Executive Functions are skills that help us stay organized and act on information.
There are many different processes that fall under the Executive Functions umbrella. Some of which include your working memory, time management, flexibility, prioritizing and problem solving as well as planning and the execution of a task.
Children with executive functioning skills delay have the ability to develop these specific skills with the help of educational programs and scaffolding support. Adults involved in the child’s life can help the growth of these skills. Ways in which an adult can enable the development of these skills is by establishing routines, modeling appropriate social-emotional behavior, and exercising the importance of time management.
Many children that lack executive functioning skills are facing the challenges of the loss of their administrative control, however, each unique in their own respect.
There are 8 different skills of Executive Functioning:
| Skill | What it means |
| 1. Impulse Control | Think before acting |
| 2. Emotional Control | Keep feelings in check |
| 3. Flexible thinking | Adjust to the unexpected |
| 4. Working Memory | Keep information in mind |
| 5. Self-monitoring | Self-check/ evaluate yourself |
| 6. Prioritizing | Decide on a goal and plan to meet it |
| 7. Task Initiation | Get started on your task |
| 8. Organization | Keep track of things mentally and physically |
(https://www.understood.org)
The basis of their EF development stems from organization. This can have an effect on their ability to plan and initiate a task, inability to plan ahead, and difficulty processing or retrieving information. One way in which you can assist a child that experiences these challenges is by utilizing a calendar/schedule. By modulating their time, you will be setting them up for success.
The following is an example of a study schedule that was created for a child that had difficulties prioritizing a task, organizing work and self-regulating their time:
Inequalities Exam
Tuesday, December 2015
| Thursday 3rd | Friday 4th | Saturday 5th | Sunday 6th | Monday 7th |
| Compound Inequalities | Translating words and multi-step equations
Converting Graphs to inequality Statements |
Inequality Word Problems
Word Problems Day 2 and start of Linear Inequalities |
solving and graphing inequalities
|
Writing a linear inequality from a graph
linear inequalities on coordinate plane |
