As the parent of a school-age child with learning disabilities (LD), you know that basic patterns of thought such as controlling impulses, flexibility, planning, and organizing must steadily develop and improve as a child advances in school. If they don’t, children fail in small ways and larger ones. Each assignment not completed — or completed but not turned in — each lost notebook and late, hurried project, takes a toll on a child’s self-esteem (and a parent’s patience). Performance anxiety becomes more and more exhausting. The stress of feeling overwhelmed leads some children to misbehave, others to withdraw. Some children decide it’s less scary not to try than it is to try and fail.These brain-based habits of thought are crucial to all learning. They are called executive skills.
What Are Executive Skills?
No matter what your occupation, you are an executive in at least one way. Everyone uses "executive skills." Whether you’re taking out the recycling bags or preparing an annual report, you need to understand the task, plan the most efficient way to do it, follow through, and sometimes revise or start again. No one can "execute," or perform, the many things people need to do without calling on these basic brain functions.If you type "executive skills" (or "executive functioning") into your favorite search engine, you’ll get hundreds of hits. It’s an unfortunate term, in a way, because it sounds like a class for budding CEOs. Think of it as an umbrella category for the set of mental processes that your child with learning disabilities probably struggles with, the skills that can have a serious and even profound impact on school success.
Executive skills develop gradually and at different rates for different people. Most children struggle at one time or another with planning, organization, and follow-through. Some will, through maturation, good teaching, and trial and error, independently figure out ways to overcome or compensate for their executive skills weaknesses.
Learning disabilities, though, complicate this development. Children with learning disabilities nearly always have difficulty with one or more executive skills. Descriptions of executive skill weaknesses often overlap descriptions of learning disabilities. And kids with LD will likely have trouble developing these skills on their own.
As with other parts of their education, children with LD have a harder time and need more support. Weaknesses in crucial habits of mind can lead to a spiral of failure and low self-esteem. The good news is that you can help your child recognize, improve, and work around his or her weaknesses in planning and organizational skills once you know what to look for.
Weaknesses in executive skills are very likely an important reason why a child with LD can’t seem to get organized, procrastinates endlessly, and seems to undermine himself by doing school work and then not turning it in. When you understand what executive skills are, you can better support your child’s organizational challenges at home and, in partnership with teachers, at school.
Executive Skills and AD/HD
If your child has Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD), he or she is sure to have weaknesses in executive skills. Each child has different strengths and challenges, but all children with AD/HD need help with executive skills. Researchers now believe that AD/HD is primarily a disorder of executive skills, rather than of attention. Children with this condition aren’t able to regulate themselves well enough to be able to plan, control impulses, or organize. It’s important to remember that not all children with weak executive skills have AD/HD. However, all children with AD/HD have weaknesses in one or more executive skills — because such weaknesses are part of the definition of AD/HD.Eight Important Skills
Scientists and learning specialists have varying lists and descriptions of executive skills. Keep in mind that progress in executive functioning is developmental and varies from child to child. As you look through the following list of skills, you will notice overlap in the descriptions and examples. These skills are closely linked, and the same behavior may reflect weaknesses in more than one skill. Further, these skills may be explained in the same ways as learning disabilities are. But executive skills are basic to learning, no matter the disability.
1. Impulse Control — the ability to stop and think before acting.
This skill tends to be first on most lists and is a fundamental weakness in many children with AD/HD. A child with weak impulse control says or does things without using a cushion of time to reflect. These children may pay much more attention to their text messages than to their schoolwork. They will do whatever pleasurable thing comes along without considering their obligations or commitments. Children with this weakness often speed through schoolwork, sacrificing accuracy and completeness along the way.
If your child needs help with this skill, he or she may:
- interrupt a lot, chatter excessively, speak out of turn
- not get started on homework until close to bedtime
- make impulsive decisions that interfere with school demands
- rush through assignments without reading directions or checking work
- be very inconsistent, following rules one day but not the next
2. Emotional Control — the ability to manage feelings by thinking about goals.
Closely related to impulse control, emotional control helps people keep their eyes on their goal even when painful or unexpected things happen. Children who can’t manage their emotions have trouble accepting criticism. They’re quick to call a situation “unfair.” They overreact to losing a game or getting called on in class. They have difficulty sticking with schoolwork when they are distressed about something.
If your child needs help with this skill, she or he may
- be easily frustrated and quick to give up
- be unable to tolerate corrections or criticism
- find it difficult to calm down and do homework
- have trouble postponing play or favorite activities until work is done
3. Flexibility — the ability to change strategies or revise plans when conditions change.
A child who behaves in ways that are inflexible, or “cognitively rigid,” has difficulty when a familiar routine is disrupted or when a task that seems easy becomes complicated. This child gets frustrated when a first attempt to solve a problem isn’t successful. She or he is unable to see other ways to do familiar tasks or to make another choice when the first choice proves unworkable.
If your child needs help with this skill, he or she may
- not tolerate a change of strategy or tactics
- have difficulty with open-ended assignments that require brainstorming or choosing a topic
- panic when there’s a lot to remember or when a task doesn’t look like it will lead to success
- have trouble with transitions
4. Working Memory — the ability to hold information in mind and use it to complete a task.
Children with weaknesses in working memory are unable to remember and apply crucial information so they can move to the next step of a task. They falter when a task requires that they remember a series of directions, generate ideas in response to the directions, and then express their ideas. Information just doesn’t “stick” for them.
If your child needs help with this skill, she or he may
- have trouble following directions, particularly when they are only given orally
- have difficulty with writing and other complex, multi-step tasks
- not remember what has just been read or explained
- have trouble taking notes in class
- forget the steps of, say, long division, when trying to solve a math problem
- forget to take what they need to school or to class
5. Self-Monitoring — the ability to monitor and evaluate your own performance.
Children who are weak at monitoring themselves may not notice that they’re not following directions until someone points this out. They tend to misjudge their own efforts and have trouble adjusting what they’re doing based on feedback or cues. They are often completely surprised by a low grade on a test or project.
If your child needs help with this skill, he or she may
- make seemingly careless errors in math
- have trouble proofreading and checking work
- not notice when off on a tangent or not following directions
- lose sight of goals and endpoints
- skip test questions without noticing
- do things too fast or not pay attention to time limits and end up running out of time
6. Planning and Setting Priorities — the ability to create steps to reach a goal and to make decisions about what to focus on.
Children who have difficulty planning and setting priorities are easily overwhelmed by complicated, multi-part tasks. They can’t independently impose structure and order on their ideas. They have trouble thinking through the steps required to achieve a goal. They tend to underestimate a project’s complexity and time requirements.
If your child needs help with this skill, she or he may
- come to class unprepared
- underestimate how much time and effort a project will take
- become overwhelmed trying to juggle multiple projects and classes
- have trouble identifying the main idea or most important information in what is read or heard
7. Task Initiation (Getting Started) — the ability to recognize when it’s time to get started on something and then to begin without procrastinating.
A child who is weak in this skill will have trouble starting homework and will put off projects until the last minute. This child is sometimes seen as lazy or unmotivated — keep in mind that this child may procrastinate because he or she really doesn’t know how to start. Many children who have difficulty getting started also have trouble with planning and organizing. They get overwhelmed by all they have to do, so they don’t do anything.
If your child needs help with this skill, he or she may
- have trouble getting started even after being given directions and told to begin
- find reasons not to begin homework at the agreed-upon time
- be unable to complete three or four assignments in a row
- have difficulty following multi-step routines
- often turn assignments in late
- stare at a paper or screen, unable to begin writing
8. Organization — the ability to create and maintain systems to keep track of information or materials.
This skill is closely tied to skills 6 and 7: planning and setting priorities and task initiation. Children lacking organizational skills lose permission slips, assignment sheets, notebooks, and library books. They do not notably improve their organizational skills as a consequence of their disorganization (for example, if they lose their homework, they get a failing grade). Children with poor skills in this area may understand the value of organization but are unable to discover ways to keep track of things.
If your child needs help with this skill, she or he may
- do homework but neglect to turn it in
- have trouble organizing their work and living space, materials, paperwork, and computer files
- come into class without needed materials
- often arrive late or turn in assignments late
- do sloppy or incomplete work
How Can I Help My Child?
Parents, in partnership with schools, can be enormously helpful in the improvement of children’s executive skills. Keep in mind, however, that there aren’t "one-size-fits-all" strategies for improving these skills. Because each child is on a slightly different developmental path and each child’s brain-based habits of thought will have varying strengths and weaknesses, you’ll need to work with your child’s teacher to personalize strategies that will best address your child’s needs. Directly teaching your child these skills, offering frequent reassurance, and giving clear, specific feedback are all essential. You might find it useful, as suggested by Joyce Cooper-Kahn and Laurie Dietzel in Late, Lost, and Unprepared, to think of both short-term and long-term strategies.-
Short-term strategies focus on the task itself and the home environment in which it will be done. They help your child be more successful on a daily basis. This, in turn, reduces the risk of depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem.
- Long-term strategies focus on strengthening your child’s executive skills over time so he or she will develop into a successful, independent adult.
Bonnie Z. Goldsmith has worked in the field of education throughout her professional life. She has wide experience as a writer, editor, and teacher.
This article is made possible by a grant from the American Legion Child Welfare Foundation.
Additional Resources
Late, Lost and Unprepared by Joyce Cooper-Kahn and Laurie DietzelSmart But Scattered by Peg Dawson and Richard Guare
Executive Function: A New Lens for Viewing Your Child
Braincogs.com
Inattentive and ADHD? It Might Be Misdiagnosed Executive Function Disorder
