Organization: A Crucial Executive Skill for Your Child with LD - Page 2

The Power of Encouragement and Example

Organization is about thinking. What is the most efficient way for me to get this project done on time? What will help me remember to do my homework and turn it in? How can I quickly find the materials I need? Rest assured that you can help your child improve her or his organization with simple, gradual strategies.

You don’t need to spend money on a multitude of folders or the latest software. Your most precious asset is your matchless insight into what makes your child tick. Help your child find what will work. Help your child be flexible, since children’s preferences change as do teachers’ requirements. Look for quick, easy ways to begin organizing: a simple planner that you and your child check daily, a routine for filling and emptying a backpack, a schedule for daily homework, study, and review.

Show your child the importance of organization in daily life. Encourage planning at home by posting a family calendar and involving your child in keeping it current. Show your child how one family member’s obligations affect others in the family. A dental appointment, a school conference, and choir practice can’t all happen at the same time without considerable planning. Emphasize how planning saves time. A shopping list gives direction to a trip to the supermarket.

If you’re a person who relies on lists, a datebook, or a PDA, talk with your child about how your personal organizing system works (or falls short). Be honest about your own organizational frustrations, so your child will understand that organization is a skill that many people — even adults — struggle to master.

The Comfort of Routines

All of us develop routines and habits to get us through the day. Your child will benefit greatly from knowing what to expect during a typical school day and week. Keeping track of homework and assignments by writing in a planner every day (or making daily entries on an online calendar) gives your child a visual reminder of what needs doing.

A planner of some kind is vital for organization. You probably know best which kind will work for your child, but discuss it together. If the planner you start with doesn’t work, help your child make the necessary changes. Staying organized means creating a system and sticking with it. The system best suited to your child may not be one you could follow, and your child’s preferences may change with age.

Your great advantage as a parent is your intimate knowledge of your child’s personality, strengths, and challenges. Consider how your child thinks and works. What makes your child feel good or bad? Some children love different-colored file folders and a rainbow of highlighters and sticky notes; others get nervous just looking at them. Getting organized has to make your child feel better.

Turn Big Tasks into Little Steps

Help your child learn to plan by showing how to reduce tasks to their smallest parts. Most teachers provide guidelines for homework and larger projects, usually with interim deadlines. They may distribute checklists so children can check off a step when it’s completed. You, however, know your own child best. If the interim steps provided by a teacher are still too big for your child to tackle without extreme stress, help your child simplify and break down each step. If your child needs more deadlines to feel able to progress on a task, add more deadlines to the teacher’s list. Guide your child to focus on one task at a time.

Introduce your child to the satisfaction of checking off completed tasks. Help your child break out of the thicket of requirements for a complex project. Together, and with the advice of your child’s teachers, set realistic goals. Encourage all positive signs. Don’t expect perfection or even consistency. Each movement forward takes away a little anxiety. Reduce your child’s stress (and your own) step by step.

Attitude Is Everything

As best you can, stay constructive in your attitude toward your child’s organizational difficulties. Don’t criticize. Refuse to allow yourself to think of your child as lazy, unmotivated, or incompetent. Give your child some positive things to say to herself:

• I’ll get it done.
• I’ve done my best.
• Good job!
• This is easier than it was last week.

“This is easier than it was last week.” Music to your ears! Organizational skills are critical for success in school and in the larger world. Kids with LD need extra support, guidance, and practice as they learn to organize and plan. You are your child’s most valuable partner in this endeavor.

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