Executive function — our ability to remember and use what we know, defeat our unproductive impulses, and switch gears and adjust to new demands — is increasingly understood as a key element not just of learning but of lifelong success.
Researchers at the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University describe executive function as an air traffic control system for the mind — helping us manage streams of information, revise plans, stay organized, filter out distractions, cope with stress, and make healthy decisions. Children learn these skills first from their parents, through reliable routines, meaningful and responsive interactions, and play that focuses attention and stirs the beginnings of self-control. But when home is not stable, or in situations of neglect or abuse, executive function skills may be impaired, or may not develop at all, limiting a child’s success in elementary school and later life.
The Center on the Developing Child, housed at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, has just released a highly usable collection of resources aimed at helping educators reinforce these skills — or encourage their development in vulnerable children. The guide, called Enhancing and Practicing Executive Function Skills with Children from Infancy to Adolescence, offers a broad range of age-appropriate activities and games to bolster executive function at different stages.
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