to find videos that are respectful toward and about people who have potentially stigmatized labels, therefore.

=Learning Activities= If you find yourself struggling in this area, this lesson offers you an opportunity to find some coping mechanisms. Your work for this area would be to figure out where your struggles are, email me privately (cosborn2@capital.edu), and we can look into possible resources.

If you are blessed with a natural ability to be organized, then spend some time looking for resources you could use to help others who are struggling. Which resources seem most logical to you? Why?

=What Is It?= This video has a terrific analogy, the orchestra conductor. It also has a pretty profound story about a highly successful person who lacked executive functioning: media type="youtube" key="A59YESMd-fY" height="315" width="420"

=What Helps?= This video explains the concept of tasks within tasks, which can make executive functioning a challenge. media type="youtube" key="dJ3XMSwi0mE" height="315" width="420"

Here is a webpage with lots of helpful information: []

Here's something you can share with the parents of your students: [] =Resources and Ideas= One of the critical features of organizational tools is that they have to be accessible without the person having to remember to take them along. A day planner can be helpful...if one actually remembers to pick it up and carry it all day. Two things can be helpful:

**Pocket Mod**
[] The pocket mod is a personalized planner that is made from a single sheet of 8.5x11 paper and that can be carried in one's pocket. The nice thing about something like this is that each week you make a new planner. That means a bad week gets tossed away and you can start over.

Free Printable Planner Pages
Design your own planner: []

Cell phone/smart phone
People generally do not forget their cell phones and just about all cell phones have at least some form of calendar on them, possibly a way of making memos, and possibly a way of recording voice memos. Some calendar services such as calendar.google.com have the option of texting reminders about upcoming events. You can control how far in advance you get the text.

Smart phones have many more features. For example, one can use mint.com to organize finances and instantly check on account balances while looking at how spending measures up to a budget. There are apps to help with just about any area of life.

Of course the problem becomes laying the cell phone down (or car keys or anything else one needs on a regular basis) and not remembering where it is. A good carrying case that clips onto a person's clothing and can be worn from getting out of bed all the way through to getting into bed at night can help prevent that problem. A more motivating way of preventing the problem is to make sure that the phone has music on it and can be used as an mp3 player.

Repetition
Executive functioning skills need to be taught and reinforced. When this sort of thing does not come naturally to a person, it is important to help them follow through. Start small and work towards the person becoming independent across time.

Sustainability
New habits have to be sustainable. A day planner does no good if nothing gets written in it. Find out what habits a person has and build on those. The best idea in the world won't help unless it realistically fits into someone's life.