DRAFT EF Conference Digital Binder

ResearchILD Research Institute for Learning and Development

Online Conference live November 11–12

36 TH A N N U A L

EXECUTIVE FUNCTION CON FERENCE LYNN MELTZER, Ph.D., CONFERENCE FOUNDER AND CHAIR

EXECUTIVE FUNCTION, ATTENTION, AND STRESS: BUILDING RESILIENCY AND FOSTERING EQUITY FOR ALL STUDENTS VIRTUAL CONFERENCE NOVEMBER 11–12, 2021 — ONLINE WHO SHOULD ATTEND? This conference is designed for professionals in education, psychology, child development, speech and language pathology, school psychology, home-school education, and other related fields.

EXECUTIVE FUNCTION, ATTENTION, AND STRESS: BUILDING RESILIENCY AND FOSTERING EQUITY FOR ALL STUDENTS This 36th Annual Executive Function Conference will address the close connections between executive function, stress, persistence, and school performance. This year’s virtual conference will emphasize the role of executive function as a cornerstone of equity in education. Presentations will focus on the importance of creating strategic classrooms by promoting metacognitive awareness, executive function strategies, persistence, and resilience in all students.

The conference will highlight practical strategies for promoting metacognition and executive function in all students from K-12 to college. We will address the following issues: • As students return to their classrooms after the pandemic recedes, how do we build a school culture that re-engages all students and promotes selfunderstanding, persistence, and resilience?

• How do executive function strategies build a foundation for equity in our classrooms and our schools?

• How do we promote executive function by teaching strategies for goal-setting, cognitive flexibility, organizing and prioritizing, accessing working memory, and self-monitoring so we can empower students to succeed in the classroom and during online learning?

• How do we promote students’ strengths in socialemotional areas so we reduce their anxiety and stress in the context of the classroom?

• How do executive function weaknesses affect the performance of students with LD, ADHD, ASD, and other learning difficulties?

This conference will include a combination of live plenary sessions, pre-recorded workshop sessions, and smaller break-out sessions in chat rooms to provide opportunities for in-depth discussion. The program will emphasize the application of theory and research to educational practice.

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E

FACULTY LYNN MELTZER, Ph.D. CONFERENCE CHAIR Dr. Lynn Meltzer is the President and Director of the Institutes for Learning and Development (ResearchILD and ILD) in Lexington, MA. She is a Fellow and Past-President of the International Academy for Research in Learning Disabilities. She is the Founder and Program Chair of this Executive Function Conference, (formerly the Learning Differences Conference) which she has chaired for the past 35 years.

For 30 years, she was an Associate in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and an Adjunct Associate Professor

LYNN MELTZER, PH.D. Founder and Program Chair for 36 years, President and Director, Institutes for Learning and Development (ResearchILD and ILD) ANTHONY S. BASHIR, PH.D., CCC-SLP Educational Consultant; Adjunct, The Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA DONNA CECILIA BOWEN, M.S. Learning Specialist, Merrick Academy Charter School, Queens, New York, and a ResearchILD EF & Equity Fellow KIM CARTER, M.ED. Founder and Executive Director, Q.E.D. Foundation KIM DAVIS, M.ED. Senior Associate for Research and Teacher Training, ResearchILD MAURICE ELIAS, PH.D. Professor, Psychology Department, Rutgers University, Director, Social-Emotional and Character Development Lab; Co-Director, Rutgers-based Academy for SEL in Schools DAVID FLINK, ED.M. Founder and Chief Empowerment Officer, Eye to Eye MICHAEL GRESCHLER, M.ED. Director, SMARTS Program, ResearchILD; Educational Specialist, ILD RAJNEET GOOMER, M.A. Director of Student Services, Robbinsville Public Schools JULIE JARVIS, ED.D. Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment, Fremont Public Schools, WY

in the Department of Child Development at Tufts University. Her 40 years of clinical work, research, publications, and presentations have focused on understanding the complexity of learning and attention problems. Her extensive publications include articles, chapters, and books, most recently, Executive Function in Education: From Theory to Practice (2018), Promoting Executive Function in the Classroom (2010) and The Power of Peers in the Classroom: Enhancing Learning and Social Skills (2015), co-edited with Karen Harris. Together with her ResearchILD staff, she has developed SMARTS, an evidence-based executive function and peer mentoring/coaching curriculum for elementary, middle, and high school students (www.smarts-ef.org).

SUCHETA KAMATH, M.A., M.A., CCC-SLP, BC-ANCDS Founder/CEO of ExQ, LLC

EMILY PETTY, B.S. 6th grade teacher, Arapahoe Middle School, Wind River Reservation, WY

DONNA KINCAID, M.ED. Assistant Director and Director of Outreach and Training, Institutes for Learning and Development (ResearchILD and ILD)

REGINE PHILLIPEAUX, ED.D. Deputy Chief of the Equity, Strategy, and Opportunity Gaps Division, Boston Public Schools

SHELLY LEVY, M.ED., M.S. SMARTS Curriculum Coordinator,ResearchILD; Educational Specialist, ILD

MINDY SCIRRI, PH.D. Learning (Dis)ability Specialist and Consultant, Learnabilities IRVIN SCOTT, ED.D. Senior Lecturer on Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education

GEORGE MCCLOSKEY, PH.D. Professor and Director of Research, School of Professional and Applied Psychology, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine

JOAN SEDITA, M.ED Founder of Keys to Literacy

KRISTINA MANNINO, M.ED. Supervisor of Special Services, Robbinsville Public Schools

BONNIE SINGER, PH.D., CCC-SLP Founder and CEO of Vivido and Architects for Learning

DAVID MELNICK, LICSW Co-Director, Outpatient Services, Northeastern Family Institute,Vermont; Fellow, ChildTrauma Academy

CHRIS WILLARD, PSY.D. Lecturer in Psychiatry, Part-Time Harvard Medical School Faculty

VERONICA MILLER, M.S. Instructional Facilitator at Arapahoe Schools,Wind River Reservation,WY LINDA NATHAN, ED.D. Director of the Perrone-Sizer Institute for Creative Leadership (PSI); Strategic Partnership Advisor, Hale Education; Adjunct Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Education and Cambridge College PEDRO NOGUERA, PH.D. Dean, Rossier School of Education; Distinguished Professor of Education, University of Southern California

“ Thank you for this amazing collection of experts, information, and resources.” 2020 Conference Attendee

The Institutes for Learning and Development websites: http://smarts-ef.org www.researchild.org www.ildlex.org

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E ONLINE CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

NOVEMBER 11 & 12, 2021 Thursday, November 11, 2021

Friday, November 12, 2021

8:30-8:50

Welcome Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D.

8:30-8:40

Overview Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D.

8:50-9:45

Creating Strategic Classrooms: Re-Engaging Students to Promote Self-Understanding and Resilience Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D.

8:40-9:30

Strengthening Students’ Resilience through the Motivation-EF Connection George McCloskey, Ph.D.

9:30-9:45

Q&A

9:45-10:35

Social Emotional Learning and Character Development: The Foundations of Safe and Successful Schools Maurice Elias, Ph.D.

9:45-10:00 Q & A 10:00-10:15 Break 10:15-11:05

Equity Detectives: The Heart of the Matter for Teachers and Schools Irvin Scott, Ed.D.

10:35-10:50 Q & A

11:05-11:20 Q and A

10:50-11:05 Break

11:20-12:20 Panel: Executive Function and Equity in Schools: Success Stories from Administrators and Teachers Regine Phillipeaux, Ed.D., Donna Bowen, M.S., Julie Jarvis, Ed.D., Veronica Miller, M.S., Emily Petty, B.S.

11:05-11:55

Using Arts to Create Schools that Address Students’ Strengths and Embed Equity Linda Nathan, Ed.D.

11:55-12:10

Q&A

12:10-1:00

Lunch Break or SMARTS Optional Sessions

12:20-12:30 Q & A 12:30-1:05

Lunch and Networking in Chat Rooms

1:15-2:05

Educating Equitably After the Pandemic: Promoting Student Agency and Self-Understanding Pedro Noguera, Ph.D.

2:05-2:20

Q&A

2:20-3:30

Panel: Addressing EF, Social-Emotional Learning Skills, and Classroom Learning: Practical Strategies that Work in Classrooms Michael Greschler, M.Ed., Joan Sedita, M.Ed., Kim Carter, M.Ed., Anthony S. Bashir, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Bonnie Singer, Ph.D., CCC-SLP

3:30-3:45

Q&A

3:45

Day One Ajourns

“Thank you for such an insightful and well-planned conference. Your work is so, so important!” 2020 Conference Attendee

MetaCOG Online: A New Survey for Helping Teachers Understand Each Student’s EF Strengths and Challenges Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D. and Kim Davis, M.Ed. or

SMARTS and MTSS School-Wide: Administrator and School Leader Panel Michael Greschler, M.Ed., Rajneet Goomer, M.A., Kristina Mannino, M.Ed. 1:00-1:50

Identity, Advocacy, and Accommodations: Transitioning to a World After COVID David Flink, Ed.M.

1:50-2:05

Q&A

2:05-3:05

Panel: Reducing Stress to Foster Success During Classwork and Homework Donna Kincaid, M.Ed., Shelly Levy, M.Ed., M.S., Sucheta Kamath, M.A., M.A., CCC-SLP, BCANCDS, Mindy Scirri, Ph.D., Chris Willard, Psy.D., David Melnick, LICSW

3:05-3:15

Closing Remarks Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D.

All session recordings will be available through December 31, 2021.

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E

PLENARY PRESENTATIONS–LIVE Thursday, November 11, 2021 8:50 AM, EST Creating Strategic Classrooms: Re-Engaging Students to Promote Self-Understanding and Resilience Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D. Founder and Program Chair, President and Director, Institutes for Learning and Development 10:15 AM, EST Equity Detectives: The Heart of the Matter for Teachers and Schools Irvin Scott, Ed.D. Senior Lecturer on Education, Harvard Graduate School of Education 1:15 PM, EST Educating Equitably After the Pandemic: Promoting Student Agency and Self-Understanding Pedro Noguera, Ph.D. Dean, Rossier School of Education; Distinguished Professor of Education, University of Southern California

Friday, November 12, 2021 8:40 AM, EST Strengthening Students’ Resilience through the Motivation-EF Connection George McCloskey, Ph.D. Professor and Director of Research, School of Professional and Applied Psychology, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine 9:45 AM, EST Social Emotional Learning and Character Development: The Foundations of Safe and Successful Schools Maurice Elias, Ph.D. Professor, Psychology Department, Rutgers University; Director, Social-Emotional and Character Development Lab; Co-Director, Rutgers-based Academy for SEL in Schools 11:05 AM, EST Using Arts to Create Schools that Address Students’ Strengths and Embed Equity Linda Nathan, Ed.D. Director of the Perrone-Sizer Institute for Creative Leadership (PSI); Strategic Partnership Advisor, Hale Education; Adjunct Lecturer, Harvard Graduate School of Education and Cambridge College 1:00 PM, EST Identity, Advocacy, and Accommodations: Transitioning to a World After COVID David Flink, Ed.M. Founder and Chief Empowerment Officer, Eye to Eye

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E

PANEL PRESENTATIONS–LIVE Thursday, November 11, 2021

11:20-12:20 AM, EST Panel: Executive Function and Equity in Schools: Success Stories from Administrators and Teacher Regine Phillipeaux, Ed.D., Deputy Chief of Equity and Strategy, Boston Public Schools Donna Bowen, M.S., Learning Specialist, Merrick Academy Charter School, Queens, New York, and a ResearchILD EF & Equity Fellow Julie Jarvis, Ed.D., Director of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, Fremont Public Schools, WY Veronica Miller, M.S., Instructional Facilitator at Arapahoe Schools, Wind River Reservation, WY Emily Petty, B.S., 6th grade teacher, Arapahoe Middle School, Wind River Reservation, WY

2:20-3:30 PM, EST Panel: Addressing EF, Social-Emotional Learning Skills, and Classroom Learning: Practical Strategies that Work in Classrooms Michael Greschler, M.Ed., Director, SMARTS Program; Educational Specialist, ResearchILD Joan Sedita, M.Ed., Founder of Keys to Literacy Kim Carter, M.Ed., Founder and Executive Director, Q.E.D. Foundation Anthony S. Bashir, Ph.D.,CCC-SLP, Educational Consultant; Adjunct, The Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA Bonnie Singer, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Founder and CEO of Vivido and Architects for Learning

“As always, it is a privilege to participate in this conference. There are so many fantastic takeaways to be immediately implemented. The content is cutting-edge and multidisciplinary.” 2020 Conference Attendee

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E

PANEL PRESENTATIONS–LIVE Friday, November 12, 2021

2:05-3:05 PM, EST Panel: Reducing Stress to Foster Success During Classwork and Homework Donna Kincaid, M.Ed., Assistant Director and Director of Outreach and Training, Institutes for Learning and Development (ResearchILD and ILD) Shelly Levy, M.Ed., M.S., Educational Specialist, ILD; SMARTS Curriculum Coordinator, ResearchILD Sucheta Kamath, M.A., M.A., CCC-SLP, BC-ANCDS Founder/CEO of ExQ, LLC Mindy Scirri, Ph.D., Learning (Dis)ability Specialist and Consultant, Learnabilities Chris Willard, Psy.D., Lecturer in Psychiatry, Part-Time Harvard Medical School Faculty David Melnick, LICSW, Co-Director, Outpatient Services, Northeastern Family Institute, Vermont; Fellow, ChildTrauma Academy

Optional SMARTS Lunchtime Sesssions

12:00-1:00 PM, EST MetaCOG Online: A New Survey for Helping Teachers Understand Each Student’s EF Strengths and Challenges Lynn Meltzer, Ph.D. and Kim Davis, M.Ed. OR

SMARTS and MTSS School-Wide: Administrator and School Leader Panel Michael Greschler, M.Ed., Rajneet Goomer, M.A., Kristina Mannino, M.Ed.

All session recordings will be available through December 31, 2021.

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E

CONCURRENT PRESENTATIONS The following pre-recorded Concurrent Presentations can be viewed at anytime and all session recordings will be available through December 31, 2021.

SMARTS Strand Executive Function and Organization: Unlocking Students’ Ability to Stay Organized Michael Greschler, Ed.M. and Shelly Levy, M.Ed., M.S.

Flexible Thinking: Practical Strategies to Improve Academic Performance and Reduce Stress Donna Kincaid, M.Ed.

Self-Monitoring and Self-Regulation: From School to Home and Back Mindy Scirri, Ph.D.

“You always seem to put together the perfect team of presentations. Just when you can’t imagine that it can get better, it does! Thanks for all the hard work.”

2020 Conference Attendee

36TH AN N UAL EXECUTIVE FU NCTION CON FERENCE—ON LI N E

CONCURRENT PRESENTATIONS General Strand

Hate or Hurt: Rethinking Social Exclusion, Isolation, and the Need-To-Belong in ASD Youth Sucheta Kamath, M.A., M.A., CCC-SLP, BC-ANCDS

Student Identity and Student Agency: Strategies for Engagement, Inclusion, and Equity Kim Carter, M.Ed.

Mindfulness, Metacognition, and Stress Reduction Chris Willard, Psy. D.

The Role of Working Memory in Speaking and Written Language Anthony S. Bashir, Ph.D., CCC-SLP and Bonnie Singer, Ph.D., CCC-SLP

Comprehension Strategy Instruction for Students with Executive Function Difficulties Joan Sedita, M.Ed.

Transforming Trauma: Helping Schools Become Healing Places David Melnick, LICSW.

ss s , S u cce t n e l a T , e ilienc S t r a t e g i e s , M o t i v a t i o n , A w a r e n e s s , Re s

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SMARTS Online is easy-touse, with 30 lesson plans, teacher training videos, and printable, customizable

SMARTS Online is a research-based Executive Function Curriculum developed by RESEARCHILD. SMARTS strategies are taught in the context of the academic curriculum and help students with classwork, homework, and studying.

student handouts.

Successfully tested in public, charter, private, and home schools, SMARTS is ready to scale to help all students learn HOW to learn.

SMARTS Intervention: Effects on EF Strategy Use In Schoolwork 4

SMARTS Intervention: Effects on Cognitive Flexibility SMARTS EF Instruction, provided once weekly for only five months, resulted in significant improvements in students’ use of EF strategies in their schoolwork.

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The SMARTS EF curriculum has been tested, revised, and optimized. This is a classroom-proven, cost-effective, easy-to-implement EF program, accessible online.

INSTITUTES FOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT (RESEARCHILD & ILD) | 4 Militia Drive | Suite 20, Lexington, MA 02421 | 781-861-3711 | www.ildlex

OUR REACH

PUBLICATIONS

SMARTS ONLINE

ANNUAL EF CONFERENCES

Our publications include ten For 33 years, RESEARCHILD has held

books and over 75 articles.

internationally renowned LD conference at

Our MetaCOG-R, is a research-

the Harvard Graduate School of Education

based, criterion-referenced

to share cutting-edge research that

assessment system that

improves classroom practice. Over 10,000

compares students’, teachers’,

educators have attended our conferences,

and parents’ perceptions

benefitting countless students.

of students’ metacognitive

SMARTS Online teaches explicit, structured EF strategies for improving goal-setting, organizing, prioritizing, cognitive flexibility, working memory, and self-regulation across the content areas and grade levels.

awareness and strategy use.

Academic Success Resilience

When students are taught EF strategies that promote metacognitive awareness and cognitive flexibility, they develop focused effort, positive

Executive Function Strategies Cognitive Flexibility

self-concept, persistence, and Metacognition Self-concept Persistence

resilience, the building blocks of academic and life success (Meltzer, 2007, 2010, 2013).

ResearchILD has already developed and tested a scalable and cost-effective solution.

With additional support, SMARTS Online will transform the lives of more students nationally and internationally.

INSTITUTES FOR LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT ( RESEARCHILD & ILD) | 4 Militia Drive | Suite 20, Lexington, MA 02421 | 781-861-3711 | www.ildlex

PROMISING PRACTICES by Mark Katz, PhD

H

Tailored for Young Learners: SMARTS Elementary OW DO WE EMPOWER CHILDREN to tackle

difficult problems and achieve personal goals, both in school and in life? Lynn Meltzer, PhD, president and director of the Institutes for Learning and Development, says one possible way is to immerse them in a school culture that values, fosters, and celebrates metacognitive awareness.

“Metacognitive awareness is the foundation for understanding our strengths and challenges and how they impact our learning,” says Meltzer. “And that’s the key ingredient for identifying and then using executive function strategies that will work best for us when tackling problems and striving toward our goals.” She adds, “This is true for all of us, whether or not we experience ADHD.” The exciting part is that we now know how to teach metacognitive awareness to students of all ages, she says,

SHUTTERSTOCK/ VECTORFUSIONART

even young school-aged children. Meltzer and her team at the Institutes for Learning and Development have created a curriculum that does just that—and more. It’s called SMARTS Elementary (SMARTS = Strategies, Motivation, Awareness, Resilience, Talents, Success).

Fostering metacognitive awareness SMARTS Elementary comprises thirty lessons, all designed to teach, foster, and celebrate the use of executive function strategies in ways that lead to greater school success. They do this by helping children become more metacognitively aware. Designed for grades 3 to 5, the user-friendly, strengths-based curriculum weaves highinterest activities throughout to help children continually explore their strengths and challenges. At the same time the curriculum also weaves in the specific executive func-

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tion strategies that will be most helpful when it comes to performing better in school and in life.

In a SMARTS classroom, learning effective executive function strategies no longer pertains only to children with ADHD. We all have unique learning profiles. And we all benefit from learning more about how we learn so that we can determine which executive function strategies will help us do better throughout our day. Says Meltzer, “When students develop metacognitive awareness so that they understand their strengths and weaknesses as well as how they learn, they can become flexible thinkers and problem-solvers who can succeed academically and in life.”

Meltzer and her team are also the authors of the original SMARTS curriculum, which was the recipient of CHADD’s 2018 Innovative Program of the Year Award.

The original curriculum is designed for middle school and high school students. ResearchILD’s elementary school version is intended to teach younger students similar strategies but at an earlier age.

“Teachers have long been asking us to create a curriculum for elementary school students,” says Michael Greschler, MEd, director of SMARTS. “We agree. Extending our curriculum to earlier grades helps to prepare students for future school and life demands that place increasing emphasis on executive function.” He adds, “SMARTS Elementary will not only help elementary students perform better today, it’ll help them perform better down the road as well.”

Tailored to younger students All SMARTS Elementary lessons are developmentally tailored to the needs of students in grades 3 to 5. Some lessons are similar to those in the original curriculum, others are new. As with the original curriculum, all still target five areas under the executive function umbrella: ●● cognitive flexibility: the ability to think flexibly and shift focus ●● goal setting: the ability to set realistic goals and a step by step plan for achieving them ●● organization and prioritizing: knowing how to manage and prioritize day-to-day school responsibilities, such as completing assignments when due, turning in completed homework ●● accessing working memory: learning to access information efficiently ●● self-monitoring and self-checking: asking oneself questions such as, Am I on task right now? How can I readjust my strategies to get back on task? Have I re-checked my test responses?

According to Meltzer, “The SMARTS curriculum has 6

Attention

been designed to promote metacognitive awareness, to teach executive function strategies explicitly and systematically, and to promote academic self-concept and resilience.” The thirty SMARTS lessons are divided into six separate units: ●● an introductory unit that familiarizes students with metacognitive and executive function terms and practices ●● a second unit that includes strategies for teaching students how to set goals and then achieve them ●● a third unit that includes strategies to help students learn to shift flexibly between multiple perspectives ●● a fourth unit that includes strategies to help students organize materials and information, and to develop an understanding of time, including how to estimate it, how to measure it, and how to prioritize it ●● a fifth unit that includes strategies to improve working memory, lock information into long-term memory, and remember unfamiliar information ●● a sixth unit that includes strategies to help students to stay on task for longer periods of time, self-monitor their work, and better regulate their emotions.

The units conclude with a wrap-up lesson, where students review SMARTS strategies and create a Strategies for Success sheet they can use moving forward. (These unit descriptions represent only a brief overview of areas covered; find a more detailed description at www.­smarts-ef.org.)

Each SMARTS Elementary lesson is divided into four twenty-minute modules: ●● an activity designed to directly engage students in the lesson and increase their interest (referred to as a “metacognitive activator”) ●● guided instruction, where teachers model the strategy and guide students through its successful implementation ●● independent practice, where students practice the strategy in class on their own ●● reflection, where students spend time reflecting upon how the strategy worked (referred to as a “metacognitive wrap-up”).

All SMARTS lessons provide teachers with specific learning objectives, methods of instruction (such as discussion, direct PowerPoint instruction, guided and independent practice), necessary materials for implementing the lesson, and specific teacher preparation instructions. Lessons are also well scripted and easy to follow, with each flexibly tailored so that it can be integrated into academic lessons throughout the school day.

“When teachers create a classroom culture that promotes metacognitive awareness and self-understanding, they can maximize the effectiveness of teaching execu-

tive function strategies in the context of the curriculum,” says Meltzer. She observes that when classroom instruction promotes metacognitive awareness so that students understand their profiles of strengths and weaknesses, they are more likely to generalize their strategy use across content areas.

SMARTS Elementary also provides ongoing updates for parents on executive function strategies their children are learning at school, so that strategies can be practiced and reinforced at home as well.

School study teams will find that SMARTS Elementary lessons can be easily incorporated into 504 Plans and IEPs. The curriculum includes a series of measures that can help school study teams, parents, and students assess progress toward any or all of the five executive function processes described earlier.

The curriculum is also compatible with Response to Intervention (RtI). All students can benefit from executive function strategies—strong students with no learning issues, as well as students just starting to exhibit attentional, executive function and/or other learning-related challenges, and students whose challenges in these areas have already grown more serious.

Creating a culture of executive function strategy users Meltzer and her team are well aware of the role that executive function strategies will play in the children’s lives down the road.

That’s why their curriculum is designed to create a culture of executive function users. In a SMARTS classroom, teachers and students celebrate their use. Students, in fact, will actually earn credit for using them.

Meltzer reminds us, however, that simply teaching executive function strategies alone is not the answer. Students have to link their use of executive function strategies to specific academic tasks (reading, math and writing), and practice using them throughout the school day so that they come to see the benefits.

Meltzer also reminds us that new pathways to greater success at school and in life begin when we become metacognitively aware, a necessary first step in empowering all children to tackle difficult problems and achieve personal goals.

A clinical and consulting psychologist, Mark Katz, PhD, is the director of Learning Development Services, an educational, psychological, and neuropsychological center in San Diego, California. As a contributing editor to Attention magazine, he writes the Promising Practices column and serves on the editorial advisory board. He is also a former member of CHADD’s professional advisory board and a recipient of the CHADD Hall of Fame Award.

FOR MORE INFO Meltzer and members of her team will present a workshop for parents, teachers, and others interested in executive function strategies and the SMARTS Elementary curriculum—as well as the original curriculum for older students—at the Annual International Conference on ADHD in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania this November.

Learn more about the Annual International Conference on ADHD at www.chadd.org.

Learn more about SMARTS Elementary at www.smarts-ef.org.

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