Supporting and Developing Executive Function in the Lower Grades

A Four-Part Course to Explore Practical Strategies to Improve Executive Function, Processing Speed, Written Expression and Self-Regulation

Led By National Expert And Highly Regarded Presenter: 

Sarah Ward, M.S., CCC/SLP 

December 6, January 10, February 27, March 21

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Workshop Overview

• Do you have students who are disorganized and may not have the materials they need or even turn in the homework they have completed? Is their desk space, locker or backpack a ‘black hole’ for papers and materials?

• Or do you see students who struggle to initiate complex academic assignments, procrastinate and then run out of time to do their ‘best work' or tasks/assignment take twice as long as they should? Do you wish your student had a sense of task urgency?

• Does it seem that they have an inability to breakdown the demands of an assignment and have a sense of how to start?

• Do students seem prompt dependent? Are you constantly reminding them of the materials they need and the steps to take?

Whether your student needs to complete tasks, classwork, or homework, in this practical strategies seminar you will learn concrete tools to help students manage their attention, time, and materials to follow directions, plan, break down, and initiate the steps towards completing and closing out assignments.  Help students keep pace to make timely transitions and follow routines.   Practical strategies will be given to help with the initiation of more open ended and complex assignments.  Learn dozens of practical strategies to support students in developing independent executive function skills to self-regulate and manage impulses.

Session Descriptions

December 6, 2023 - 3:00-4:30pm PT

360 Thinking in Practice: Best Methods for Changing Behaviors- An Introduction to Executive Function Skills and Strategies to Improve Self Regulation  

The 360 Thinking Executive Function Curriculum is designed to develop independent executive function skills in students. Whether this is your first or your fifth time hearing Sarah Ward and or you are familiar with the program, this workshop will provide new insights and reinforce your understanding of the core features. Executive function (EF) skills are essential attention-regulation abilities that allow individuals to sustain attention, keep goals and information in mind, refrain from immediate response, resist distraction, tolerate frustration, consider the consequences of different behaviors, reflect on past experiences, and plan for the future. The 360 Thinking program facilitates the development of 6 key skills for students: initiation, transition, planning, time management, self-regulation and meta-cognition. By reading the room and envisioning the steps of a task, potential obstacles can be anticipated and students can develop problem-solving skills and independence. 

January 10, 2024 - 3:00-4:30pm PT

Tiny Tweaks Big Changes: Simple But Powerful Classroom Tweaks to Boosting Independent Task Performance

Are you grappling with the challenge of engaged learners in today's post-pandemic educational environment? Teachers across the nation observe and express concern that students struggle with attention, engagement, working memory, motivation, and the persistence and stamina required to follow routines, transition, plan, become and remain organized, complete tasks, and learn effectively. This is the new reality of our educational landscape, where learners are struggling with these crucial aspects of executive function.

In this practical strategy seminar, we will expand on the critical role that relationship-building plays in increasing student engagement. Here, we share a "tiny tweak" that, when incorporated into your existing lesson plans, can completely revamp how you approach teaching students executive functions. Systematically address the skills of forethought, organization, planning, time awareness, task completion, and cognitive flexibility so that students can envision it, organize it, plan it, do it, and get it done! 

Don't just survive in the post-pandemic educational landscape, thrive! Learn our 360 Thinking Executive function program and add these simple but effective executive function resources and methods to your teaching tool box to design a classroom that encourages active learning and motivates students to succeed in school.This 90 minute session will focus on all things task management!  Learn how to teach students to plan, organize, initiate, sustain their attention, and complete tasks ..on time!

February 27, 2024 - 3:00-4:30pm

Deep Dive: Executive Function for Learning and Academics: How to Increase Processing Speed and Written Expression

This session will provide an in-depth understanding of processing speed, its relationship to executive function, its impact on academic performance, and written expression in particular.  Slow PS can bog students down in the details and they can’t distinguish relevant from minor details and see the big picture. Learn practical strategies to improve processing speed to increase the automaticity with which students can follow routines and directions, complete tasks, and manage complex assignments. Walk away with a comprehensive set of interventions and strategies aimed at boosting processing speed to increase forethought, sustained attention, persistence, faster transitions, and written expression.  Regardless of the writing curriculum you are using, learn how to increase processing speed and task execution for writing. The goal is to foster student independence, reducing the need for teacher-led scribing or prompting and averting learned helplessness for task engagement and writing tasks.

March 21, 2024 - 3:00-4:30pm

Extreme Classroom Makeover: STOP and Read the Room - Making over the Classroom to Support, not Thwart Executive Function Skills

& Ask the Expert: A Q and A with Sarah to answer all your questions about executive function skills!

Join us for a dynamic and hands-on presentation to help you make over your classroom environment to support, not thwart, executive function skills in your students. This practical presentation delves into the concrete strategies educators can use to organize the physical and visual aspects of their classrooms, facilitating student organization, focus, and engagement. We will explore methods to optimize classroom walls, flow, seating arrangements, and materials in a way that supports sustained attention, planning, mental flexibility and situational awareness.  Simple organizational hacks using existing classroom materials will be highlighted.

By applying effective classroom design, students will be encouraged to 'STOP' and read the room, fostering an understanding of their space, time, the current moment's events, and what's coming next. Students will learn to observe others, comprehend their roles and responsibilities, and anticipate appropriate actions for a given moment in time. Through reflection and engaging examples, you will learn how certain classroom features can lead to off-task behaviors, and conversely, how thoughtful redesign can improve student initiation, focus, time management, and transitions. By implementing these changes, attendees can anticipate a positive impact on their teaching practices, leading to students who are more focused, efficient with their time, effective in transitions, and proficient at initiating tasks.

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