Executive Functioning and Organizational Challenges

Each and every day, we call on certain skills for the smooth, successful management of life’s main tasks. Things like planning and organization, memory and recall, impulse control, and time management may come easily to some people, but for students struggling with executive functioning, these regular demands of school and the world can be overwhelming and leave them feeling disorganized and discouraged. Good executive functioning skills can mean the difference between thriving or just surviving in school.

At McLean School, starting with our youngest learners in Lower School, we work with students to develop effective management strategies and systems they can build on and take with them to college. Our teachers embed explicit instruction and support to help students build effective and independent executive functioning skills throughout Middle and Upper School. Here are some of the many examples of how we do just that:

Visual cues. Pictures, color coding, charts, and checklists are all proven ways to build working memory as the brain works to integrate information and respond appropriately. It also trains us to “think in pictures” as a way of providing ourselves with our own version of visual cues.

Task breakdown. Separating tasks and assignments into smaller units and steps makes something that feels big much more manageable.

Consistency and routine. At McLean, we provide daily schedules and organizational consistency across classrooms. Knowing what to expect each day (or from one year to the next) provides a measure of predictability that gives the prefrontal cortex some relief so it can focus on other functions.

Time management. It’s especially easy for people with executive function challenges to lose track of time. Our use of color-coded clocks and timers helps students stay present and aware in a given context, and we also work closely to help them budget their time in both the short and long term when it comes to pacing themselves for assignments. Teachers and our Coordinators of Learning Services provide more individualized support when needed.

Tips and techniques. From self-talk for work initiation and planning to brain hacks like mnemonic devices, we work with students to develop strategies that account for and address their executive function challenges.

Goal setting. We support students in developing specific, measurable, and age-appropriate goals in areas of planning and organization.

Additional layers of faculty support. Teacher-led study halls provide an added layer of support for task initiation, prioritization, metacognition, self-monitoring, study skills, and long-term planning. In addition, Upper School teachers offer their students tutorials for extra help in a specific subject.

Mindfulness. Mindfulness education is seamlessly integrated into all we do at McLean. In addition to lowering anxiety, it fosters self-regulation skills and slows things down, allowing students to be less impulsive and more intentional with their thoughts and actions.

Those with executive functioning challenges tend to be highly creative, outside the box, big picture thinkers with wonderful ideas. At McLean, we recognize and embrace these students today, knowing that they are likely to become tomorrow’s CEOs and entrepreneurs—even if they still need a little help to organize themselves and their day.

– Jenny Whichard, Assistant Head of Middle School & Director of SummerEdge & Afterschool Programs 2023