Understanding How Executive Function Training Impacts Mathematics Skills in Preschool Children: A Conversation With Developmental Psychologist Dr. Jasmine Ernst Evidence suggests there is a positive correlation between strong executive function (EF) skills and academic growth over time. Programs that integrate EF practice into early childhood curriculum may see significant improvements in learning and social development. Why…
The Family Partnership Spotlight
Welcome to The Family Partnership Spotlight, where we celebrate families’ crucial role in nurturing children’s social-emotional development. Discover the power of fostering empathy, resilience, and positive relationships. Join us in exploring practical strategies and heartwarming family stories that exemplify the transformative effects of intentional parenting. Together, let’s empower children with essential life skills for a brighter, more emotionally intelligent future.
Equity Course Announcement
In recent years, we can see a growing need to become more aware of social systems that perpetuate bias and inequality and observe how those systems interact with our ongoing efforts to improve executive function skills. In a summary of previously existing research, we take a deep dive into how equity influences executive function and present this work in our new professional development course,…
Provision Choice and Executive Function Development
Provision of Choice is Key to Executive Function Development in Toddlers It is clear that early executive function (EF) skills are important for many outcomes including social competence, emotion regulation, academic achievement, and school readiness (Allan et al., 2014, McClelland et al., 2013; Willoughby et al., 2017). We have seen remarkable growth in the number…
Distanced but still Social: Youth and Digital Media during COVID-19
During the COVID-19 pandemic, child and adolescent use of digital media increased at unprecedented rates. In addition to attending classes through webcams, youth relied on digital media to socialize with peers, engage in social activism, play games, learn new skills, and interact with health care providers. This increased use has many parents wondering: Are my…
Give Your Kids an “I CAN DO THIS!” Moment
In a recent Raising Good Humans podcast, Goldilocks Parenting: How to Shape Executive Function Skills Through Caregiving Dr. Carlson explains that kids need to realize they have a choice in how they think, act, or feel. As children make these decisions, they own it and learn to realize each has its own consequence, good or…
EFgoPRO™: An EF/SEL Tool You Can’t Afford NOT to Use
With the diverse methods of teaching and learning in today’s educational world, knowing where the strengths and weaknesses of each student is imperative in order to guarantee students’ needs are being met. Recently, Istation published 10 Assessment Must-Haves as a starting point for measuring student growth and providing teachers with the necessary information as they…
Using a Digital Diet for Screen time Decisions
Should we set a screen time limit What programs can our children watch? Is my child playing too many video games? Children’s technology use is a common topic of discussion echoed in living rooms across the country. A recent piece in the New York Times highlights the struggles faced by pandemic families who express…
There’s More to “Seat-Time” Than We Thought
There has been a lot of discussion about earning credit via “seat time” (aka Carnegie units) versus “proof of mastery.” Where one insists a person attend a minimum number of class periods while the other cares not about attendance, just the ability to demonstrate knowledge however that may be done. When it comes to early…
Promoting Executive Function with STEAM
Have you ever thought to yourself, “I’m just not creative,” or “Gosh, I wish I were better at math”? How about considering yourself to be either left-brained (analytical) or right-brained (creative)? It can be tempting to think of science and art as opposite ends of a spectrum, but evidence from neuroscience shows us that brain…