Executive Function and Child Development

A brain-based approach to helping kids stay focused and achieve.

Poor executive function (EF) in the brain can mean behavioral and attentional problems in school. This book explains to professionals and parents how EF develops in kids, what EF difficulties look like, and what creative and effective interventions can meet their needs.

Executive functions involve mental processes such as:

• Working memory–holding several pieces of information in mind while we try to do something with them–for example, understand and solve a problem or carry out a task.
• Response inhibition–inhibiting actions that interfere with our intentions or goals.
• Shifting focus–interrupting an ongoing response in order to direct attention to other aspects of a situation that are important for goal attainment.
• Cognitive flexibility–generating alternative methods of solving a problem or reaching a goal.
• Self-monitoring–checking on one's own cognitions and actions to assure that they are in line with one's intentions.
• Goal Orientation–creating and carrying out a multi-step plan for achieving a goal in a timely fashion, keeping the "big picture" in mind.

Marcie Yeager, LCSW, runs the Yeager Center for Children and Families and is a founding member of the Louisiana Association for Play Therapy. In 2007, she (along with her husband Daniel) received the Louisiana Social Worker of the Year Award from the National Association of Social Workers, Louisiana Chapter. She is the co-author of Simon Says Pay Attention: Help for Children with ADHD. She lives in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Daniel Yeager, LCSW, runs the Yeager Center for Children and Families and is a founding member of the Louisiana Association for Play Therapy. In 2007, he (along with his wife Marcie) received the Louisiana Social Worker of the Year Award from the National Association of Social Workers, Louisiana Chapter. He is the co-author of Simon Says Pay Attention: Help for Children with ADHD. He lives in Lafayette, Louisiana.