Supporting Students in the Classroom:

Attention, Organization & Planning

Erin Cowell & Suzanne Nice

Reasons Why Students Struggle

Typical adolescent development ◦ Physical (nutrition, exercise, sleep)◦ Emotional (anxiety can look a lot like ADHD) ◦ Social (problems with family/friends can look like poor motivation / ADHD) ◦ Executive Skills (continue to develop well into the 20’s)

Academic skill differences (Explore Scores are on IC!).

Students who may not speak English full-time. These students may have excellent conversational skills but struggle with academic language.

Brain Development

Recent research indicates that frontal lobe development may continue well into the 20’s and early 30’s. This includes typical development and not just those identified with a disability.

Males lag behind females in frontal lobe development -◦Females – 25-28 years◦Males – 27 – 32 years

Executive Function Skills

Flexibility – adaptable, improvise, shift approaches

Goal-directed persistence – sustain effort over time

Metacognition – self-monitor & observe

Organization – systematic approach to achieve goals

Planning – develop a strategy to achieve a goal

Regulation of Affect – manage one’s feelings

Executive Function Skills

Response to Inhibition – self-control, delay

Social thinking – respond appropriately to social conditions

Sustained Attention - maintain attention in the presence of distractions

Task Initiation – start a task without procrastination

Time Management – prioritize and respond in a timely manner

Working Memory– hold one piece of information while working with another

Executive Function Challenges in the Classroom

Inhibit – impulsive, has trouble stopping when silly, doesn’t think before doing, needs close supervision

Shift – stubborn, can’t get disappointment off their mind, resists accepting a different way to solve a problem, becomes upset with new situations

Emotional Control – overreacts to small problems, explosive/angry outbursts, easily tearful, mood changes frequently

Executive Function Challenges in the Classroom

Initiate – does not take initiative, not a self-starter, needs to be told to begin a task even when willing, lies around the house a lot

Working Memory – absent-minded, when given three things to do only remembers the first or last, trouble with multi-step activities (directions, assignments, chores, etc.)

Executive Function Challenges in the Classroom

Plan/Organize – good ideas but can’t get the job done, written work poorly organized, starts projects without the right materials, trouble planning for future activities, underestimate time needed to complete tasks

Monitor – doesn’t ask for help when needed, doesn’t check work for mistakes, makes careless errors, unaware of how behavior affects others, leaves work incomplete, not aware when their work does not match teacher expectations

Ways to support students:

The most important things teachers can do to support students occur before students walk in the door.

As we talk, consider your practices. What has worked well for you? Feel free to share examples!

Classroom structure & routines Building relationships to promote engagement Teach and practice specific skills (organization, planning, test-

taking)

Classroom StructureStructure the environment by building in cues to remind students of tasks to be done or behaviors to be performed:

Post homework & important reminders in the same location on the whiteboard & in the same format throughout the year.

For efficient use of class time, write a daily schedule or lesson agenda on the board. This will facilitate transitions and reduce the need to give multiple verbal directions.

Identify & clearly label where homework is placed each day, or how it will be checked.

Establish Routines

Homework collection routine. Visual and verbal cues.

Start class by talking about tomorrow’s homework- discuss how will it tie into today’s lesson.

Have students get out assignment notebooks & write down homework together at the beginning of class or stop class early to give time for this.

Establish a clear routine and practice for sharing critical information and materials when a student misses class. EXAMPLES???

Building Relationships

Greet students as they walk in the door.

Greet students when they return from absences. Help them access notes/information they missed until it becomes routine.

Provide many opportunities to respond. For students who struggle with content or are shy, give them a heads-up about participating.

Promoting Engagement & Attention

Establish relevancy and purpose for learning by relating to previous experiences.

Pacing of classroom instruction can promote attention or encourage inattention.

Extended periods of lecturing without opportunities for engagement or movement is challenging for all teenagers (and us too, right?!).

Provide opportunities for movement.

Alternate quiet/passive and active tasks.

Promoting Engagement & Attention

Prompt students when it is a good time to write something down.

Ask students what questions they think might be on a quiz or test.

Encourage feedback from students to check for understanding

Familiarize students with any new vocabulary before beginning the lesson.

Alert student’s attention before expressing key points.

Promoting Engagement in Quiet or Inattentive Students

Make a positive comment every time the student shows any evidence of interest.

Shape approximations of desired behavior by giving immediate, positive feedback for participating or being on-task. If student answers a problem correctly, say “Nice job on that problem. Tell me how you figured it out?”

Give students advance warning before calling on them.

Use a pre-planned nonverbal signal to cue student to focus.

Supporting students who have difficulty paying attention

Many students do not have attention issues across the board.

Consider many reasons why students may present with attention problems.

Academic skills problems Physical, emotional, social stressors Language considerations

Include student in discussion about strategies that might help them (i.e, cue to focus—be creative, seating arrangement)

Do you need more information from a counselor?

Teach Specific SkillsDon’t assume that students know how to…

◦ Organize Materials / Class Notes

◦ Use Technology

◦ Plan for long-term assignments

◦ Study for Tests

Organization MATERIALS: Develop and teach a materials management system

for your classes. Review it frequently & take time to organize together on an established routine. Clean out & start fresh at the beginning of a unit or quarterly.

NOTES: Provide copies of notes or templates to help them structure notes. This will ensure that they have the critical information they will need when studying for tests or completing assignments based on lecture material.

Use Technology

◦ Take time in class to show students how to get to your website.

◦ Give students time in class to practice getting to your website and navigating through it.

◦ Teacher Website Scavenger Hunt

◦ Have students reply to an email you send them for homework. Could ask students questions to get to know them better.

◦ Booster sessions to remind students how to get to assignments on website, etc.

Plan for Long-Term Assignments

Present all assignments orally and in writing

Break assignments into parts with check-in points along the way

Talk to all students about the steps for getting started on an assignment—this is what you will need to do first, then…

Talk individually with students who you observe are not able to start something or miss a check-in point.◦ Are they overwhelmed? Help them prioritize◦ Difficulty coming up with ideas? Help them brainstorm

Students benefit from being given scoring rubrics that define exactly what is to be included in class assignments. The rubric can be written as a checklist that students are asked to complete as part of the assignments.

Studying for Tests Help and teach students how to organize material to prepare for a test. Be

explicit in what they will need to do to be successful on the test.

See “Tools for Studying” form

Recommend specific study strategies:Reread text Reread/organize notesOutline text Highlight notesMake concept map Quiz myselfUse study guide Study session with teacherStudy flash cards Memorize/rehearse

Help students create a study plan for tests:◦ 4 days before test..◦ 3 days before test…◦ 2 days before test…◦ 1 day before test…

Tests Continued…

Actively teach test-taking skills.

Prepare students for the specific format of your tests (i.e., sample problems).

During testing, cue students about pacing, particularly at the beginning of the year & with freshmen. ◦ Start Time:◦ Stop Time:◦ You have 15 minutes left. You should be near problem #14.

References

Dawson, P. & Guare, R. (2010). Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents. New York: Guildord Press.

Dawson, P. & Guare, R. (2009). Smart but Scattered. New York: Guilford Press.

Isquith, P.K. (2011, October). Executive Function in Children & Adolescents: Concepts and Assessment. Presentation at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology,Chicago, IL.