EXECUTIVE

FUNCTIONS
Annie de Acevedo
 Tatiana, thirteen , kept her room a total mess, like many other girls her
age. There were papers all over her desk, and there were clothes all over
the floor. On her shelves there were half-finished bottles of water and
candy wrappers. Tatiana didn’t mind the mess. She swore that she could
find anything she needed and therefore didn’t have to clean her room.
Tatiana’s backpack was in pretty much the same state. There were
papers jammed into it from every angle. She could never find the papers
she needed because they were all just crammed into any folder she could
find. Because of this, her grades were suffering.
Each day, Tatiana’s mom pleaded with her to clean her room and
backpack. Tatiana would go into her room and clean it, but then she’d get
distracted by something she found or a friend would call her. So, her room
and backpack never seemed to get organized.

Hansen, S. (2013)
Although Kristen did pretty well in elementary school, when she got to
middle school, she started to struggle with homework assignments. Many
times she’d forget t bring work home. If she did bring work home, she’d
forget to do it or turn it in.
Kristen also had a hard time following directions that contained more than
two steps. For example, if her dad told her, “Clean your room and do the
dishes after you finish your homework”, she’d do her homework but forget
to do other things. When one day the school informed Kristen that she
couldn’t go to the class field trip because she had forgotten to get her
permission slip signed , Kristen got very upset.
Testing by the school psychologist, revealed that Kristen had weaknesses in
the area of working memory. After Kristen began practicing memory tests
on a regular basis, she got much better at remembering her responsibilities.

Hansen, S. (2013)
• Brain-based skills required for humans to
effectively execute, or perform, tasks and
solve problems.
• Executive Function skills are constantly used in
daily life.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013)

Response Inhibition
Working Memory
Emotional Control
Flexibility
Sustained Attention
Task Initiation
Planning/Prioritization
Organization
Time Management
Goal-directed Persistence
Metacognition
• Capacity to think before you
act.
• Ability to resist the urge to say
or do something.
• Allows child to evaluate the
situation and how his
behaviour might impact it.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Ability to hold information in memory while
performing complex tasks.
• Ability to draw on past learning or experience
to apply to the situation at hand.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Ability to manage emotions to achieve goals,
complete tasks, or control and direct
behaviour.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• The ability to revise
plans in the face of
obstacles, setbacks,
new information or
mistakes.
• Adaptability to
changing conditions.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Capacity to keep
paying attention to a
situation or task in
spite of
distractibility,
fatigue or boredom.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Ability to begin
projects without
undue
procrastination, in an
efficient way and
within time limits.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Ability to crate a road map to reach a goal or
to complete a task.
• Being able to make decisions about what is
important to focus on.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Ability to crate and maintain systems to keep
track of information or materials.
– Notebook
– Backpack
– Room
– Desk

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Capacity to estimate how much time one has,
how to allocate it, and how to stay within time
limits and deadlines.
• Sense that time is important.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013)

• Capacity to have a goal, follow through to the
completion of that goal and not be distracted
by competing interests.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

• Capacity to stand back and take a bird’s-eye
view of yourself in a situation.
• Self-monitoring and self-evaluative skills.
• “ How am I doing?”, “How did I do?”.

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

 Two Dimensions: Thinking and Doing
Executive skills involving Thinking Executive skills involving doing (behavior)
(cognition)
Working Memory Response Inhibition

Planning/Prioritization Emotional Control

Organization Sustained Attention

Time Management Task Initiation

Metacognition Goal-directed Persistence

Flexibility

Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013).

 The Executive Functions can be compared to air
traffic control at a busy airport.

“Executive Functions regulate the flow of

information and the focus on tasks, creates
mental priorities and keeps the system flexible
and on time”.

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search
institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
 Reduce the Executive Function demands on
children:
• Giving one instruction at a time
• Removing desirable distractions from the
immediate vicinity

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search
institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
 Air Traffic Controller
Working Memory I can safely land multiple planes
at the same time, by imagining
the path each plane has to take
and giving directions to each
plane without forgetting about
the others.
Cognitive Flexibility I can organize the specific needs
of each plane, switch my
attention from one plane to
another, and follow different
procedures for different planes
so that each plane lands safely.
Inhibitory Control I can keep my focus on the planes
I am directing, and not get
distracted by other people’s
conversations or actions.
Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search
institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
Child
I can follow directions that have
multiple steps. If someone asks
me to put on my coat, hat, and
mittens, I keep in mind what I
have already done and what I
need to do next.
I can adjust my behavior to to the
situation I am in. For example, I
follow different rules when I am
at the library versus at the park.
I can do what I am supposed to
do rather than what I want to do.
For example, when asked to
clean up, I can put my toys away
instead of playing with each toy I
pick up.
 Support imagination
Offer choices within limits
Assist reflection
Raise activity levels

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search
institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
• Step outside of the present moment
• Think about the problem as if it was
happening to another person
• Young children: Pretend play
• “What if” situations

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
 • Help children regulate their
behaviour by providing clear limits.
• Let them make their own choices
within appropriate boundaries.
• Executive Functions will grow when
children: -Have the responsibility
to monitor their progress
-Recognize and correct their
mistakes

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search
institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
 • Help your child to pause, step back and look at
the big picture and plan before acting.
• Think of the consequences .
• Talk about what is inside of their heads will
help them reflect.

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search
institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
• Exercise will help with:
– Body awareness
– Control
– Remembering rules
– Controlling emotions

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search institute for families. [Online]. 2015.
You have 1 minute to memorize the following…
Cat Pliers Green
Utah Wrench Washington
Orange Horse Grape
Dog Kentucky Plum
Virginia Pear Black
Banana Hiccup Screwdriver
Red Pig Red
Purple Wisconsin Bug
Hammer Monkey Apple
Quack Saw Down
 Guare R., Dawson P., Guare C. (2013). Smart but Scattered Teens.
New York; The Guildford Press.

Meuwissen A. Strengthening Executive Function in Children: Tips

for Parents and Practitioners. Parent Further, a search institute for
families. [Online]. 2015. [ Date of research: September 28, 2015].
Available on: http://www.search-institute.org/downloadable/exec-
function-feb-2015.pdf.

Hansen, S. (2013). The Executive Functioning Workbook for Teens:

Help for Unprepared, Late and Scattered Teens. Canada; New
Harbinger Publications, Inc.