What is Executive Function?

• Executive Function (EF) is like the brain's "management system." It helps children plan, focus, remember instructions, and juggle multiple tasks successfully.

• Key executive function skills include memory, self-control, and flexible thinking.

 

Why is it Important?

• School Success: executive functioning skills help children organise their schoolwork, follow directions, and start tasks on time.

• Everyday Life: These skills are important for managing time, controlling emotions, and adapting to new situations.

 

Where Does Executive Function Take Place in the Brain?

• Prefrontal Cortex: The main area responsible for executive functioning is the prefrontal cortex, located at the front of the brain. This area helps with planning, decision-making, and controlling behaviour.

• Other Areas: The anterior cingulate cortex, basal ganglia, cerebellum, and parietal cortex also play roles in supporting executive functioning.
   

What Schools Are Noticing:

• Schools see that children develop these skills at different rates.

• Children are taking longer to develop executive functioning skills than before.

• Children in supportive and stimulating home and school environments tend to develop executive functioning skills faster, especially in reading and thinking skills.

 

Why Are We Noticing This?:

• Increased financial and time pressures on families reducing time spent together at a young age.

• Increased access to screens and devices which don't develop executive functioning skills at the rate of adult to child or child to child interactions and interrupts sleep which helps effective executive functioning.

• Limited access to parent and baby/toddler classes since 2020 and the Covid pandemic

• Decrease in amount of time children spend outdoors and at play which has significantly reduced since the 1980's and again since the turn of the century with the development of digital technologies. 

 

By understanding and supporting executive functioning development, parents can help their children succeed both in school and in life. 

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Our Top 10 Easy Executive Function Activities For Home....

  

1. Memory Games 

• Activity: Play simple memory games like matching cards or Simon Says.

• Benefit: Enhances working memory and attention.

2. Storytelling Sessions 

• Activity: Encourage children to tell stories or read books together.

• Benefit: Boosts language skills and cognitive development.

3. Emotion Charades 

• Activity: Act out different emotions and have children guess them.

• Benefit: Helps with emotional regulation and social skills.

4. Daily Routine Charts

• Activity: Create a visual daily routine chart for children to follow.

• Benefit: Supports organisation and time management.

5. Outdoor Play Outdoor Play

• Activity: Engage in outdoor activities like running, jumping, and playing ball games.

• Benefit: Promotes physical development and motor skills.

6. Puzzle Time

• Activity: Solve puzzles together, such as jigsaw puzzles or brain teasers.

• Benefit: Enhances problem-solving skills and cognitive flexibility.

7. Art and Craft Projects

• Activity: Create simple art and craft projects using household items.

• Benefit: Encourages creativity and fine motor skills.

8. Cooking Together

• Activity: Involve children in simple cooking tasks like measuring ingredients or following a recipe.

• Benefit: Enhances planning, organisation, and following instructions.

9. Clean-Up Games

• Activity: Turn tidying up into a fun game, like racing to see who can clean up the fastest.

• Benefit: Promotes organisation and responsibility.

10. Board Games

• Activity: Play board games that require strategy and planning, such as chess or checkers.

• Benefit: Develops turn taking, strategic thinking and problem-solving skills. 

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​Resources and guides for parents from Harvard University: Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University (2014). Enhancing and Practicing Executive Function Skills with Children from Infancy to Adolescence. Retrieved from www.developingchild.harvard.edu.