FCPS Back to School Updates 2013

Please take this EF assessment. You can use the QR code or type the link into a browser.

Objectives To identify essential behaviors needed for academic success in school To discuss existing standards and expectations that support these essential behaviors To share strategies for teaching and reinforcing these behaviors To demonstrate the relationship between critical and creative thinking and relationships with executive functioning skills

What behaviors do students need to exhibit to have academic success?

Allows individuals to self-regulate behavior Executive Function …a set of mental processes that helps connect past experience with present action

The Marshmallow Test

Executive Functions Inhibition Shift Emotional Control Initiation Working Memory Planning and Organization Organization of Materials Self-Monitoring

Standards and Executive Functions

Inhibition “Ability to stop one’s behavior at the appropriate time, including stopping actions and thoughts.”

Shift “The ability to move freely from one situation to another and to think flexibly in order to respond appropriately to the situation.”

Emotional Control “The ability to modulate emotional responses by brining rationale thought to bear on feelings.”

Initiation “The ability to begin a task or activity and to independently generate ideas, responses, or problem-solving strategies.”

Working Memory “The capacity to hold information in mind for the purpose of completing a task.”

Planning and Organization “The ability to manage current and future oriented task demands.”

Organization of Materials “The ability to impose order on work, plan, and storage spaces.”

Self Monitoring “The ability to monitor one’s own performance and to measure it against some standard of what is needed or expected.”

Connections to Existing FCPS Work EF is about Mindset….. the skills can be learned and effort is key! EF skills are the foundation for Rigor... without them, students will struggle to access material that requires them to persist and deal with frustration and setbacks! EF requires positive Relationships … teachers must understand where students are and how to scaffold supports! EF supports Critical and Creative Thinking EF reminds us of the work of Eric Jensen and Teaching with Poverty in Mind.

Jensen’s Emotional Keyboard

Strategies to Support EF Skills

Unstuck and On Target! Unstuck and On Target! is an Intervention Approach Targeting Executive Functions for High-Functioning Students Ages 8–11 Paul H. Brooks Publishing Company

Unstuck and On Target! is an Executive Function Curriculum to Improve Flexibility for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Helping Students to... Effectively and Calmly Mange Unexpected Events Cope with Disappointment and Frustration Keep an Open Mind Navigate Disagreements with Friends Set and Achieve Goals Learn How to Compromise Create a Plan B when Plan A Doesn’t Work

How is Executive Function Impaired in Autism Spectrum Disorder?

UNSTUCK AND ON TARGET! KEY VOCABULARY

Eagle View Elementary School * Data Indicates Student Improvements * Rule Abidance Getting Unstuck Handling the Unexpected Classroom Participation Social Reciprocity Transitioning Nonverbal Reasoning Flexibility Shifting Planning Organization Ability to Compromise

Eagle View Elementary School A Team Approach to Student Success!

Mountain View High School Pre-Assessment Results How did we integrate EF into the school? How are we integrating EF into the classroom?

2009 began discussing 2010 became Staff development topic – Teach vocab to staff 2011 began implementing with students and parents – Identified team, one member from each department 2012 began discussing in classroom – Posters, we value this, allowed for student discussion 2013 lessons to systematically teach EF skills Integrating EF into the School

Individual discussions with students and parents George Mason Study and Collaboration Teachers developed lessons that delineated how EF impacts performance in their classes Now developing lessons that teach the skills and imbed EF into the culture of the classroom on a daily basis

Low Tech Tools: o Portable supplies and multiple locations o Launching pad o Accordion binder o Weekly “clean sweep” o Prioritizing strategies o Calendars/Planners o Schedules Supporting Executive Functioning Skills with Technology

o Microsoft Office o Graphic Organizing Software o Alphasmarts/Neos o o Google Tools o Blackboard Supporting Executive Functioning Skills with Technology

o Digital Recorders o Livescribe Pen - Records audio and notes synchronously o iPads and other platforms Supporting Executive Functioning Skills with Technology

Todd Johnson, Fairfax County Public Schools, Fairfax VA USA; Anya Evmenova and Peggy King-Sears, George Mason University, Fairfax VA USA

Supporting Executive Functioning Skills with Technology

THE ADMINISTRATOR’S ROLE

Mike Bloom, Program Manager Behavior Intervention Services Maura Burke, Coordinator Early Childhood and Grant Management Pete Garvey, History and Social Studies Chair Mountain View High School Lisa Givens, Specialist Assistive Technology Services, Tim McElroy, Emotional Disabilities Teacher Mountain View High School Marcy Miller, Coordinator School Counseling and College Success Program