Executive function skills are often called the “air traffic control system of the brain.” They serve as the “conductor” of your brain’s actions — managing the pace and intensity of each instrument’s contribution, guiding the component sounds to play harmoniously, and coaching the orchestra to create beautiful music together. Executive skills include key building blocks of academic success such as working memory, planning and prioritization, organization, goal setting, and time management. They are the brain-based skills that help children and adults perform tasks and allow us to “get stuff done.”
Our panelists are true experts in the field of executive function research and have a combined 70+ years of experience in the fields of EF assessment, parent guidance, and working with students with EF and attention challenges. In this guided panel discussion, Dr. Carlson and Dr. Dawson provide insight and tips to help parents and educators define and identify executive function skill challenges in students, as well as support students in their EF and study skills journey to set them up for academic success. We explore practical, hands-on strategies, discuss how EF and study skills overlap and differ, and share resources to help your 3rd-10th grader be a more effective, confident, and organized student.
Check out the video below to get answers to questions like:
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How can I identify executive function skills deficits in my student?
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What practical strategies can parents implement to help students improve their EF & study skills?
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What resources can I turn to for help?
Featuring Our Guests
Dr. Peg Dawson, Ed.D.
EF expert, world-renowned speaker, and author of the best-selling Smart but Scattered book series
Dr. Peg Dawson is a world-renowned author, speaker, and expert in the area of executive functioning. Dr. Dawson received her doctorate in School/Child Clinical Psychology from the University of Virginia. She worked as a school psychologist for 16 years, and for the past 24 years has worked at the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where she specializes in the assessment of children and adults with learning and attention disorders. She also conducts professional development training on executive skills for schools and organizations all over the world. Dr. Dawson is a past president of the New Hampshire Association of School Psychologists, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and the International School Psychology Association, and a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from NASP. She is a coauthor of bestselling books for general readers, including Smart but Scattered, Smart but Scattered Teens, Smart but Scattered—and Stalled (with a focus on emerging adults), and The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success (with a focus on adults). Dr. Dawson is also a coauthor of The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition, and books for professionals including Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition.
Dr. Stephanie Carlson, Ph.D.
Internationally-recognized researcher on executive function, assessment tools, and parenting
Dr. Carlson is an internationally-recognized leader in the study of executive function (brain basis of self-control) and her current research focuses on ways to help promote executive function through reflective practices in play, parenting, and preschool curricula. Dr. Carlson is currently a Distinguished McKnight University Professor at the Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota. Prior to this role, she was a Professor in the Department of Psychology, University of Washington (1998-2007). She has been an advisor to Sesame Workshop, understood.org, Noggin, Bright Horizons Family Solutions, and the Minnesota Children’s Museum. Her work has received funding from federal agencies and non-profit foundations, including the National Institutes of Health, Institute of Education Sciences, John Templeton Foundation, and the Character Lab. Dr. Carlson’s research is highly cited and has been featured in several media outlets, including Time, Newsweek, New York Times Magazine, The Times (UK), Forbes, Wall Street Journal, and National Public Radio. She also delivered a widely-viewed Ted Talk in 2020.
Katy Langhorst, M.Ed.
Vice President of Partnerships,
StudyPoint
As our Vice President of Partnerships, Katy works with schools, states, teachers, and a wide range of organizations to find ways for us to provide students across the country with support in the form of academic tutoring, SAT/ACT preparation, Study Skills and Executive Functioning Coaching, a phonics-based Elementary Reading program, and admissions support needs.
Before joining StudyPoint in 2010, Katy had spent 13 years in the world of education, including six years as a Regional Director for SCORE! Educational Centers and five years as a 4th and 5th grade classroom teacher in a public school. She holds a B.S. in Child Psychology from Yale and a Master’s in Elementary Education from Lesley University, and she currently serves on the boards of several non-profits.