Executive Function by definition:
A set of mental skills that helps you get things done. Processed in the frontal lobe area of the brain. Helps to:
- Manage time
- Pay attention
- Switch focus
- Plan and organize
- Remember details
- Avoid saying or doing the wrong thing
- Do things based on your experience
- Multitask
Never really understanding this set of words I took to learning more about what this means, both in general and within the autistic world. As many of our children have problems with these areas (some moms too :)
How might this be looked at in conjunction with my daughter and her life/school years though her IEP and perhaps with ABA.
Now I have a better grasp and can ask more informed questions if need be.
Some information I found useful and helpful.
Fact Sheet - Executive functioning
Executive functioning - extended version
What is executive functioning?
Executive functions are skills that are used for:
• planning and doing tasks,
• organizing ,
• regulating behaviour,
• working memory,
• impulse control, and
• attention.
There are two main areas of executive functioning skills. First there are skills that help us choose goals and achieve them. These include:
- Planning: This includes deciding on what’s important (and not important) and then making a plan to get a task done.
- Organisation: This is about staying on task.
- Time management: Understanding about how important time is and how to get jobs done in time.
- Working memory: This is being able to remember information while working on other tasks.
- Thinking about our own thinking: This includes checking on how things are going for ourselves.
Executive Function & Self-Regulation
When children have opportunities to develop executive function and self-regulation skills, individuals and society experience lifelong benefits. These skills are crucial for learning and development. They also enable positive behavior and allow us to make healthy choices for ourselves and our families. read more
By Elizabeth Foy Larsen from Parents Magazine
It's playtime at The Shirley G. Moore Laboratory School, a preschool at the University of Minnesota's Institute of Child Development -- and there's a standoff brewing in the block corner. That's where a 4-year-old boy wearing a policeman's cap is carrying a miniature pet carrier containing a stuffed puppy. All around him, children are creating their own little worlds, from a house made of blond-wood blocks to a volcano capped with an orange scarf.
As the boy looks for a space in this creative hubbub, a girl wearing a purple dress from the costume chest marches over and also grabs the carrier's handle. The two stare at each other, but neither loosens their grip. Ten wordless seconds pass. Twenty seconds. Other kids notice a potential tussle brewing, but they don't interfere. Neither do the teachers.
read more
By Amanda Morin
Executive functioning issues can make learning difficult. Kids may have trouble planning, managing time and organizing. Fortunately, there are classroom accommodations that can help them stay on top of their work. read here
Enhancing and Practicing Executive Function Skills with Children from Infancy to Adolescence read more
Organizational Skills &
Executive Functioning
Robert F. Chase, Ph.D.
some extra reading PDF here