Executive function
support that
fits the student
Individualised support for students who want to become more organised, confident and independent in managing learning and everyday academic demands.
For students transitioning to secondary school, secondary students and university students.
ADHD & Executive Function Coaching | Melbourne CBD, Northcote & Online
When knowing what to do isn’t enough
What can look like procrastination, disorganisation or a lack of motivation may sometimes reflect an executive skill that is not yet strong enough for the demands being placed on the student.
Planning ahead
Getting started
Keeping track of deadlines
Managing time
Breaking down assignments
Studying effectively
Juggling competing priorities
These are skills that can be understood, supported and strengthened.
Who I support
Transitioning to secondary school
Building the organisation, planning and independence needed to manage multiple subjects, teachers, timetables and expectations.
Secondary students
Developing practical strategies for managing schoolwork, assessments, study, time and competing demands with increasing independence.
University students
Creating effective systems for navigating self-directed learning, longer-term deadlines, competing priorities and the increased independence of university study.
Support is tailored to the individual student, their current demands and the level of independence they are working towards.
Support built around the individual student
There is no one-size-fits-all program.
I work with each student to understand their strengths, challenges, goals and current demands, then develop practical strategies that make sense for them.
Support can take different forms
Adjust the environment or system
Change the system, routine or surroundings to make success easier.
Develop the skill
Explicitly build and practise the executive skill that is getting in the way.
Support motivation & practise
Help the student find meaningful reasons to use the strategy and practise it consistently.
Often it is a combination of all three.
The focus will depend on the student and the executive skills getting in the way.
Getting started & sticking with it
Task initiation · Sustained attention · Goal-directed persistence
Starting in a timely way, staying with tasks despite boredom or distraction, and following through.
Planning & organising
Planning/prioritising · Organisation · Time management
Working out what needs to happen, what matters most, how long things may take, and creating systems that can be maintained.
Holding information in mind
Working memory
Keeping track of information while working, remembering what comes next and drawing on previous experience.
Managing responses & emotions
Response inhibition · Emotional control
Creating space to think before acting and managing emotions when frustration, anxiety or overwhelm interfere with getting things done.
Adapting when things changes
Flexibility
Adjusting plans, responding to setbacks and trying another approach when the first one does not work.
Stepping back & reflecting
Metacognition
Taking a bird’s-eye view, noticing what is and isn’t working, anticipating obstacles and learning to adjust your own approach.
The aim is not to fit students into a program, but to find strategies that work for the student in front of me.
My work is
informed by:
Executive skills
frameworks
by Dr Peg Dawson &
Dr Richard Guare
ADHD research
& intervention
by Dr Russell Barkley & Dr Margaret Sibley
Time-awareness
strategies
from Marydee Sklar’s
Seeing My Time
Motivational
Interviewing
developed by
Miller & Rollnick
Learning science
drawing on cognitive load theory and Principles of Instruction
Practical strategies.
Greater independence.
The goal is for students to better understand how they work, develop strategies they
can actually use and become increasingly confident in managing their own learning.