We Teach The Way Students Learn

(401) 723-4459
  • Home
  • RITES Programs
    • Summer Programs
    • Test Preparation: SAT, ACT, PSAT, SSAT, ISEE
    • Orton-Gillingham
    • Reading
    • Writing & Spelling
    • Math
    • Science
    • Study/Organizational Skills
    • Spanish as a Second Language
    • Homeschooling
  • For Parents
    • Fact Sheets
    • Parent Workshops
    • Parent Resources
  • For Teachers
    • Job Opportunities
    • Teacher Workshops
    • Teacher Questionnaire for Summer Programs
  • About RITES
    • Board of Directors
    • RITES Mission Statement
    • Our Teachers
    • Individual Tutoring
    • Multisensory Learning
    • RITES Directors’ Message
    • Testimonials
    • Directions to RITES
  • Contact Us
  • Blog
  • Sponsor a Student
    • Sponsor a Student
    • Students Waiting for Your Help 2018-2019
    • RITES Students’ Success
    • Volunteer
You are here: Home » Executive function » Executive Function Series, Part 1: Recognize Executive Function Challenges

Executive Function Series, Part 1: Recognize Executive Function Challenges

March 5, 2018 by Halley Lavenstein Leave a Comment

What IS Executive Function?

Executive Function image
 Image courtesy of Human by Human

How do you recognize executive function challenges and how does that tie in with attentional issues (ADHD)? A newer working definition of ADHD from Thomas E Brown’s book, A New Understanding of ADHD in Children and Adults, says that “ADHD is a complex syndrome of developmental impairments of executive functions, the self-management system of the brain, a system of mostly unconscious operations. These impairments are situationally-specific, chronic, and significantly interfere with functioning in many aspects of the person’s daily life.”

In his book Smart But Stuck: Emotions in Teens with ADHD, Brown categorizes executive functioning this way:

Activation

Organizing tasks and materials, estimating time, prioritizing tasks, and getting started on tasks. People with ADHD often have difficulty with procrastination. This can be true even if they understand the high importance of a particular task.

Focus

Focusing, sustaining focus, and shifting focus to tasks.

Effort

Regulating alertness, sustaining effort, and working with adequate processing speed.

Emotion

Managing frustration and modulating emotions. People describe chronic difficulties managing frustration, anger, worry, disappointment, and other emotions.

Memory

Utilizing working memory and accessing recall.

Action

Monitoring and regulating self-action. Folks struggling with this aspect of executive function can have difficulty understanding the context of their interactions. They may have to work to recognize the reactions of others by “reading the room.” This also includes difficulty regulating the pace of actions, slowing or speeding up, as needed. 

The website Understood.org organizes the categories this way:

Impulse Control

The ability to stop and think before acting.

Organization

The ability to create and maintain systems.

Planning/prioritizing

Hard time with steps needed to organize, time management.

Working Memory

The ability to hold information in mind and use it to complete a task.

Task Initiation

The ability to recognize when it is time to start a task.

Emotional control

Managing frustration and modulating emotions when thinking about goals.

Recognizing when someone is challenged by executive functions, and how this affects them, is the first step.  In Parts 2 and 3 of our Executive Function series, learn how to help people struggling with executive functions.

Content courtesy of Betsy Alper, LICSW, and founder of A.D.D. Strategies and Solutions

Looking for more help with executive function?

Visit A.D.D. Strategies and Solutions for personalized plans.

Consider RITES’ summer Study Smarter, Not Harder classes for middle school or high school students.

Contact Us for individual executive function tutoring to improve grades!

Learn more about 8 Key Executive Functions

Read more from a previously published Executive Function series (What Is EF)

Filed Under: ADHD, Education, Executive function, Executive functioning, Executive functions, Homework, learning difficulties/differences, organization, RITES, RITES Programs, School stress, struggling, study skills, Summer Programs, Summer Programs RI, Summer Programs RI, Tutoring Tagged With: academic skills, academics, achievements, ADHD, children, Educational summer programs RI, executive function, executive functioning, executive functions, help, homework, learning, learning differences, parents, Rhode Island Tutorial & Educational Services, Rhode Island Tutorial and Educational Services, RITES, struggling, stuggling, tutoring

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Looking For Something?

News You Can Use

Click Here

Rhode Island Tutorial & Educational Services

334 East Avenue
Pawtucket, RI 02860
Phone: (401) 723-4459
Fax: (401) 728-6509

Login

RITES Teachers Near You!

Dedicated to giving students the gift of lifelong learning skills, RITES certified teachers are hand-selected to teach using scientifically based multisensory methodologies to maximize each session.
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • YouTube

Contact Us

A RITES education specialist will get in touch shortly to discuss your needs.
First Name (required):
Last Name (required):
Email (required):
Phone:
Zip:
Subject Student Needs Help With:
Grade:
Provide Any Additional Information Here:
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • RITES Programs
  • Test Preparation: SAT, ACT, PSAT, SSAT, ISEE
  • Orton-Gillingham
  • Reading
  • Writing & Spelling
  • Math
  • Science
  • Study/Organizational Skills
  • Spanish as a Second Language
  • Homeschooling
  • Summer Programs
  • For Parents
  • Fact Sheets List
  • Parent Workshops
  • Parent Resources
  • For Teachers
  • Teacher Workshops
  • Job Opportunities
  • Teacher Questionnaire for Summer Programs
  • About RITES
  • Board of Directors
  • RITES Mission Statement
  • Our Teachers
  • Individual Tutoring
  • Multisensory Learning
  • RITES Directors’ Message
  • Testimonials
  • Directions to RITES
  • Fundraisers
  • Teacher Workshops
© 2019 Rhode Island Tutorial & Educational Services. All rights reserved. Admin Login

Cancel