Bush School Parent University: Executive Skills

Executive skills are critical to the acquisition of academic skills, but, more importantly, they are the skills students need to get things done. They are brain-based skills such as task initiation, sustained attention, working memory, planning, organization, and goal-directed persistence that are absolutely critical to school success. Some students seem to acquire them naturally, but many students struggle with them—and for these kids, schooling without the structure of the classroom to support them may be particularly challenging. At Parent University on Wednesday, March 17, Dr. Peg Dawson, co-author of the books Smart but Scattered and Smart but Scattered Teens, will describe how these skills develop throughout childhood and suggest strategies parents can use to help children acquire the critical skills they need to be successful students. Smart But Scattered is Parent U’s first collaboration with Bush’s Learning Differences Support Group. A special thank you to all of the parents/guardians in the Learning Differences Support Group who helped plan this event! Due to online platform capacity, advance registration is required, but there is no cost associated with your ticket. Click here to learn more about Parent University or contact Events and Community Engagement Manager Amelia Kramer for further questions.

Peg Dawson, Ed.D., NCSP, received her doctorate in school/child clinical psychology from the University of Virginia. She worked as a school psychologist for 16 years in Maine and New Hampshire, and since 1992 has worked at the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, where she specializes in the assessment of children and adults with learning and attention disorders.