Teaching

Interventions for Executive Functioning Challenges: Attention

April 15, 2019 by pathway2success 1 Comment

Challenges with focus and attention can become a huge roadblock to learning for kids and young adults. Simply put, attention is critical to learning. If students can’t focus on the lesson, they are going to struggle with understanding the new content. If students can’t focus on the directions, they are not going to know what to do. If learners are unable to switch their focus, they are unable to initiate new tasks. When students have difficulty with attention skills, it can be challenging for the educator, but also extremely frustrating for the learner.

It’s important to note that this article isn’t specifically written for kids with ADHD. That is because many kids (whether diagnosed with ADHD or not) have challenges with focus and attention. As always, it’s more important to focus on the interventions and supports than the label. With that said, if you feel your student or child does have symptoms of ADHD, it’s important to share those concerns with the school team or pediatrician.

What is attention? Attention is a fascinating multi-faceted skill. It is so much more than just being able to stay focused. Attention involves having self-awareness about your level of attention so that you can direct and re-direct your focus, as needed. It is being able to ignore distractions, like a cell phone or friends talking nearby. Even further, attention is being able switch your focus to more important information or a new task, such as when new directions are being given while working.

• Examples of Attention •

It’s important to note that attention is an academic skill, but it is also a life skill. It’s really a prerequisite to be able to learn new information. People need to pay attention while hearing new content, but also when having conversations with others. Here are some examples of what strong attention skills might look like:

Keeping eyes on the teacher and listening while learning about a new skill.
Quickly being able to switch focus from one task to another.
Making eye contact and listening to a peer during a conversation.
Listening and thinking about directions being given by a teacher or boss.
Being able to stop, focus, and listen when important information is being conveyed.

• Possible Signs of Challenges with Attention •

Challenges with attention can have big impacts for students. As previously stated, when learners aren’t able to focus on new material, this makes learning that content that much harder. Similarly, when learners aren’t focused during instructions, they won’t understand how to proceed with an activity. Simply put, attention challenges become a major roadblock to learning.

Possible signs of attention challenges might include:

A student constantly staring out the window or down the hallway instead of watching the teacher during a lesson.
A learner who frequently misses hearing important instructions for tasks and then isn’t sure what to do.
A student who constantly plays with objects (pencils, toys, etc) instead of working on assigned tasks.
A child who is unable to finish assignments due to various distractions.

• Interventions, Supports, and Strategies for Attention •

Here are some strategies, activities, and ideas to help learners with time management challenges in the classroom:

Teach about attention and other EF skills explicitly
Give clear, one-step directions
Teach how to stay organized
Highlight most important directions on assignments
Teach and use classroom call-and response
Use a chime before giving important information
Incorporate movement during lessons and activities
Use visuals as reminders and supports
Reduce distractions around the room (ex: too many posters or a fan nearby)
Use preferential seating (find where the student can focus the best, as this is different for every child)
Incorporate hands-on learning activities
Use a study carrel (you can buy one or build it out of cardboard!)
Add center activities to allow for more movement during tasks
Break longer tasks into smaller, more manageable ones
Provide fidgets (and explicitly teach how to use them as a tool)
Give break breaks between lessons and activities
Teach students how to check in with themselves
Set a timer for work sessions
Consider a white noise machine or playing classical music during work sessions
Assign a study buddy during work sessions
Play attention-boosting games and play activities (like Simon Says)
Use student interests in lessons
Provide extra time to complete assignments

• Strategies for Parents to Support Attention Skills at Home •

It’s important to note that parents and families can also implement strategies to help at home! Here are some strategies parents and families can use at home strengthen skills for attention:

Be clear with directions (and give fewer words)
Allow wind-down time after school
Build in routines and consistency
Develop a “homework space and time” (and stick with it)
Teach self-monitoring
Break longer tasks into smaller, more manageable ones
Keep an organized and tidy work space to reduce distractions
Give check-ins during longer work sessions (“Show me what you accomplished so far.”)
Reduce distractions (television, cell phone, computer)
Model focusing while the child is working (read while they do homework, for example)
Use a white-noise machine
Give breaks after work completion
Incorporate rewards for completing chores or assignments

If you notice that your learners need some extra support with their attention and other executive functioning skills, I have units to target executive functioning skills for middle and high school learners and executive functioning skills for younger learners. Get all your materials in one spot to make teaching these skills a breeze!

This is a blog series focused on interventions to support executive functioning skills. Make sure you read up on interventions for planning and supports for organization!

15+ Ways to Teach Executive Functioning Skills

April 2, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

In many ways, strong executive functioning skills are the foundation for success. These are the mental processes that help learners plan through assignments, organize materials, initiate a task, manage time well, stay focused, try new strategies when stuck, and persevere until the completion of a goal. If you think about it, those skills are important for every single thing we do! They are also integrated into every content and curriculum area that we teach. If we want our students to be better planners, organizers, and flexible thinkers, we need to invest the time in teaching executive functioning skills.

The best part about teaching these skills is that all learners can benefit from improved executive functioning skills. Students can always learn better strategies for planning, organizing, managing time, paying attention, and problem-solving to work through challenges. Of course, it shouldn’t go without saying that some students need these skills more critically than others. Whether you are teaching these skills as an extra support or a necessary intervention, it is always worth the time.

Here are over 15 ways you can teach executive functioning skills:

#1 Teach skills explicitly.

Plan an executive functioning and study skills block to teach skills explicitly. Depending on what time you have available, you can choose to teach these skills for 20 minutes per day or just once a week. As an educator, I know it’s challenging to find more time in the day. Some possibilities that might work include during a lunch group, resource room, morning meeting, advisory periods, or just once a week at the start of your class to start the week off strong. Even though finding the time can be difficult, it is always worth the investment. If you aren’t sure where to start, check out this yearlong executive functioning set of lessons and activities. By learning skills for planning, organization, time management, attention, and more, students will have more strategies necessary to succeed in school and beyond.

#2 Engage in class discussions.

As a group, openly talk about each of the skills and ask questions to get students really thinking. You can always come up with conversation starters on your own. One of my favorite ways to do this, though, is using these Executive Functioning Task Cards. They are already broken up into 10 executive functioning skills. You can just read the card and give time for students to discuss in small groups or as a full class. Some examples of questions might be: “Choose any class. If you had a test in that class, what 3 pages from your notebook would study from? (this focuses on organization)” or “You have a lot of homework and you have practice at 6pm. What can you do?” (this focuses on planning). The whole idea is to get learners thinking and activating their brains for each of the skills. And of course, kids often learn best from each other so discussion is always a great option!

#3 Play board games.

Games are a fun, interactive, and motivating way to practice executive functioning skills. The key is to be purposeful about highlight and teaching the skills as you play. For example, one of my favorite games is Pictionary. By playing, kids can work on a number of skills: They have to plan what they will draw, manage their time as the timer goes down, and be flexible and change their strategy when others aren’t guessing correctly. Read this blog post for more ideas about using games to strengthen executive functioning skills.

#4 Integrate it with curriculum.

Executive functioning skills are in everything we do. It only makes sense to teach and discuss them in everything, too. If you are starting a long-term project, take a little extra time to teach about planning. Help students understand that they should map out exactly what they want to accomplish before they start. During independent work time, discuss strategies for time management and using time well. Before a test or quiz, explain about metacognition and thinking about what you know in order to help learners study what they really need to. The opportunities for integrating EF skills into the curriculum are truly endless.

#5 Read literature and stories.

Literature can be used to discuss and highlight a number of skills. Again, the key is to be purposeful and directed about discussing and teaching those skills. You might ask how a character planned for a certain event, why they used self-control, or how they used perseverance to work through a challenge. There are so many wonderful short stories and picture books that help highlight some of these skills. I’ve also developed an entire set of Executive Functioning Stories that explicitly highlight the skills. Of course, you can highlight many of these skills is almost any story you choose!

#6 Highlight skills throughout the day.

Just like with academic content, students need to hear EF terms and phrases over and over again. One simple way to help kids learn about executive functioning skills is just to talk about them and highlight them on a regular basis. Remind them when they are using self-control to stop and think before answering a question. Encourage a student who organizes their binder during downtime in class. These small reminders can go a long way!

#7 Use an interactive notebook.

Interactive notebooks can be a great tool to teach skills in a fun and hands-on way. I developed a complete executive functioning interactive notebook to teach about all EF skills: everything from planning and organization to self-control and flexibility. If you haven’t used an interactive notebook before, the idea is really simple. Kids follow the directions to cut out items and put them in their notebooks. They have to read passages, answer questions, and complete tasks along the way. Kids learn critical skills in a hands-on way while creating a permanent notebook as evidence of their learning.

#8 Use crafts.

Using crafts can be highly motivating! For many learners, art can be a window into learning skills that are otherwise very challenging for them. One of my favorite crafts is making Executive Functioning Keys. The whole idea is to teach kids about the skills while they put together their own set of “keys to their success”. As you give each student a key to cut out and put on a ring, discuss the skill and explain why it is important. Best of all, learners can keep these keys as a reminder of the skills they’ve learned about.

#9 Watch videos.

There are many free videos for kids and young adults that teach about executive functioning skills. One set of videos called “Adventures of You” highlights EF skills in a very kid-friendly way. These would make for a fun advisory or morning meeting discussion!

#10 Develop and reflect on goals.

Developing goals with students can be extremely beneficial. This activity can be done during morning meeting, an advisory period, or an end-of-the-week reflection time. By creating goals and monitoring the progress on a regular basis, students can start to become more self-reflective. They should think about what worked, why they saw an improvement (or why they didn’t), and what strategies they can implement going forward.

#11 Play activities and other games.

It’s helpful to have a “toolbox” of quick activities for highlighting and practicing EF skills. Simple activities like Freeze, Simon Says, Musical Chairs, and Guard Duty are great when you have just a few minutes left of class and want to use it in a positive way. Head over to this blog post to read more about practicing executive functioning skills with play activities.

#12 Use role play.

Bring up real-life scenarios involving executive functioning skills and have students act out the situation with partners. For example, you might say: You were out sick for two days and you have no idea what the homework was. What might you do? Students act out solving the problem, such as going and asking the teacher, looking up assignments online, calling a friend, or asking a classmate face-to-face. Role-play is one of my favorite techniques because it’s fun for the kids and they will remember the skills they act out!

#13 Give mini-lessons on one skill per week (or month).

If you want to integrate EF skills into the day, plan to teach one skill per week or month. Do whichever works best for you. My favorite order of teaching these skills is: Planning, Organization, Time Management, Task Initiation, Working Memory, Metacognition, Self-Control, Attention, Flexibility, and Perseverance. Start by discussing the skill, explaining what it means and what it looks like, give reasons why it’s important, and strategies to help learners improve the skill. Then, continue to highlight and discuss that skill consistently throughout the week or month. Use this free executive functioning poster to help you discuss each skill.

#14 Use visual cues and reminders.

Use posters or a bulletin board to visually remind learners about the skills. You can even have your students create class visuals with directions on what it means to pay attention, manage your time, and get organized! Refer back to the visuals to discuss and highlight these skills throughout the week. For students in need, you can even give them specialized visuals reminding about specific skills right on their binders or desks.

#15 Use escape rooms.

An escape room activity is a little bit of work to set up, but worth all the effort! I created a few sets of executive functioning escape rooms to target these skills in an interactive way. Students work together in teams to solve puzzles. Each puzzle requires them to learn about and use executive functioning skills. After completing all puzzles, students will get access to a secret phrase to “escape” the room. Try this free executive functioning escape room to get started or read up more about how to build escape rooms in your classroom!

#16 Use brainteasers and brain games.

Start the day with a brainteaser or riddle to get kids thinking! Not only are kids exercising their brains, but these are fun activities that help set a positive tone for the day. One thing I loved doing in my middle school classroom was sharing a riddle and not giving the answer until the end of the day to encourage kids to think on their own and develop perseverance! Brainteasers and brain games can be so much fun.

While all learners can benefit from learning about executive functioning skills, some students are going to need executive functioning interventions and supports a lot more than others. For more information, read up on my blog series about executive functioning interventions and supports.

10 Ways to Appreciate Paraeducators

March 17, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

One of my strongest principles and beliefs is to support, cherish, and value the paraeducators we work with. After spending 10 years in a middle school special education classroom, it’s easy to say that paras are the foundation to our entire education system. Without them, kids in classrooms would struggle to understand key content, groups in the special education setting would be too large and unmanageable, teachers would have even bigger difficulties with classroom management, and many kids wouldn’t be able to access their least restrictive environment. Paraeducators make education work. And since it’s clear to say we’re just not paying them enough right now, the very least we can do as teachers is appreciate them for the love and support they bring every single day to our classrooms.

Here are 10 ways you can appreciate paraeducators in your classroom:

1. Introduce them. At the beginning of the year (or anytime when a para joins your class), take the time to introduce them to your students. Let the kids know who they are and how they will support everyone. Most importantly, set the tone that it’s important to give respect to the paraeducator just as you would to any teacher.

2. Treat them as an equal. Many paraeducators are highly educated and have countless years of experience in the classroom. Treat them just as you would any other teacher colleague. Not only can they tell, but the students you teach notice, too!

3. Say “thank you” at the end of the day. This is so important to me. Paraeducators work so hard every single day, and some days are especially tough. It’s such a small gesture but can mean a lot to just say “thank you”. Make it a habit at the end of every day.

4. Get to know to them. The school day is always crazy busy from start to finish, so it’s understandable that you don’t have a ton of time for small talk. Still, it’s important for you to get to know the paraeducator working in your classroom. Ask them about their family, inquire about their hobbies, and how their weekends were. Sometimes, I’ve learned helpful facts that can even help them bond with a particular student or reteach a certain subject. Not to mention, it’s important to just value them and let them know you do care.

5. Ask for their feedback (and value it). Remember when you have a paraeducator in your classroom, they are a second set of educator eyes watching how you teach and how the students are responding. Sometimes, there are things we just can’t see from the front of the classroom or while we’re leading a small group. Talk to the paraeducator in your room about what’s working and what could be improved. Ask for their feedback on future lessons and supports for the students, especially the ones with special education needs. Becoming a team with your paraeducators can truly help you become a better teacher!

6. Use the term paraeducator. Many use the term paraprofessional, which is also an appropriate term. To me, though, I like to highlight that they are not just an extra person in the classroom. Avoid using terms like aide and assistant. They are educators. Let’s call them one.

7. Buy them a coffee (or tea). At my last position, this became my Friday ritual. Trust me, the paraeducator I worked with truly deserved it and I loved being able to give her something small to look forward to each Friday. You don’t have to stick to every week or every other week. Even just a special treat out of the blue will show your gratitude. Get one for yourself, too, of course.

8. Write them a note. Everyone likes a kind note once in a while! Take a few minutes to write a kind note thanking your paraeducators and drop it in their mailbox or even their lunch bag. It’s just another small way to appreciate what they do every day.

9. Give them a break. If you notice that a paraeducator is having a tough day or struggling with a particular student or group, offer to switch off with them. Better yet, if you can, tell them to go get a coffee in the teacher’s lounge and take a few minutes to themselves.

10. Include them in the school community. Sometimes there are teacher gatherings after school or meetings that only teachers are invited to. Instead, start to adopt a culture where all educators are included and valued. This isn’t to say that paraeducators should be expected to attend extra meetings or PD opportunities, but they should at least be given the option.

How do you appreciate the paraeducators you work with? Let me know what you would add!

12 Reasons Why Special Educators are Really Superheroes

March 3, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

As special educators, we might not be able to read minds or fly, but we certainly are superheroes in action. Whether we are teaching a lesson or running an IEP meeting, special education teachers go above and beyond to help those in need and do what is right. Here are 12 reasons why special educators are really superheroes in disguise:

We always have a mission. As special education teachers, we are always goal-oriented and focused on a positive end-result. Sometimes we might do silly things, like tell a story about our dog or wear a silly hat to get a laugh, but we always have a reason and a purpose. We always have a mission, so trust us!

We always see the good. Special educators are masters of seeing the positive. We see the ability instead of the disability. We see the strength instead of just the challenges. This is imperative when working with kids and young adults who struggle academically, socially, and emotionally.

We have secret special powers. Every special educator has special abilities. Whether it is building strong relationships with our students or using tricks to teach a complicated math lesson, we have the skills and we know how to use them!

We come to the rescue. When our learners are struggling academically, socially, or emotionally, we are there at a moment’s notice. Special education teachers are always ready and prepared to put out fires right away before they turn into an inferno. It’s just another one of our special abilities.

We have special sidekicks. Of course, I’m talking about amazing paraeducators. Where would we be without them!? Paraeducators are the backbone to special education programs all over the world. When we work together with our amazing paraeducators, anything is possible.

We stand up for what is right. Advocating for our learners is a critical part of our job. Sometimes this means explaining to a teacher why a student needs a particular accommodation or modification. Other times it might mean talking to a parent about why some supports aren’t actually necessary for their child. And quite often, it means reminding our learners what their own responsibilities are. We stand up for what is right. Sometimes it’s not easy, but it has to be done!

We always help those in need. Special educators are compassionate. We love helping kids and young adults, whether they are on our caseload or not. Helping learners is just what we do.

We encourage and inspire others. One of our biggest jobs is inspiring our learners to be the very best they can be. To help students think about goals so they can achieve their dreams.

We have strength like no one else. Special educators do it all. Between planning, teaching lessons, testing, writing reports, running IEP meetings, and contacting parents (just to name a few responsibilities), special education teachers are always going. It’s important to note that even though we have this super strength, all educators need time to focus on self-care! This is critical to reduce burnout and continue doing our best for our learners.

We fix problems before anyone else knows they are there. Special educators go above and beyond. Sometimes, no one sees this, but we know what we do! Whether it’s modifying a math test at the last minute or reminding a teacher to fill out the report before an IEP meeting, special education teachers are problem-solvers across the board.

We can become invisible. Ultimately, the goal is for our learners to be completely independent. After teaching skills, giving practice, and providing accommodations, we are working on helping our students do the work on their own! Slowly, we fade those supports and start to become invisible so that our students succeed independently.

We never give up. Special educators are masters of perseverance and resilience. If something isn’t working with a student, we re-assess and try something new. We never give up, because we know that progress can always be made.

If you want to boost morale and encourage special educators in your building, get these in a fun set of posters to hang up in the staff room, teacher’s lounge, resource room, or anywhere else!

Special educators need all the love they can get so let’s remind them that they are truly superheroes! Share with a special educator you love!

Interventions for Executive Functioning Challenges: Time Management

February 18, 2019 by pathway2success 1 Comment

Time management skills are essentially life skills. Kids and young adults need this skills now and in the future. All educators and parents want our learners to be able to work independently, use time well, and complete tasks on time. In order to meet these expectations, students need to learn, understand, and continually practice skills for time management.

Kids and young adults can benefit greatly from just learning what time management is and why it matters. The whole idea is that we can work smarter instead of harder, helping us to complete our work more efficiently in a shorter time frame. To kids who struggle with time management, this idea that they can learn tips and tricks to use their time better can actually sound like magic! Best of all, these skills are so broad that they can be integrated into every single thing we do. From every content area to every chore at home, we use time management skills (and they really DO pay off).

What is time management? Time management is having an accurate understanding of time and making decisions to complete tasks in a timely way. As with most other executive functioning skills, time management isn’t just one isolated skill. It includes being able to estimate how long tasks will take, prioritizing, dividing time between tasks, pacing yourself, using time wisely, and working to meet deadlines.

• Examples of Time Management •

Here are some examples of what strong time management skills might look like on the spot:

Prioritizing which homework assignments to start before beginning a list of work.
Someone pacing themselves on a test to make sure they finish in the given time frame.
Writing out a daily schedule to keep track of times and events.
Chunking a project into sections to complete it by a specific deadline.

• Possible Signs of Challenges with Time Management •

It’s important to think of time management as a foundational skill for overall success. Imagine this: A student understands the content in a class well. They start working on a graded project to demonstrate their knowledge. The student is doing a fantastic job – truly their best work! The problem is that they realize the deadline for the project is tomorrow and there is no way they will be finished on time. Does the student turn in a half-completed project? Turn it in late? Rush and complete work that isn’t their best quality? Give up and turn in nothing at all? All of these outcomes demonstrate a clear issue with time management. Simply put, time management skills are a critical element to doing our best work.

Possible signs of time management challenges might include:

A learner spending too long on one problem or section of an assignment.
A student working on an assignment due next week (or not working on anything at all) when they have other work that is due next period.
A student consistently actively working but not finishing assessments or other assignments in a given time period.
A student who appears to always be in a rush at the last minute to finish work.

• Interventions, Supports, and Strategies for Time Management •

As with all executive functioning skills, time management abilities can be strengthened and improved over time. Here are some strategies, activities, and ideas to help learners with time management challenges in the classroom:

Teach time management and other EF skills explicitly
Discuss and practice prioritizing with multiple tasks (one way to do this is make a list of assignments and go back and order them by importance)
Teach how to make checklists for a set of steps or tasks
Practice estimating time for different takes (you can even make it a game! “How long do you think it would take you to clean your room?”)
Use a visual timer to visually show how much time is left for a task or session
Use chimes to warn 5 (or 10) minutes before transitions
Maintain a relatively consistent and predictable daily schedule
Keep the class schedule listed in the same spot every day
Teach, practice, and discuss routines frequently
Have students put their schedules on the front of their binders or desks
Identify and reduce distractors (you can even call them time-eaters!)
Discuss and practice strategies for moving on when stuck (skipping a problem, rereading, asking a friend, etc.)
Practice, model, and teach organization (since it is easier to use our time well when we are orderly and organized)
Practice planning out longer project together with mini-deadlines along the way
Provide work check-ins to students to make sure they are on the right track
Teach how to maximize downtime (ex: if you finish your work early in study hall, look over other work and start something else!)
Teach students how to check-in with themselves (“How am I doing? Am I on track?)
Play time-based games (add a timer to most any game like Pictionary or Scrabble to get kids managing their time!)
Discuss and practice what it means to “pace yourself”

• Strategies for Parents to Support Time Management at Home •

Here are some strategies parents and families can use at home strengthen skills for time management:

Model and practice estimating how long a task might take
Create a home calendar with important events listed
Discuss daily priorities and tasks at a common time (such as breakfast)
Develop a daily schedule with dedicated homework and chore times
Use strategies to stay organized and tidy
Reduce and give limits for social media and television time
Practice making to-do lists together and ordering items by importance
Identify, discuss, and reduce distractions (“time-eaters”)
Establish routines (for morning, after school, and bedtime)
Avoid over-scheduling (kids and young adults need downtime to learn how to use their free time, too!)
Consider digital calendars or apps
Model and discuss thinking ahead (such as putting clothes out for the next day)
Use a timer for working sessions
Use and discuss deadlines for tasks (“Your room needs to be organized by Thursday.”)
Provide rewards and incentives for completing tasks (“When all your homework is done, you can have 30 minutes of video game time.”)

If you notice that your learners need some extra support with their time management and other executive functioning skills, I have units to target executive functioning skills for middle and high school learners and executive functioning skills for younger learners. Get all your materials in one spot to make teaching these skills a breeze!

This is a blog series focused on interventions to support executive functioning skills. Make sure you read up on interventions for planning and supports for organization!

Interventions for Executive Functioning Challenges: Task Initiation

February 4, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Strategies and supports for executive functioning challenges can make all the difference, especially for students who struggle with task initiation. This is such an important skill, since it’s like the motor in allowing us to get started on all tasks and assignments. When someone is struggling to initiate, tasks take longer and require more effort. This can be extremely frustrating for both educators and the students themselves. Sometimes, a lack of task initiation skills can be misinterpreted for behavioral problems and defiance. This is because it looks like the child is avoiding what they should be doing, when in reality, the child might not have the skills to get themselves going in a positive way. This can be difficult to discern at first glance and often takes a little bit of investigating. It is helpful to observe the child, talk with them, and even try some of the interventions listed below to see how they help.

The ultimate goal is helping kids and young adults learn strategies to independently get themselves going so they can be successful. Best of all, these are skills that every single person can benefit from, since we could all improve our ability to get started right away on what we need to.

What is task initiation? Task initiation is the ability to start a task. It includes overcoming procrastination and getting started on tasks even if you don’t want to do them. Obviously, this is a critical life skill, since there are many chores and tasks we must complete even when we don’t feel like doing them at the moment.

• Examples of Task Initiation •

Skills for task initiation can be difficult to spot, because it just appears like someone doing what they are “supposed” to do! Just a few examples of what task initiation looks like includes:

Starting an assignment in class right away after directions are given.
Cleaning your room when it needs to be done, without reminders or prompts.
Beginning a tough test or quiz, even if you aren’t 100% confident on the assignment.

• Possible Signs of Challenges with Task Initiation •

Learners who struggle with task initiation are frequently getting in trouble for not doing their work. While at first glance this can appear as intentional avoidance behavior, kids and young adults who struggle with task initiation really lack the skills to get themselves going. Again, this can be extremely frustrating for learners, since they often want to do their work but just don’t know how to start or get themselves in action. Being able to notice possible signs can be helpful to target these students early on.

Possible signs of challenges with task initiation include:

A student putting their head down when it is time to begin work independently.
Someone who finds other things to do when it’s time to work, such as sharpening pencil multiple times or getting a drink.
A student who says, “I don’t know what to do,” even if directions were just given.
A learner who just doodles on their paper instead of completing the task.
A child or young adult who is frustrated when trying to start their work.

• Interventions, Supports, and Strategies for Task Initiation •

Task initiation skills can certainly be improved with practice. Here are some activities, tasks, and ideas to help with task initiation needs in the classroom:

Teach task initiation and other EF skills explicitly
Practice brain breaks between tasks
Give choice for how to complete the task or demonstrate knowledge
Be explicit with directions and provide them orally and in writing
Incorporate areas of interest into the content and curriculum (i.e. the price of skateboards in math)
Train a peer mentor to help the student in need get started on tasks
Practice the rocket ship countdown (Say: 5-4-3-2-1 blast off… on “blast off”, get up and get going!)
Allow the student to work with a partner
Use a timer to countdown time to get to work
Have the student answer the questions before starting: What am I doing? What do I need? How can I start?
Make getting started like a race with a countdown
Pretend a set of assignments is like an escape room
Show a model of expected work prior to starting
Keep a reminder card on the student’s desk – “What should I be doing right now?”
Provide visuals with step-by-step directions for getting started
Identify which content areas are most challenging and reduce the difficulty to give momentum
Develop a work contract that highlights what the student should do during work time
Incorporate incentives and rewards for completing difficult tasks (use this free reward list to get some ideas)
Practice problem-solving skills (i.e. “What could you do if you don’t know the answer to a problem?”)
Take turns writing out sentences or problems to get started together
Set up a clean and organized workspace without clutter
Reduce or eliminate distractions
Allow the student to complete every other problem or choose a certain number of problems

• Strategies for Parents to Support Task Initiation at Home •

Here are some activities parents and families can do to at home strengthen skills for task initiation:

Create a schedule for chores and homework time (and make it a routine)
Exercise or play a sport with your child before work time
Create a daily chore checklist
Use a timer to countdown time to get to work
Work in short bursts and then give breaks
Provide incentives after a set of tasks is completed (use this free reward list to get some ideas)
Practice the rocket ship countdown (Say: 5-4-3-2-1 blast off… on “blast off”, get up and get going!)
Do challenging tasks together (i.e. cleaning a bedroom or starting homework)

If you are looking for ways to help your learners strengthen their executive functioning skills, I have units to target executive functioning skills for middle and high school learners and executive functioning skills for younger learners. Spending a little extra time early on can make a world of a difference!

This is a blog series focused on interventions to support executive functioning skills. Make sure you read up on interventions for planning and supports for organization!

15+ Benefits of Social Emotional Learning in the Classroom

January 15, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Social emotional learning isn’t just a fancy buzzword in education. It’s an approach that integrates critical life skills into the school curriculum to help learners reach their individual potentials. There are huge benefits to teaching social-emotional skills and incorporating them into what educators are already doing.

The research indicates that implementing a social-emotional approach in schools can make a real difference. A meta-analysis of research indicated that students involved in SEL programs made gains socially, emotionally, behaviorally, and academically (Durlak et al., 2011). While more research is needed, one thing is clear: Teaching social and emotional skills pays off.

If you want to teach social emotional learning in your classroom but aren’t sure how, I have created an entire yearlong SEL curriculum. It is composed of five core units, each with several lessons and activities to teach the skills kids and young adults need. There are a number of significant benefits to integrating SEL into the classroom. It’s very much worth the time and effort. Kids do best when they know how, so let’s teach them the skills to get there.

Here are just a few benefits to social emotional learning in the classroom:

Improves school and class climate. Kids and young adults need to feel safe, respected, and supported in order to do their best. Incorporating SEL into your classroom encourages all of those things and more, helping to create a more positive learning community for all.

Increases student motivation. Kids and young adults want to do better when kids feel good about themselves, their teachers, and school. Integrating skills for social emotional learning can help encourage learners to be themselves, feel more accepted, work towards goals, be willing to take risks, and just love learning. More motivation is always a good thing.

Teaches problem-solving skills. Learners need strong problem-solving skills in all areas of life. A huge benefit to social emotional learning is that much of it focuses on managing situations and problems in everyday life. If you get stuck on a math problem, what can you do? If you get in a fight with a friend, how might you handle it? If someone asks you to do something you don’t want to do, what could you say? All of these questions are discussions that might be taking place when SEL is integrated into the classroom.

Reduces behavior problems. So often, behavior problems are the result of skill deficits. In the words of Ross Greene, kids do well when they can. Once we teach skills for problem-solving, working with others, and managing emotions, we are likely to see student behavior improve.

Helps students set and meet goals. A big part of self-management is creating specific and measurable goals for the future. Goal setting is important in all areas of life, whether someone is making a goal to improve their math grade or identifying steps to get their dream job.

Gives a space to talk about mental health. Mental health is extremely important and often not talked about enough. Talking about social emotional learning gives kids and young adults the venue to talk about their feelings, thoughts, and needs. It should be healthy to talk about mental health.

Teaches study skills and habits. Time management, organization, and planning are important skills that need to be developed over time. It’s easy to assume that all learners have these skills automatically, but it’s often not the case. Best of all, these are skills that can be easily taught in harmony with academic curriculum, whether it is math, reading, music, science, or anything else.

Encourages empathy. Empathy is one of the most foundational social skills, and sometimes it is overlooked. Quite often, kids and young adults need to be explicitly taught how to think about the feelings and thoughts of others. Once they can do this, students are much more effective at maintaining relationships, resolving conflicts with peers, and showing kindness to others.

Teaches teamwork and collaboration. In order to be success now and in the future, kids need to learn how to work well with others. Social emotional learning skills help students learn how to work collaboratively with partners and small groups. That includes working with people who aren’t your friends, problem-solving through disagreements, being a good team player, and more. Of course, these are all skills that are critical to success in the classroom, too.

Improves academic performance. Sometimes educators think of SEL skills as completely separated from academics, but that’s actually not true. A number of social-emotional skills actually encourage and allow students to perform better academically. Just a few of those skills include goal setting, planning, staying organized, managing time, problem-solving, cooperating, working in groups, and much more.

Improves self-regulation skills. Being able to managing our own thoughts, feelings, words, and actions is paramount to social and personal success. SEL can help learners understand self-regulation so they can learn to manage their own behaviors in positive ways.

Teaches responsible decision-making. Without a doubt, decision-making is a critical life skill. Learners need to know how to understand choices, think about consequences, consider how choices impact them and others, and ultimately make a positive choice they are proud of. These skills don’t come easily, though! So often, learners have to make tough decisions without “easy” solutions or answers for them. This is why practice in this area is so important, and can truly pay off in the end.

Teachers disagreeing respectfully. Kids and young adults need to learn how to disagree respectfully as a critical social skill. This is an ability they will use in the classroom when working with peers, with friends outside the school walls, online, and more.

Increases personal self-awareness. It is important for learners to have a strong understanding of their own individual strengths and challenges. Self-awareness is having a clear and accurate view of oneself. When students understand themselves, they are better equipped to have a clear vision for the future and make better choices to reach those dreams.

Encourages perseverance and resilience. While these skills are similar, they are different enough to highlight and discuss. Perseverance is the ability to push through challenges, while resilience is being able to get back up after a failure or defeat. Both skills are critical for student success in and outside the classroom.

Improves confidence. All kids should feel good about themselves and who they are as individuals. In many ways, helping kids and young adults to feel more confident can help them become the best versions of themselves.

Improves relationship skills. We all want our learners to have better relationship skills. That includes understanding healthy vs. unhealthy relationships, developing skills to be a good friend, maintaining relationships, conflict resolution, repairing relationships, and more. Not only does it benefit the students in your classroom to get along with each other, but these are also life skills for the future.

Improves attendance. Some research has indicated that kids and young adults in SEL programs actually have improved attendance. This just makes sense; If kids feel more positive about school and have the skills to succeed, they are more likely to be prepared to come each day.

Teaches coping skills. All kids and young adults experience emotional distress from time to time. Managing emotions can be tough, especially if learners don’t have the tools to do it effectively. An important component in social emotional learning programs is teaching kids and young adults how to managing those feelings and cope with them in the best ways.

Creates a feeling of community. A positive school community is critical to help all learners succeed. By building relationships and talking about topics that really matter to kids, they are more likely to bond with each other and educators in the room. This creates a strong sense of community, acceptance, and support.

If you want more strategies for integrating social emotional learning in the classroom, check out this list of over 100 free SEL resources and ideas!

Interventions for Executive Functioning Challenges: Organization

December 16, 2018 by pathway2success 1 Comment

As kids get older, organization becomes ever more important! While it is a critical skill for all ages, kids and young adults are often just learning to develop and strengthen their skills as more responsibilities are added on in their lives. When you think about it, kids and young adults can have a lot to juggle between school, homework, friends, family, and activities. This often means that the level of organization skills can make the difference between things running smoothly and just chaos! Simply put, strong organizational skills set the stage for success for all learners.

What is organization? Organization is an efficient and orderly approach to tasks and keeping materials in order. Skills for organization are greatly related to the ability to plan, as one must have a plan for exactly how to organize! One of the key elements in learning organization is to have a place for everything ahead of time. This includes having binders or folders for each class in a notebook, having a hamper to put dirty clothes, and everything in between. Setting up systems for organization can lead to huge improvements, such as having a specific strategy for organizing binders or cleaning a room. It’s important to note, though, that organization takes real work even after systems have been set up! Learners must constantly re-organize and re-evaluate their systems for organization in order to stay neat and tidy in home, school, and beyond.

• Examples of Organization •

Organization is a critical skill, as it often flows over into all areas of an individual’s life. Just a few examples of what organization looks like includes:

Keeping a neat and orderly room.
Writing an essay with a clear beginning, middle, and end.
Bringing required materials, such as pencils, to class.
Having neat and tidy binders.
Developing an organized approach to completing a project.

• Possible Signs of Challenges with Organization •

Identifying challenges with executive functioning skills can make a huge difference for kids and young adults. We all have organization ups and downs, but if some of these behaviors occur on a more regular basis, it should be an indicator to consider extra interventions and supports.

Possible signs of challenges with organization include:

Forgetting to bring required materials, such as a pencil or correct binder, to class.
Misplacing or losing class assignments.
Putting class papers in a binder randomly without a sense of order.
Having a messy desk or set of binders.
Difficulty transitioning from one class to another.

• Interventions, Supports, and Strategies for Organization •

As a positive, organizational skills can certainly be improved and strengthened over time. Here are some activities, tasks, and ideas to help with organization needs in the classroom:

Teach organization and other EF skills explicitly.
Teach how to organize a binder and where materials go.
Schedule an organization boot camp time, focused just on organization skills.
Practice cleaning up and re-organizing as you work through a task.
Provide a visual reminder for what students need before they enter the classroom.
Set students up with a specialized homework folder or binder. Use this free homework binder to start.
Have students keep an assignment calendar or homework log to track daily and long-term work.
Consider apps for organization, like Trello or myHomework.
Write homework in the same exact spot every day.
Color code books and binders to match (i.e. blue for science and red for math).
Keep extra papers in a designated spot for students who are absent or lose them.
Keep a model notebook in a spot for students to review, as needed.
Clearly labels materials in the classroom.
Dedicate the last 3 minutes of every class to getting organized.
Keep a “classroom office” stocked with extra pens, pencils, and paper for students who forget them.
Use graphic organizers for writing assignments.
Use an end-of-the-day reminder sheet to help students think about what materials they need. Use this free reminder checklist to start.
Schedule a weekly 10-minute binder organization time.
Discuss how to organize different areas and where items should be put away. Start with this free organization activity.
Highlight positive examples of organization in the classroom.

• Strategies for Parents to Support Organization at Home •

Parents can play a huge role in supporting executive functioning skills at home. Since executive functioning skills impact all areas on a person’s life, it’s helpful for learners to practice these skills in different environments. Here are some activities parents and families can do to at home strengthen skills for organization:

Create daily and weekly chore charts with organization and cleaning tasks.
Reinforce cleaning up and putting materials away after completing a task.
Create checklists for cleaning and organizing materials.
Try to have a place for everything.
Avoid piles and put things away right away together.
Openly discuss plans and schedules for the week or weekend.
Use a calendar to keep track of home or school events.
Plan a weekly organization and cleanup time.
Play “Where Does This Go?”. Gather materials and have the child put them back in the right spot.
Create a designated spot just for homework with office materials, as needed.
Make organizing more fun by listening to music while you clean together.
Make it a game by gathering 10+ items and time the child returning them to their correct spots.
Use a morning or afternoon checklist to remind the child of their responsibilities before/after school.

Do your learners struggle with organization quite a bit? If so, you can get started by teaching executive functioning skills explicitly right away with some units I’ve developed. I have units to target executive functioning skills for middle and high school learners and executive functioning skills for younger learners. Spending a little extra time early on can make a world of a difference!

Also, this post is part of a blog series focused just on interventions for executive functioning skills! You can also read up on interventions to help with planning.

Interventions for Executive Functioning Challenges: Planning

December 2, 2018 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Planning is a critical executive functioning skill that helps kids and young adults achieve success in and outside of the classroom. Executive functioning skills are the complex mental processes that work together to help us accomplish tasks and goals. When learners struggle with these skills, daily life activities can become particularly challenging. While all executive functioning skills are important in their own way, this post targets interventions specifically for kids who struggle with the ability to plan.

What is planning? Planning is the ability to think about an end-goal and create a roadmap to help you get there. Someone who plans well is more likely to achieve their goals effectively and efficiently, since making a plan allows us to think through what we want to ultimate accomplish. I like to think of planning as one of the more foundational executive functioning skills, as it sets the stage for success. It’s always best to figure out a thorough plan before starting a task.

• Examples of Planning •

It’s important to note that planning can impact all areas of someone’s life, including academically, socially, and personally. Here are several examples of planning in real life:

Filling out a graphic organizer before writing an essay.
Taking a few extra minutes to think about what needs to be done today.
Writing down homework in an agenda before class is over.
Planning out times for events so activities do not overlap.
Figuring out which college to attend to enter into a specific career.

• Possible Signs of Challenges with Planning •

Identifying possible challenging with executive functioning skills can make the difference between success and struggle for a student. All kids have bad days once in a while, but if some of these behaviors occur on a regular basis, it should be an indicator to provide interventions and supports.

Possible signs of challenges with planning include:

Having difficulty starting or completing long-term assignments.
Forgetting to bring home necessary books, binders, or materials.
Writing papers, essays, or stories that are difficult to follow.
Just start tasks without considering the best strategies to completing the task.
Make impulsive decisions without considering consequences.
Have to frequently re-do assignments because they didn’t follow the guidelines.

• Interventions, Supports, and Strategies for Planning •

Work can always be done to help kids and young adults strengthen their executive functioning skills. Here are some activities, tasks, and ideas to help with planning needs:

Teach planning explicitly by explaining the skill, real life examples, and why it matters.
Discuss the plans of the day during morning meeting.
Use graphic organizers for writing assignments.
Set students up with a homework binder and daily homework agenda (use this free homework binder to get started).
Have students make a to-do list before starting longer assignments.
Provide a rubric for larger assignments.
Show models and visuals of what finished assignments should look like.
Use apps for planning, like Trello and Evernote.
Use a calendar regularly.
Have students place their daily schedules on their binders.
Post the daily objectives and schedule in view.
Keep important dates listed in sight on a regular basis.
Practice developing SMART goals and steps to follow through with them.
Use behavior reflection pages to help consider possible choices.
Use an end-of-the-day reminder sheet to help students think about what materials they need (try this free checklist).
Highlight positive examples of planning in the classroom.

• Strategies for Parents to Support Planning at Home •

Parents can play a huge role in supporting and encouraging executive functioning skills in the home environment. Since EF skills impact all areas on a person’s life, it’s extremely helpful for learners to practice these skills in different environments. Here are some activities parents and families can do to strengthen skills for planning:

Practice making to-do lists together for various tasks.
Create a structured homework time and space at home.
Choose a recipe together and plan out how to cook the meal.
Make a household grocery list together.
Help list out materials, steps, and due dates for long-term projects together.
Use a calendar to plan weekly and monthly family events.
Discuss the day’s plans at morning breakfast or on the ride to school.
Plan a vacation or short weekend trip together.
Develop and write down weekly goals for school work, cleaning, or other tasks.
Have kids list three steps for an activity before they can start it (i.e. going out to the movies or having a friend over the house).
Encourage kids and young adults to gather school materials and clothes for the next day the night before.
Discuss examples of planning at jobs in real life.

If you notice this is an area your learners struggle with, get started by teaching executive functioning skills explicitly today. I have created units to target executive functioning skills for middle and high school learners and for younger learners. Targeting these skills will take a little bit extra time, but will be worth the effort!

This post is part of a blog series focused just on interventions for executive functioning skills! You can also read up on interventions to help with organization.

Using Games to Teach Social Emotional Skills

November 18, 2018 by pathway2success 4 Comments

Games can be the perfect tool to introduce and teach social emotional learning skills to kids and young adults. These are the skills that help kids become more self-aware, develop positive relationships, show empathy towards others, manage emotions, use self-control, resolve conflicts, and make positive decisions. So often, educators are so busy teaching our curriculum and content that we sometimes leave these skills behind. It’s so important to make real time for them and incorporate them into many of the activities you already do! For kids who struggle with some of these skills, learning them can be real work. With that said, it’s important to make learning these skills meaningful, interactive, hands-on, and fun. That’s why teaching social emotional skills in the form of a game just makes so much sense!

Here are several games (some I’ve purchase and some I’ve developed myself) that target these critical social emotional learning skills:

1. Social Problem Solving Board Game

Why It’s Important: Social problem-solving is our ability to understand a social situation and use reasoning to deal with it in the most socially appropriate way. We really use these skills every single day. At school, kids might have to problem-solve what to do when someone isn’t nice to them or when they see someone else breaking a rule and aren’t sure what to do. At home, they might use them when an adult tells them to clean their room but they don’t feel like it at the moment.

How It Works: This game focuses on considering a social problem, thinking about what it matters, considering choices and consequences, and ultimately making a decision that is best in the moment. Kids will roll a dice and work through a game board, picking up a situation card for each spot they land on. My favorite part is that kids will also act out scenarios which can help them to generalize the social skills over time.

2. Team Pictionary

Why It’s Important: Teamwork is a critical skill for all ages. This is a skill kids and young adults use throughout the school day, but also outside of school, whether it is during a sports game or playing a game with friends at home. While learning to work together as a team, kids also learn other valuable skills including assertive communication, how to listen, turn-taking, doing a fair share of the work, and how to respectfully disagree with each other. These are not only school skills, but life skills.

How It Works: Split up into two teams. Let each team pick an artist who will draw for their team. Let the artists pick a card with a phrase they will have to illustrate on paper or on the board. Let both artists draw at the same time, while their team tries to guess the correct phrase they are drawing. The catch is that the artist can only draw images and not words, so team members must work together to come up with what the artist is drawing. The team that guesses the phrase first wins! The game can continue again and again, as different artists from the group should be chosen.

3. Social Communication Board Game

Why It’s Important: Simply put, kids need to be able to communicate well with others. That includes having small talk with a classmate in the hallway, understanding nonverbal cues, holding a full conversation with peers at lunch, and using our social filter before we speak. Our communication skills have a huge impact on how we get along with others and develop relationships over time.

How It Works: This game is ideal for all kids, but especially those with social language challenges. Depending on which space kids fall on, they will have to decipher social cues from a real life photo, discuss what they would do or say in a situation, identify how they should think before they speak, or say a specific phrase in a variety of different tones. Since there are over 150 unique cards, kids can just play again and again while practicing these skills.

4. Empathy Board Game

Why It’s Important: Considering and understanding the feelings of others is a foundational skill that supports social success. In order to know the “right” or socially appropriate response to situations, we must first really understand how others feel. Developing empathy isn’t easy for all kids, especially those with social challenges and autism. It’s important to highlight situations by stopping to think how someone else might feel or think. While thinking about how you might feel in a situation is a good start, t’s critical to target how someone else might feel. That’s because true empathy is really about understanding someone else’s thoughts and feelings, which can often be different from our own.

How It Works: Students will work in partners and small groups to get through an empathy game board. For a person’s turn, they will roll the dice and spin the spinner. Their spot on the game board and the spinner will tell them how to answer each card. For example, they might have to answer: Why does it matter? How might they feel? What might they be thinking? What might you do? Students might also have to act out what they would do in that situation. There are over 150 unique situations that help kids discuss and build empathy over real-life scenarios.

5. Social Charades

Why It’s Important: A huge component to social awareness is learning to identify and understand the social cues of others. These social cues, including our body language and facial expressions, often inform others how we’re feeling, what we’re thinking, and what our intentions are.

How It Works: Create a list of different actions or have the kids come up with them themselves. Any action will do! Some examples might be waiting at the bus stop, sharpening your pencil, listening to music, running in a race, taking notes in class, and so on. The idea is that kids will randomly choose one action and act it out for the others to guess. By acting out these scenarios, students will need to consider what social cues would be aligned with that activity. Best of all, this is a quick activity you can do with just a few minutes of class time left that kids will love.

6. Roll & Spin a Coping Strategy

Why It’s Important: Being able to manage our emotions is a critical skill. We all experience tough emotions, setbacks, or challenges along the way. It’s just a natural part of life. How we handle those difficulties can make a big impact on our success. That’s why it’s so important to explicitly teach coping strategies and skills to manage our feelings on the spot. Sometimes, kids cannot self-soothe without being explicitly taught these strategies. Kids and young adults need to learn they can take a quick walk, write in a journal, take deep breaths, and use positive self-talk to calm themselves and feel better in moments of difficulty. Additionally, it’s important that kids practice these strategies when they are already calm so that they can really use them when they are emotionally overwhelmed.

How It Works: Using a one-page board, students will take turns rolling and spinning. Depending on what they roll and spin, they will fall on a space with a coping strategy that they will have to practice. Once they practice that strategy, they can cover up the spot with a chip. Note that students can have their own boards or share if you have different colored chips. The first person to get one whole row across wins! Ultimately, the idea is that kids are practicing a wide variety of coping strategies, giving them access to more skills when they truly need them.

7. Feelings Uno

Why It’s Important: Self-awareness is a critical skill that helps individuals understand their own emotions. In this activity, students can improve their emotional vocabularies by discussing a variety of different feeling words and what they mean. It also helps to normalize talking about different emotions and being comfortable sharing how we are feeling in the moment. Getting kids talking about emotions is key.

How It Works: This game just adds a simple twist to your normal Uno game, which all kids absolutely LOVE! Using the Uno colors, discuss what each of the colors might mean. Blue can stand for feeling sad, tired, bored, or sick. Green stands for feeling happy, calm, focused, and in control. Yellow means feelings frustrated, worried, or nervous. Finally, red should stand for angry. Every time a student plays a color of a card, teach them to use an emotion word that matches the color, share a time they felt that way, or discuss when someone might feel that way.

8. Executive Functioning Challenge

Why It’s Important: Executive functioning skills are the processes in our brain that help us accomplish tasks. Sometimes we might think of these skills as only related to academics, but that’s actually not true. Our executive functioning skills help us use our self-control to stop and think before saying something inappropriate, our flexibility to consider different solutions for social problems, and our time management to make sure we meet a friend on time. When executive functioning skills are stronger, kids and young adults have greater chance for success in school and beyond.

How It Works: This game can actually be played two different ways: partners and small groups, or as a full class. The idea is that students work through a game board, answering a variety of executive functioning questions as they head towards the finish line. The game cards have students completing executive functioning challenges, acting out situations, naming executive functioning skills used in a situation, and proving their knowledge about the skills themselves. For the full class version, kids can work in teams, collaborating on the answers and getting “points” to win the challenge.

If you love the games I’ve put together, you can save by getting them as a whole set! This Social Emotional Learning Games Bundle gives practice with empathy, perspective-taking, executive functioning skills, communication, and more.

Use these games during break times, small groups, as an end of the week reward, or just a fun brain break. Kids will have fun but you’ll know you’re working on serious SEL skills that make a difference!

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