SMART BUT SCATTERED

Peg Dawson, EdD, and Richard Guare, PhD

EXECUTIVE SKILLS Brain-based skills that are required in order for

humans to execute, or perform tasks.

These skills develop gradually and at different points of life.

By late adolescence, children must be able to function with a reasonable degree of independence.

According to research, the source of many cognitive and behavioral difficulties is due to deficits in executive skills.

SMART BUT SCATTERED MODEL This model has been designed to help come

up with ways that parents and teachers can promote the development of executive skills in kids who have demonstrated weaknesses.

TWO premises:1. Most individuals have an array of executive

skills strengths as well as executive skills weaknesses.

2. The primary purpose of identifying areas of weakness is to be able to design and implement interventions to address those weaknesses.

Skill Definition Example

Response Inhibition Capacity to think before you act.

A teenager can accept a referee’s call without arguing.

Working Memory Ability to hold info in memory to perform complex tasks.

In MS, remembering diff. expectations of teachers.

Emotional Control Ability to manage emotions to achieve goals.

Managing anxiety during a test.

Sustained Attention Capacity to maintain attention in spite of distractibility.

Cleaning their room.

Task Initiation Ability to begin projects in a timely fashion

A teen not waiting to the last minute to get a project done.

Planning/Prioritization Ability to create a “roadmap” to reach a goal, decide what is important to focus on.

Plan a project based on deadlines.

ELEVEN EXECUTIVE SKILLS

Skill Definition Example

Organization Ability to create a system of keeping track of information or materials.

A child be able to use an accordion properly.

Time Management Capacity to estimate how much time one has and stay within deadlines.

A teenager be able to manage computer time.

Goal-directed Persistence

Capacity to have a goal, follow through on its completion.

A first grades can complete an assignment in order to go to recess.

Flexibility Ability to revise plans and change them accordingly or adapt to changing conditions.

A child can learn to accept an alternative restaurant when their favorite is not an option.

Metacognition Ability to stand back, self-monitor and self-evaluate.

Self and peer editing an essay.

ELEVEN EXECUTIVE SKILLS

EXECUTIVE SKILLS The skills are organized:Developmentally – the order in which they develop.Functionally – what they help the child to do.

Potential for Executive skills is innate, but there are a number of factors that can influence whether or how these skills develop. (ex: an accident that caused trauma to the brain, genes, and environment)

ADHD/ADD AND EXECUTIVE SKILLS

There is a consensus that ADHD/ADD is fundamentally a disorder of executive skills.

Most essential one being self-regulation.- affects response inhibition, sustained attention, working memory, time

management, task initiation, and goal-directed persistence.

* It is important to keep in mind that children do vary in the development of Executive Skills and that a lack of these skills don’t necessarily qualify them for a diagnosis f ADHD/ADD.

EXECUTIVE SKILLS AND SCHOOL Looking at what schools and teachers do in

the classroom can sometimes give you an understanding of how executive skills are developing over time (page 30).

Preschool – directions are generally given one or two at a time

Elementary – working memory tasks are more demanding

(homework, permission slips, etc.)

How can we assess where a child’s executive skills are?

- is the child meeting expectations at school?

- how is child doing compared to other kids? (keeping in mind that children develop at different rates)

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES Series of Questionnaires to give you an

idea of executive skills strengths and weaknesses.

Take the time and fill out the last questionnaire (pgs. 50-51)….BE TRUTHFUL!!

Capitalizing on Strengths – take advantage of these to help students function effectively in daily activities, reinforcing these if they are still not strong enough.

MATCHING THE CHILD TO THE TASK When a child has an executive skills weakness, pay attention

to the child’s emotional and behavioral responses.

Consider that if a child is avoiding a task, he/she might not be able to do it.

Think about the Executive Skills that the task requires and think about whether the child possesses the skills.

Is something in the environment making it difficult for the child to complete the task? (distractions, lack of structure, etc.)

If the child has previously been successful completing the task, figure out what made the child succeed.

TEN PRINCIPLES TO IMPROVING EXECUTIVE SKILLS1. Teach the skills rather than expecting the child to acquire

them through observation.2. Consider the child’s developmental level.3. Move from external to internal.4. Remember that external includes changes in

environment, task, and interaction with child.5. Use, rather than fight, a child’s innate drive to master a

task.6. Modify tasks to match the child’s capacity to exert effort.7. Use incentives to augment instruction.8. Provide just enough support for the child to be successful.9. Keep supports and supervision in place until child

achieves success.10. Fade supervision and support gradually, never abruptly.

MODIFYING THE ENVIRONMENT A IS FOR ANTECEDENT The antecedent are the external factors

of a task. You already are using a lot of

environmental modification in other settings (classroom, recess, etc.)

Altering the environment instead of the child, may be an easier task.

Over time, you transfer the target so that the child becomes the object of intervention.

Ex: having a structured schedule for students with a weakness in flexibility.

Other ways you can modify the environment- Physical distractions- Nature of the task (making it shorter, frequent

breaks, have a choice, multi-step)- Change way you interact with child – using

verbal prompts and reminders

Make sure you: praise child for using good skills, debrief, consult with others involved in the situation/task

MODIFYING THE ENVIRONMENT A IS FOR ANTECEDENT

TEACHING EXECUTIVE SKILLS DIRECTLY

B IS FOR BEHAVIOR

Teaching the executive skills:

naturally and informally by how you respond to a student’s behavior and encourage them.

- Verbal scaffolding – ask the “why’s” instead of telling them- Explaining rather than dictating- Letting the child know you understand

how they feel and why

take a more targeted approach and teach child how to manage problematic tasks

1. Identify the problem behavior you want to work on (ex: depicting specific behaviors)

2. Set a goal (what the child is expected to do)

3. Outline steps child needs to follow to reach goal

4. Turn steps into checklist, chart, or rules to be followed (ex: Morning Routine pg. 134)

5. Supervise child following procedure6. Fade supervision

TEACHING EXECUTIVE SKILLS DIRECTLY

B IS FOR BEHAVIOR

MOTIVATING CHILD TO LEARN AND USE EXECUTIVE SKILLS

C IS FOR CONSEQUENCE Focusing on the positive aspects, instead of

punishment Punishment tells child what NOT to do, can

damage adult/child relationship, and sometimes children feel like they don’t have anything to lose.

Effective praise……is delivered immediately after behavior occurs…specifies particulars of accomplishment…provide info about value of accomplishment…lets child know that he/she worked hard…orients child to appreciate critical thinking behavior

CHAPTER 10: READY-MADE PLANS Book has 20 ready-made plans to teach

skills that kids tend to struggle with.

Examples:Pg. 134 Morning Routine ListPg. 161 Writing Template for a Five-Paragraph EssayPg. 172 Learning to Control Temper

BUILDING RESPONSE INHIBITION is the capacity to think before you act

1. Always assume that the youngest children have very little impulse control

2. Help children delay gratification by using formal waiting periods for things they want

3. Require them to earn some of the things they want

4. Prepare them for situations by reviewing them in advance

5. Role-play

ENHANCING WORKING MEMORY capacity to hold information in the mind while performing

complex tasks

1. Make eye contact with child when telling them something you want them to remember

2. Keep external distractions to a minimum if- you want your child’s full attention

3. Use written reminders (checklists, charts, schedules – depending on age of the child)

4. Rehearse with the child what you expect them to remember

5. Help the child think about ways that can help them to remember (ex: with older kids, the use of agendas, phones, etc.)

6. Consider using a reward for remembering key information

IMPROVING EMOTIONAL CONTROL The ability to manage emotions to achieve goals,

complete tasks, or control and direct your behavior

1. With younger children, regulate their environment (ex: away from overstimulating environments)

2. Prepare child by talking about what they can expect and what they can do if they feel overwhelmed

3. Give them coping strategies4. Read stories in which characters exhibit behaviors

you want them to learn5. Work with a counselor or therapist if child does not

seem to respond well to any of these strategies

STRENGTHENING SUSTAINED ATTENTION the capacity to keep paying attention to a

situation or task in spite of distracting factors.

1. Provide supervision2. Make increasing attention a gradual process3. Use a device that provides a visual depiction

of elapsed time (clock, etc.)4. Make the task interesting into a challenge,

game, or contest5. Use incentive systems6. Offer praise for staying on-task

TEACHING TASK INITIATION the ability to begin projects or activities without

procrastinating, in an efficient or timely manner

1. Reinforce prompt task initiation throughout the day

2. Provide visual cues to remind child to begin the task

3. Break overwhelming tasks into smaller, more manageable pieces

4. Have child make a plan of how or when the task will get done

5. Give child ownership over the process, for example deciding how they want to be cued or how they will carry out the plan

PROMOTING PLANNING, AND PRIORITIZING the ability to create a roadmap to reach a

goal or complete a task, as well as the ability to make decisions about what’s important to focus on.

1. Create plans for your child when young2. Involve your child as much as possible in

the planning process3. Use things the child wants as a jumping-

off point for teaching planning4. Prompt prioritizing by asking your child

what needs to get done first

FOSTERING ORGANIZATION the ability to establish and maintain a

system for arranging or keeping track of important items.

1. Put a system in place2. Supervise child3. Involve your child as much as possible4. You may need to modify your

expectations

INSTILLING TIME MANAGEMENT capacity to estimate how much time one

has, how to allocate it, and how to stay within time limits and deadlines

1. Maintain a predictable daily routine in your family

2. Talk to children about how long it takes to do things

3. Plan an activity for a weekend vacation day that involves several steps

4. Purchase a commercially available clock

ENCOURAGING FLEXIBILITY the ability to revise plans in the face of

obstacles, setback, new information, or mistakes.

1. Walk children through anxiety-producing situations

2. Use social stories to address situations where the child is predictably inflexible

3. Help your child come up with a default strategy for handling situations where inflexibility causes the most problems

4. Give children choices, some inflexibility arises when children feel they are being controlled

INCREASING GOAL-DIRECTED PERSISTENCE refers to setting a goal and working toward it

without being sidetracked

1. Start very early, beginning with very brief tasks where the goal is within sight

2. Begin with goals that child wants to work on or have set for themselves (building a Lego structure or a puzzle)

3. Give the child something to look forward to4. Gradually build up time needed to reach

goals5. Remind child what he/she is working towards

CULTIVATING METACOGNITION the ability to stand back and take a bird’s

eye view of oneself in a situation

1. Provide specific praise for key elements of task performance

2. Teach child how to evaluate their own performance

3. Have child identify what finished product looks like

4. Teach a set of questions children can ask themselves when confronted with problem situations