10 Hacks to Boost Teens’ Executive Function Skills and Manage Screen Time
Teens’ focus is interrupted, on average, every 90 seconds. Something as simple as an audible notification can draw focus away from a task. In schools, multiple distractions across the classroom create an almost impossible task of staying on topic and focused
These distractions aren’t only frustrating for educators, research shows they reduce cognitive efficiency. School psychologist Rebecca Branstetter offered 10 tips and hacks to help boost teen’s executive function skills and manage screen time. Read more ›
Next to their parents, who spends the most time with kids? Teachers. Educator, mentor, nurturer, inspiration…teachers play many roles in their students’ lives. They are also pivotal players in the ADHD diagnostic process, serving as frontline observers of a child’s behavior in a structured school setting on a daily basis. 
Executive function skills help people stay focused, and manage the flow of information. Day to day, these skills allow a person to pay attention, plan ahead, remember details, and juggle multiple tasks. They also help control their behavior and emotions, delay immediate rewards for future benefits, and continue forward when faced with challenges. 
Executive dysfunction is a behavioral symptom that disrupts a person’s ability to manage their own thoughts, emotions and actions. It’s most common with certain mental health conditions, especially addictions, behavioral disorders, brain development disorders and mood disorders. 
Executive function is the mechanism by which our brains manage and prioritize our thoughts, working memory, emotions and actions; Harvard researchers call it our brain’s air traffic control system. Given the incidence of executive function issues in youth, as a byproduct of or co-occurring factor in youth mental health, it is critical for parents and educators to place greater support to help students improve their executive functioning. 
Good classroom design supports the acquisition of not only content skills but process skills. Executive functions are process skills that allow us to successfully complete tasks.
Nonverbal learning disorder (NVLD), also known as nonverbal learning disability, is a neurological condition which typically emerges during childhood but can persist through adulthood. It is marked by one or more of a set of cognitive, and sometimes social, difficulties experienced by children of otherwise average or superior intelligence, such as visual-spatial struggles and motor-skill deficits. Some people diagnosed with NVLD also have trouble comprehending nonverbal information such as body language and facial expressions. 
One of the most important aspects of learning that might be least understood is human memory. We are tasked with passing on skills and knowledge to students—it’s the most important aspect of our job. Yet how many educators have earned degrees and teaching certificates without any mention of how memory works? 
