INHIBITORY /IMPULSE CONTROL: THE POINT WHERE REASONING PREVAILS OVER FEELINGS.

 

INHIBITORY /IMPULSE CONTROL: THE POINT WHERE REASONING PREVAILS OVER FEELINGS.

In our first post on executive functioning, we gave an overview of all the skills that make up executive functioning skills. In this post, we will focus on one of those skills and it is known as- the Impulse Control skill.

What Is Impulse Control?

Also known as inhibitory control or self-control, Impulse control is the ability to stay focused on a task, goal, or course, avoid distraction and prevent oneself from acting on impulse.

Have you ever heard of the marshmallow test? This test was carried out by Psychologist Walter Mischel to test for the correlation between inhibition/Impulse control and success in adult life.

 In this test, a group of 500 four-year-olds was studied for 30 years. At the age of four, they were kept in a room with a marshmallow placed before each of them. Walter told them that he was going out for a while and that they could eat the marshmallow before them however if they could wait for him and not eat the marshmallow until he got back, then they would get an extra Marshmallow each. Upon his return, he discovered that some of the children could wait, while others couldn’t. Those who waited got an extra marshmallow.

Later on, in their lives, Walter discovered that those children who exhibited impulse control i.e. waited for him to get back before eating their marshmallows turned out to be more successful than those who couldn’t. The result showed that they had higher SAT scores, better social skills (could manage relationships better), better physical health, were less likely to get involved in substance abuse and drug experimentation, got better jobs, and were better able to manage stress and pressure.

This follows that any child who has impulse control will be better equipped to say no to drugs and other social vices when friends and peer groups entice him. He is better able to delay gratification just so he can achieve a greater good. Today we see teenagers who don’t want to go through the grind and pay the price to achieve success in the future. They want to be gratified in the now and in the process make a complete mess of their future. A good grip on impulse control helps a child to make sound decisions.

Importance of Impulse Control.

     1.       Children with a good grip on impulse control tend to make better life decisions. They say “No” when they are supposed to say “No” and “Yes” when they are supposed to say “Yes”.

     2.       Have better relationships because they can restrain themselves from just acting the way they feel towards people, especially in the face of provocation.

     3.       They usually have better grades and a higher rate of academic success. It is impulse control that will empower a child to resist the urge to play computer games that he desires to play and read his books instead in preparation for an exam and consequently come out with flying colours.

     4.       It helps children to be more independent. This is so because a child you can trust to make the right choice is a child you can trust to lead himself and entrust responsibilities to.

     5.       It helps the child to achieve their set goals, both short and long-term goals.

     6.       It leads to greater emotional control and gives the child the ability to manage stress and emotions appropriately.

     7.       It empowers children to be better behaved, more considerate, and more thoughtful

 

Activities That Can Help Build Impulse Control in Children.

     1.       Impulse control is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 2: 22-23), so for a Christian, praying for the help of the Holy Spirit upon your kids is the perfect place to start.

     2.       Teach children actions and consequences. Spell out to them in clear terms what their inability to control their impulse will cost them. For instance, in the marshmallow test, those who couldn’t control their impulse lost out on the opportunity to get an extra one. You can also let them know that the inability to control the impulse to play when they should be studying, will result in failing grades and maybe a repetition of a class. Endeavor to teach regularly and continuously.

     3.       Teach and practice delayed gratification activities with them. You can tell them that they can have a delicacy of their choice now if they want but if they can wait till a day or two or even a week, then they can have that delicacy together with something else you know they will love to have too. Don’t force them to choose, just guide them to think of the options very well before deciding. Please make sure that as many who wait for the second option will receive the reward that was promised and praise them for holding on and have a chat with those who didn’t wait on the importance of holding forth. Relate it to other life experiences.

     4.       Set rules and boundaries: teach them what is allowed and what is not allowed and be consistent.

     5.       Model what you are teaching. If your child doesn’t see you controlling your impulse, the odds are that he will struggle with what you are teaching because children most likely do what they see you do rather than what they hear you say;

     6.       Use visual prompts like stick-it notes, drawings, or to-do lists to remind them of what task they are supposed to be focusing on, this will help to motivate impulse control.

     7.       Create and sing a song on self-control.  An example of an impulse control song is the popular song about “Simon the self-control seal” by Kyri Dermby –

“Stop, think and breathe and make the right choice 2x

     8.       Play impulse control games like:

a.       Simon says---- (In this game, a group of children is asked to listen to and obey the instructions of the instructor who is “Simon”.  So Simon calls out an instruction like “Simon says jump or walk or stop or sit etc. and they must do as Simon Says. You can even add a twist and just say “stand up” and anyone who stands up goes out of the game because he was supposed to respond to only instructions that came with “Simon says” accompanying it. Over time they will start controlling the impulse to act or move before hearing and processing Simon’s instruction

b.      Freeze game: Children can be asked to dance and while dancing you ask them to freeze, they are to immediately stop dancing and remain motionless until they hear the music start again and then they can start dancing again.  Other skills like listening skills and motor skills can also be learned here.

c.       Red light / Green light: children line up in a straight line and listen to an instructor who stands at the opposite end facing them. The instructor calls out “green light” and they are supposed to either walk or run toward him, while in motion he suddenly calls out “red light” and they are supposed to stop. Anyone who moves when he is supposed to stop goes back to the start line to start all over again and the first person to listen to the instruction, control his movement, and act accordingly to get to the finish line is declared the winner.

d.      Book or cup balancing game: Here children will balance a stack of books or a cup on their heads and then they are supposed to control their body movement as they walk to another designated point without the books or cup falling off from their head.

        Note some games/ activities can teach more than one skill. One activity can teach concentration and focus, planning, impulse control, motor skills, listening skills, etc. You can research other games or even invent yours, just be creative about it and let the children have fun while learning. These are some activities you can also use to replace screen time.

      9.       Role-play real-life events. Paint a scenario that your child might likely encounter where his impulse control will be tested, then act out the appropriate responses so that he has an idea of what to do and how to act in such situations.

    10.   Offer to be their accountability partner. Encourage them when they give in to their impulse and applaud/celebrate them when they can exhibit control over their emotion.

    11.   You can also encourage them to surround themselves with friends who exhibit a higher level of impulse control.

Finally, do more research on your own. There are so many other things you can do to help your child.

 

Conclusion

Impulse control when acquired by a child will play a great role in the child’s ability to make good life decisions independently so teach it

P:S; Please note that there is a much more severe form of impulsive behavior in children, this type is associated with children who have ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). As much as these steps above will help such children, it is important to note that they are not enough. Such children will need the help of skilled professionals who will take them through therapy sessions and structure-based programs to help them get better.

 

COGNITIVE FLEXIBILITY- THE TASK-SHIFTING ABILITY OF THE BRAIN

 

COGNITIVE FLEXIBILITY- THE TASK-SHIFTING ABILITY OF THE BRAIN

“Be clear about your goals but be flexible about the process of achieving it” – Brian Tracy

In my post on Executive functioning Skills, their importance, and how you can help your child acquire them, we mentioned all the skills embedded in Executive functioning one of which is Cognitive flexibility. To find out all the other skills that make up executive functioning skills read it up here

What is Cognitive Flexibility?

Cognitive flexibility is also known as flexible thinking and as the name implies, it means the ability to be flexible in one’s thinking. The ability to be able to see something in many ways than one. Being able to think about multiple concepts at once and also being able to switch your thought process from one activity to another with ease. A child with a good mastery of cognitive flexibility will most likely end up as an employee with an exceptional ability to receive a new task, midway into another unrelated task and still deliver on both tasks with a high level of excellence and promptly too. This is also known as task-shifting ability.

As a student, the ability to tune thinking and mental processing to English language soon after going through a math class requires cognitive flexibility.  Also when a pupil is trying to solve a problem (e.g. math problem) his ability to think of multiple methods to arrive at the answer requires cognitive flexibility. For children who lack cognitive flexibility, once one approach doesn’t work, they give up because to them if it doesn’t work this way, then it can’t work any other way.

My mentor Wendy Ologe once told a story of her 10-year-old daughter who was asked to plan a meal. She wrote a list (utilizing her planning skills) and went to the market for shopping, while at the market she realized that the money she has can’t cover the cost of everything she needed to cook as some prices had increased. Rather than complain, get tensed, or go home without buying anything, she quickly engaged her cognitive thinking to explore other options through which she can still achieve her aim. She immediately reduced the budget for some items so that she can accommodate everything (utilizing her cognitive flexibility Skill) and made it back home in good time (utilizing her time management skill) to prepare lunch. I won’t forget to mention that her kitchen workspace was well organized plus the fact that after cooking, she set the table in an orderly manner with a high level of precision (utilizing her organizational skills) for a girl her age. It is worth noting that cooking skill is not a gender role meant only for girls, it is one singular activity that combines so many executive functioning skills in one place.

 All of the executive functioning skills can be learned and improved upon.

Someone described cognitive flexibility using water in two states: Solid state (Ice) and Liquid state (water). He pointed out the fact that when water is flowing in one direction and encounters an obstacle, it will immediately seek out another channel and continue its flow. While an ice block encountering an obstacle will stop moving and remain in one spot except it melts into the liquid (Flexible) state and then it can seek out another channel to flow through.

                  

Your kids must acquire these skills because the worth and relevance of a person are increased by the value he brings to any place where he finds himself.

 

Importance of Cognitive Flexibility

     1.       Cognitive Flexibility boosts problem-solving skills.

     2.       It also enhances the coordination of tasks.

     3.       It promotes critical, analytical, and creative thinking.

     4.       It helps one to look at issues from different perspectives and proffer well-thought-out strategies to solve problems.

     5.       It also empowers people to be innovative.

     6.       It helps to improve social and communication skills. Cognitive flexibility helps people to adapt to change easily, so when a child with a high level of cognitive flexibility gets into a new social circle he integrates easily with others and rarely ever experiences social awkwardness. He communicates easily too when any topic is introduced and can switch from one discussion to another.

     7.       Just like the other executive functioning skills, cognitive flexibility increases the chances of success. This skill is very important as it also improves mental health which helps to limit mental health problems like depression and even suicide. One very common reason why people commit suicide is the fact that they don’t believe that there is any hope for them to get out of whatever challenge they are going through. They are fixated on the problems they have and see no solution in sight, even when a solution is being offered to them. However cognitive flexibility helps one seek out and try other means of solving a problem and this outlook improves overall mental health.

 

What You Can Do to Improve Your Child’s Cognitive Flexibility.

     1.       Introduce age-appropriate mental puzzles and brain teasers to your children as early as possible.

     2.       Word games also come highly recommended. Examples of some word games include:

a.       20-Questions (In this game a child is nominated by a group of children to be the one asking the 20 questions. The questioner steps out of the room or away from the group and then the group picks an object in their surrounding space after which they ask the questioner to come back. He has to ask the group 20 questions and the answers to those questions will serve as clues that lead him to guess the chosen object correctly.)

b.      Scrabbles.

c.       Crossword puzzles.

     3.       Encourage them to engage in debates. Guide them to form teams and pick a topic, which the different teams/groups will argue for and against. This helps them understand that there are different perspectives to analyzing issues.

     4.       Fixing the Rubik’s Cube helps too. The Rubik’s cube is a 3-D combination puzzle that was invented in 1974 by the Hungarian sculptor and professor of architecture- Erno Rubik. Among many other benefits, the Rubik’s Cube enhances cognitive flexibility, enhances the brain-hand-eye connection and reflexes, boosts memory power, and promotes problem-solving skills.

     5.       Teach your kids to believe and affirm first “that it can be done” and secondly “that there must be another way of doing it”. This mindset opens them up to the opportunity of seeking other processes for solving problems.

     6.       Reading widely helps to build cognitive flexibility because reading is a window to the world and a child who reads will be an adult who thinks.

     7.       Create a healthy lifestyle for your kids. Ensure they receive healthy brain nutrition, adequate rest and sleep, good exercise, etc.

     8.       Don’t let them get overworked and overwhelmed, encourage them to take breaks when they are tired and need to rest.

     9.       Teach them to avoid distraction and also help them learn how to pay attention and increase mindfulness

Cognitive flexibility is an attribute of a sound mind and a mentally alert brain. The brain requires a smooth flow of thought processes to perform optimally. So it is very important to introduce your children to activities that enhance cognitive flexibility, promote mental fluidity, and equip them with the ability to think, process information, consider all perspectives, try new and different approaches, and arrive at a result-oriented conclusion.

The absence of cognitive flexibility is known as rigid thinking and it causes fixative tendencies. Someone who lacks cognitive flexibility will most likely hold on to one belief on a particular issue even when evidence exists to prove that there are other possible angles to that issue, to them if it is not the way I see and believe it to be, then it can’t be any other way. 

So as a parent, it is very needful that children are equipped and empowered to be flexible in their cognitive thinking.

Did you gain value, I’ll love for you to drop a comment, suggestion, or question and I will be happy to respond. Don’t forget to read our post on executive functioning skills, to know more about the other skills that are embedded in executive functioning.

 

WORKING MEMORY: THE TEMPORARY STORAGE SYSTEM OF THE BRAIN.

 

Working memory: The Temporary Storage System of The Brain.

In our previous post, we talked about executive functioning skills and how important they are for your kids. If you have read that post, you will agree with me that the value of these skills cannot be over-emphasized. So in this post, we will take a broader look at one of the executive functioning skills- Working Memory. We will discuss its importance and explore ways through which we can help our kids to acquire it as a skill and set them up for success.

 

What is Working Memory?

Working memory involves one having the ability to store information in one’s mind and being able to call it up for future use. It is also referred to as short-term memory.

Assume that you asked your son to go to the store down the road to get you a list of 5 items and even when you asked him to repeat the items you told him to buy and he did that perfectly. Then after the 10-minute walk to the shop, he is struggling to remember the items you asked him to buy. He would need to possess an excellent working memory to recall the exact 5 items you asked him to buy. It is also required in school activities. Another instance where working memory is utilized is when a pupil is required to solve a class problem by following the same steps which the teacher had used earlier in solving the problem. So working memory could be viewed as the ability to remember things after a while.

Any child that must excel academically needs to have a good grip on working memory.

Importance of Working Memory

Working memory is important for the following reasons.

     1.       It helps a child to remember how to apply formulas to solve math questions.

     2.       It also helps one to engage in group discussions and contribute intelligently.

     3.       It improves the ability to carry out instructions and complete tasks without omitting any of the tasks.

    4.       It is needed for reading and comprehension.

    5.       It also improves fluency in reading.

    6.       It is a very important skill needed for problem-solving. A lot of children who struggle with problem-solving usually have a deficiency in working memory.

 

Activities That Help to Build Working Memory.

     1.       You can encourage your child to teach you something you just taught him or he just read. Don’t pressure him if he can’t remember everything, just keep at it, and he will improve.

     2.       Teach your child to utilize reading skills and tools. Some reading tools include:

                  a.        using a highlighter to mark important points so it sticks in the memory for longer

b.      Use of visual cues: That is associating a concept you are trying to study or memorize with objects, diagrams, pictures, symbols or words. If for instance, your child is learning the concept of “good manners” he can utilize visual cues by pasting pictures that portray good manners around his room or anywhere else he can easily access them. Some of these pictures could include, a child greeting an elder, a child sweeping his classroom or a child giving back money he saw on the ground which belongs to someone else.

c.       Teach mind mapping in reading ( Mind mapping involves writing a central theme about what you are reading or the task to be done and then attaching other secondary points to this central point in a diagrammatic presentation. The brain remembers pictorial information longer than textual information. So mind mapping is a very valuable reading tool and it works well to boost working memory not only in children but adults too.

d.      Create mnemonics/memory aids (learning technique that helps to retain and retrieve information in the human memory to improve understanding) like ROYGBIV for the seven colours of the rainbow (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet) or MR D NIGER (for the characteristics of living things). There are so many types of mnemonics. Some of them include:

i.                     Rhyming mnemonics e.g. the rhyme used to remember  the number of days in each month - “30 days hath September, April, June and November--------”

ii.                   Song mnemonics e.g. the song used by Pre-K and early years pupils to learn the alphabet— “ABCD-EFG-HIJKLMNOP------”

iii.                  Chunking mnemonics: This involves breaking large concepts into smaller ones e.g. breaking down a mobile number 0123456789 into 012-345-6789 makes it easier to memorize

iv.                 Acronyms mnemonics: This involves forming a word using the first letter of the individual words that make up an institution or agency. e.g. W.H.O to represent World Health Organization

v.                   Acrostic mnemonics: this involves using the first letter of every word on a list to string a sentence. e.g. Using the sentence below (left) to remember the planets in the solar system(right) in their correct order.

Others include keyword mnemonics, connection mnemonics, method of loci mnemonics, peg method mnemonics, etc.

     3.       Teach your children to journal or create small notes from a volume of reading. The small notes are usually a concise summary of the main concept and this method also helps the memory to retain information better.

    4.       Practice mental math: Mental Math are math questions that the child has limited time to think out the answers to and supply. This activity will stretch and build the brain’s memory. 

    5.       Play memory games like

a.       10 things about me: Have the children sit in pairs. In each group/pair let the first child tell the second child 10 things about himself/herself. After which the second child is to repeat the 10 things the first child told him/her in the order in which it was said. (The first child could write it down just so the answers given by the second child could be compared to know how well he was able to remember all he was told). They can now switch places and the memory game is repeated.

b.       I Love the colour, ----:  In this activity children form a group in a circle. Child 1 starts with the statement “It is a beautiful day, and I love the colour blue”. Child 2 continues saying “It is a beautiful day and I love the colour blue, I love the colour red”. Child 3 continues saying “It is a beautiful day, and I love the colour blue, I love the colour red, and I love the colour yellow”. It continues in this form with the next child repeating what the previous have said in the same order and then adding his colour preference until someone fails and gets taken out of the game. It continues until a final winner emerges.

c.       Hold up a board or cardboard paper on which different pictures or numbers or alphabets or shapes, or colours are stuck for a brief second (about 10 seconds) and put it away. Then have each child recall what was shown to him. For each round, you increase the difficulty level by either reducing the viewing time or by increasing the items placed on the board.

d.      Card games can help too because to win the child has to remember the rules of the game.

e.      Letters Unscramble: You can ask the children to form the correct word from an unscrambled word e.g. forming BRIDE from DERIB or you can ask them to make up all the words that can be formed from a word e.g.  Forming RATE, TRUE, ATE, ARE, ERA, TEA, EAT, TEMPER, TEMPERATE, RUE, RUT, MAP, MAT, MATE, from the word “TEMPERATURE”.

f.        IDENTIFY THE MISSING CARD: Have a series of cards face up and have a child look at it for about 20 seconds. The child closes his eyes and then a random card is removed, after which he opens his eyes and must determine which card was removed.

g.       SPOT THE DIFFERENCE: show two almost identical images to the child and let him point out the difference(s).

     6.       Improve their brain power by giving them brain-empowering nutrition. Some fruits like blueberries and nuts like walnuts do wonders for the brain. To know more about the type of nutrition that boosts brain power for your kids, read my post on brain development and nutrition here.

    7.       Physical exercise and good sleep also help brain development and will boost working memory skills.

Working memory is practically needed in all our daily activities, so children must be empowered with it for their overall success.

Did you get value, leave a comment, suggestion, or question. Also, read the other posts on our blog about Executive functioning skills.

 

EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING SKILLS- AMAZING SKILL SETS YOUR CHILD REQUIRES TO SUCCEED IN LIFE

EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING SKILLS:        AMAZING SKILL SETS YOUR CHILD REQUIRES TO SUCCEED IN LIFE

Do you always find yourself complaining that your 5-year-old cannot sit through a 10-minute learning activity without bouncing off, or do you notice that your 9-year-old daughter is highly impulsive and acts without thinking things through?  Do you also find it hard to understand why your 12-year-old son never finishes anything he starts? Or why your kids always search endlessly for their stuff every time they want to use it?  All of these outcomes could most likely be tied to a lack of competency in Executive functioning skills.

 

What are Executive Functioning Skills?

Executive functioning skills are critical life skills that we need to succeed in life and all matters of learning. They are important mental and cognitive skill sets that help humans accomplish set tasks and achieve their desired goals. Some say Executive Functioning skills are the management system of the brain as there is hardly any daily life activity you get involved in that will not require one or two or even all of the executive functioning skills.

Daily tasks such as critical thinking, planning, task initiation, and attention all require executive functioning skills to be undertaken.

As important as executive skills are no child is automatically born with these skills, they are just born with the innate potential to develop these skills. This can only be done when the parents/ caregivers of the child intentionally put up a wholesome learning structure aimed at teaching these skills in a loving and supportive environment.

Executive functioning skills are broadly divided into 3 areas

1.    Working Memory – Also known as short-term memory, working memory is the ability to store information in one’s mind and being able to call it up for future use. For more detailed information on working memory and how to achieve it, click here

2.   Cognitive Flexibility (Flexible Thinking) – As the name implies, it means the ability to be flexible in one’s thinking. The ability to be able to see something in many ways than one. Being able to think about multiple concepts at once.  For more detailed information on  cognitive flexibility and how to achieve it, click here

3.   Impulse/Inhibitory Control (Self-control) – This is the ability to stay focused, avoid distraction and prevent oneself from acting on impulse. For more detailed information on inhibitory control and how to achieve it, click here 

This broad category is like the core of executive functioning the others include:

4.   Attention: this refers to a person’s ability to focus or concentrate on a particular task, assignment, or person for a required length of time. To be able to successfully carry out a task, one needs a high level of focus and concentration to be able to mentally process the input (information received) and output (feedback given). A student requires attention and concentration skills while learning both in and out of the classroom. For more detailed information on gaining attention and focus, click here.

5.   Planning: This aspect of executive functioning skill involves one’s ability to carefully look at future goals and aspirations and set up a detailed working strategy to actualize those goals in order of highest priority. To know more about planning as executive functioning skills click here.

6.   Organization: This involve the ability of a person to keep things in an orderly and tidy manner. As a student, everything he needs to do work is kept in a designated place and properly arranged and easily accessible when he needs to use it. He knows to clean up his workspace after working and his productivity is excellent. Someone who lacks organizational skills will always search endlessly for every item when they need it. If it is a student, he is always looking for a lost/misplaced pen, pencil, crayon, ruler, school bag, stockings, or other personal belongings. This will result in a waste of time, a tardy and messy outlook, and an overall failure in learning.  Click here to learn more about organization as an executive functioning skill.

7.    Time Management: this is the process of properly utilizing time allotted for specific tasks to carry out the given tasks and achieve efficiency, productivity, and success.

 One hallmark of highly successful people is their ability to manage their time properly. If you must yell and scream and push before your kids finish tasks within specified time limits, then you need to start working on their time management skills. These skills can be learned. Click here to learn more about time management as an executive functioning skill.

8.   Task Initiation: this simply refers to the capacity or ability to start a task or project, independently, promptly, effectively, and without procrastination. One of the hardest parts of achieving a goal is kick-starting the project. Willing yourself to start a project/assignment or task is a significant sign that the goal will be achieved. Getting on with doing homework promptly without being told to do so, cleaning his room without any reminders, or reading in preparation for an exam is an indication that a child possesses task initiation skills.  As important as task initiation is, another very important skill that ensures that we move from initiation to completion is Goal Motivated Perseverance. Click here to learn more about task initiation as an executive functioning skill. 

9.   Goal-motivated Perseverance: this skill helps ensure that one stays on an initiated task with commitment and dedication while shunning any other distraction to bring it to completion even if the task gets very difficult. Click here to learn more about Goal Motivated Perseverance as an executive functioning skill.

10. Self-monitoring:  this refers to one’s ability to monitor his overall body presentation, the way he carries himself, behaves, talks, acts, and relates with others. It involves one’s control over his emotions and adjusting them to suit the environment where one is. Self-monitoring skill helps a child to realize when he has done wrong or behaved badly and then he makes an effort to right his wrong. Click here for more information on self-monitoring as an executive functioning skill.

 

Why Are Executive functioning Skills Important?

Ø  Executive functioning skills are required in our day-to-day living/ activities and success. They are life skills needed to perform daily activities like planning a meal at home, brainstorming on how to solve a problem at work, studying extensively for an exam in school, or remaining committed to learning a musical instrument like the violin which might be difficult at first until you attain perfection. Executive functioning skills are at the core of our success in life.

Ø  Executive functioning skills are required to learn other skills. For instance, a child needs, attention, goal-oriented perseverance, and impulse control to learn a musical skill like playing the piano. If attention (an executive function skill) is lacking then he would most likely not be able to focus and learn how to play the instrument. The same goes for other skills

Ø  It enhances problem problem-solving

Ø  It boosts academic performance

Ø  It is needed to critically think and analyze information, manage oneself, time, and other resources

Ø  It is needed to remember important details and finish tasks efficiently.

Effect of Lack of Executive Function Competence. 

A child or even an adult who lacks executive functioning skills will experience the following challenges

  Ø  Lack of concentration and focus                                                                                                               

  Ø Forgetfulness

     Ø Difficulty initiating or  completing a given task

  Ø  Difficulty meeting up with deadlines and which leads to unproductivity

  Ø  Inability or difficulty to store and retrieve given information.

  Ø  Constantly being frustrated and stressed largely due to the inability to think things through and come up with a solution unaided.

  Ø  Constantly losing and misplacing personal belongings

 

How To Help Your Child Develop Executive Functioning Skills. 

1.       Plan a learning session for executive functioning skills and in these sessions have discussions with your child or group discussions with children where you ask thought-provoking questions that get children thinking about the answers. For instance, you can ask them questions like this:

a.       What will you do if you planned a shopping list on a budget and on getting to the market, you find out that your budget cannot cover all that is on your list?

b.      What will you do if you have three tasks (read for an exam you have the next day, play soccer with a friend, and wash mummy’s bathtub) to carry out and you find out that the two hours available to you to perform the tasks won’t be enough?

Here there is no one correct way to answer these questions, the aim is to guide them into critically thinking out an action plan. One way to attempt the second question would be for a child to employ planning and time management whilst prioritizing the tasks at hand. Of course, the exam study is most important and should be done first, then the washing of the bathtub follows and may be done very quickly and efficiently too, after which whatever time that is left will be allocated to soccer. Periodic discussions like this will help these executive functioning skills to be well developed in a child.

2.       Engage in board games like scrabble, chess, monopoly, etc. A lot of these skills come into play when playing board games.

3.       Highlight these skills throughout the day. For instance remind them to stay organized by keeping back used items, manage time well by focusing on tasks at hand, etc.

4.       Encourage activities like cooking, painting, journaling, drawing, etc. (cooking is a very vital tool to use when teaching children executive functioning skills).

5.       Teach and encourage them to use visual clues like daily planners, calendar markers, timers/ alarm clocks, activity boards, stick-it notes, etc.

6.       Engage the children in craft activities that boost executive functioning. Examples of such crafts include drawing, colouring, gardening, etc.

7.       Tell stories, watch videos, and highlight and discuss the parts where executive function skills were displayed.

8.       As the parent, you also need to model and role-play some of these skills and also get the kids to join you in carrying out the activities.

9.       Give rewards when you see them practice any of the executive function skills you have taught and let them know why they earned that reward.

 

CONCLUSION

As a parent, one of the best gifts you can give to your child is to equip them with executive functioning skills. Any child without a mastery of executive functioning skills is a child that has been set up to fail. As a parent no matter the level of education you give to your child if you are not intentional about teaching them executive functioning skills you do them a great disservice.

Did you get any value, please drop a comment, a suggestion, or a question, I would love to hear from you.

Are Your Kids Equipped To Stand Up To Bullies?

 

Hello amazingparents, do you know that somehow by our actions or inactions we are partly responsible for our children's inability and unwillingness to stand up to bullies.

I will do a post on this platform soon on what we need to know about bullying and how we can equip our children to boldly defend themselves against bullies.

However I will like you to read this article I wrote on an international magazines called 'Your Teen Magazine" about a bullying experience and choosing the right kind of friend. I am sure you will find it to be quite an interesting read, as I am sure you will find other life transforming posts on the "yourteensmag" blog.

Here is the link to their website.

https://yourteenmag.com/social-life/what-makes-a-good-friend