Our Executive Function Coaching program assists students in effectively managing social, behavioral, and organizational challenges by enhancing their executive function skills. This involves improving skills like planning, organization, time management, emotional regulation, and more. The program provides personalized coaching sessions that address specific needs and goals, helping students build better social interactions, self-control, and study habits. By focusing on these skills, students can navigate academic and personal demands with greater success and confidence.

Our two highly-trained coaches, Marg P and Ally C, have experience working with a wide range of students, including those on the autism spectrum. However, in some cases we may determine that we cannot adequately serve the needs of a particular student. In these instances, we will provide a list of vetted external providers whom we feel will be better equipped to support you.

Continue reading to learn more about executive function disorder, our specific approach, and our two coaches.

Students with executive function disorder often struggle to complete and turn in their assignments on time. Parents and teachers may interpret this as laziness and seek to address it through the imposition of punitive measures. While this can be effective for some students, it often fails to address the underlying issue and thus may not lead to lasting change.

Students with executive function disorder may struggle with short-term recall. This typically is the result of an inability to effectively categorize and filter out necessary vs. unnecessary information. Parents and teachers may interpret this as a lack of focus, when in reality the student may simply lack the skills to properly utilize his or her short term memory stores.

Students with executive function disorder are frequently overwhelmed by the variety and complexity of tasks that they have been assigned. They often lack the prioritization skills necessary to determine the most efficient order to approach each task, and may become deeply frustrated by their inability to make any meaningful headway.

Unsurprisingly, executive function difficulties are often reflected on a student’s report card. It can be difficult to determine the degree to which a grade is the result of a lack of conceptual understanding of the course material versus symptoms of executive function disorder, particularly since the two are so often intertwined. But it is important to gain this insight, because for some students, simply being told to “study harder” does not have the intended effect.

Executive function disorder can be extremely frustrating for students, particularly when their peers do not appear to struggle in the same way. This can lead to reduced motivation, lowered self-esteem, and depression/anxiety. 

Students with executive function disorder may struggle to form meaningful relationships, partly due to the issues surrounding personal image described above, but also due to the disorder itself. Relationships require many of the same skills that these students often lack (dependability, prioritization of information, emotional intelligence).

The goal of our executive function coaching program is to set students up for continued success long after they finish working with us. With this in mind, our coaches work with their students to develop comprehensive structural frameworks that will enable them to approach their various areas of weakness in an organized and effective manner.

Here are some of the ways we help our students:

Many students struggle to stay organized simply because they have never been taught how to do so. Our coaches work with students to create helpful systems and processes so that they can stay on track.

We believe strongly in the concept of "if you can name it, you can tame it." Our coaches help students identify their "distraction triggers" and work to develop strategies to redirect those triggers into more helpful outcomes.

Our coaches are more than happy to interface with their students' teachers and tutors to ensure that everyone is on the same page. We have found that keeping these lines of communication open significantly increases the chances of success.