Executive Skills- had to practice what I teach

NOTE:  not for the weak at heart or for parents that don't like to see messy rooms.  

Executive skills coaching /therapy takes a child's strengths and weakness's in mind when working toward the ultimate goal of improved achievement at home and at school.  Executive skills are those frontal lobe skills.  In children with ADHD, studies have found that executive skills may lag by as much as 5 years.  Wow.   Here is the list of executive skills.  Want the definitions?

Response Inhibition   

Working Memory          
Emotional Control
Sustained Attention
Task Initiation
Planning/Prioritization
Organization
Time Management
Goal-directed persistence
Flexibility
Metacognition

I got a good dose of using my training last week when my son got really upset at me and completely wrecked his room.  He threw everything off the bed and shelves and threw in the floor.

a wrecked room for sure

Brain Training at Learning Charms..and a little vent

"Brain Training" (also called cognitive training) is a hot topic of interest for parents of children who are struggling in school, or who have  ADHD, learning disabilities, attention/focus issues and sensory processing difficulties.  There are many franchises that offer brain training.  Brain training is not new, but is a new "hot word".  Occupational therapists have been helping clients to rewire their brains for decades.  We just called it "occupational therapy".   Occupational therapy increases achievement of students by working on the underlying and foundation issues of development, such as core strength, sensory processing, bilateral use, fluency, motor planning and so on.  Therapists practice increasing left and right brain integration every day because that is part of therapy. This increase in foundation skills increases academic performance.   In the past several decades, new high tech systems (such as Interactive Metronome) have come along that can assist therapists with improving and refining areas of focus, attention and timing.

So, my clients have asked me about these brain training franchises and what they do. I cannot say that I can personally review their effectiveness.  But I will share some insight.  I recently met a student that worked at one of the franchises and I asked what she did there.

Jumping rope in occupational therapy

Why do we jump rope in O.T. and handwriting tutoring?


My students always want to know why I make them jump rope so much.  If you come to see me at Learning Charms then you'll definitely be leaving being much better at jumping rope. 

Why is it important?  Jumping rope is beneficial mostly for fluency.  Fluency is part of motor praxis (meaning "planning") and is basically the ability to keep a steady pace and rhythm. It can be seen in reading fluency, math fluency, and even fluency in independent working pace.  I especially like jumping rope for children with ADD/ADHD.   Fluency is an executive function of the brain, meaning that it is a high level skill.  I teach jump rope to kids as young as 3 years.  As they get older, we learn to jump rope backwards, one footed, with rhymes, and counting backwards by 2's or 3"s.  Jumping rope helps with academic skills, timing, sensory processing and motor coordination too.  Bring out the jump rope this summer!

My son started Interactive Metronome yesterday.  I waited until this year to have him start because at the age of 6 and being extra wiggly, he just couldn't focus on it last year.  This year, he understands the program more and is motivated to do it because he know that some pro athletes complete Interactive Metronome training as well.  Since he wants to be a pro soccer and pro baseball player, it was the perfect time to get him started.  My sons's ADHD symptoms have not been affected much by medications or nutritional changes, so the I.M. training is something that I have high hopes for.  I'll keep you posted!

Spaghetti for fine motor and motor control

Dry spaghetti noodles stuck in Styrofoam was a fun activity today to improve fine motor control, pincer grasp, as well as proprioception.

First, stick noodles in Styrofoam. These show beads on noodles. I used the very small fun fusion beads plus beads made from cut up straws.

Next, I asked children to sort and put 5 beads of each color on noodles.

Kids had to be careful and grade their force when putting on noodles or else they would break!

Next, I asked them to take off  the beads one at a time with tongs. To make it more difficult, you could put them on or off in a pattern of the therapist's choice.

 Taking the beads off the long noodles were the most challenging, as the kids had to squeeze the tongs longer but also had to not bend /snap the noodle.

The Need for the Extreme in kids with ADHD

Kids that have the need for the extreme.  You know the ones, like my son, who are risk takers.  They are the ones that constantly push the limits for movement and balance.   You'll find these kids swinging upside down, climbing trees higher than they should, and often excelling in sports.  They may have reduced impulse control as well.  Our control of impulses are the ones that keep us from saying things that we do not mean, trying physical activities that are risky, and even waiting to enter a conversation without interrupting.   The impulsive part of ADHD is the part that attributes to these children having a higher risk of injury than other kids.  We used to half laugh (half gasp) that my son never looked when he crossed a street...all part of impulsivity.  In fact there have been studies regarding the higher incidences of kids with ADHD getting hurt. 

Many kids like my son have ADHD and are also on the "go" constantly.  It really is like he is being driven by a motor.  Although exhausting for the parents at time, I have found that is is necessary to embrace the really positive things about ADHD.    Kids with ADHD need lots of movement as it centers them and allows them to learn.  Some kids (like my son) need pretty extreme movement (vestibular and proprioceptive input) which can be seen by the types of activities he chooses to engage in.  Once he gets all sweaty, climbs up and down trees, wrestles the dog, plays soccer, stomps all around the house, rides his pogo stick with one hand and one foot, growls loudly like a bear, and dribbles the basketball until all of the neighbors are jarred out of their beds THEN he is ready to learn.  Oh, and that all happened in an hour.