Presented by: Sarah Ward, M.S., CCC-SLP

Hosted by: UM-NSU CARD

About the Presenter

Sarah Ward, M.S., CCC/SLP has over 25 years of experience in diagnostic evaluations and treatment of executive dysfunction. Ms. Ward holds a faculty appointment at the Massachusetts General Hospital Institute of Health Professions. Sarah is an internationally recognized expert on executive function and presents seminars and workshops on the programs and strategies she has developed with her Co-Director Kristen Jacobsen. Their 360 Thinking Executive Function Program received the Innovative Promising Practices Award from the National Organization CHADD. She has presented to and consulted with over 1600 public and private schools in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia.

Training Format

This workshop consists of 4 sessions of approximately 2.5 hours each which can be accessed through an online learning management system. Participants will receive a separate email with a link to the learning platform.

Training Titles:

Part 1 (Sessions 1 and 2): Learn it Today, Use it Tomorrow! Practical, Cutting Edge Interventions for Improving Executive Function and Self-Regulation Skills in Students

Part 2 (Sessions 3 and 4): Practical Strategies to Develop Strong Executive Function Skills for Academics

Training Description

This is a practical strategies seminar -10% theory and 90% tools! Participants will learn how to clearly define what the executive function skills are, how they develop, and what is meant by the term “executive dysfunction”. Through this workshop, participants will learn how to create effective interventions for executive functioning by incorporating dozens of functional, ready-to-use strategies. These strategies are aimed at teaching students to devise plans to achieve their goal, to use self talk, to self-initiate, to transition to the next task of higher priority, to control their impulses and emotions, and to successfully self regulate to complete a task. Finally, participants will learn how to use the Get Ready * Do* Done Model to turn the core curriculum and lesson/treatment plans into powerful tools to teach students executive control skills.

Learning Objectives

1. State the functional working definition of “executive function skills” and identify its typical developmental course

2. Describe how situational awareness, self talk, forethought , gesture/movement and episodic memory are the foundational skills for successful task execution

3. Describe 4 methods for teaching a student how to visualize and plan and prioritize tasks across multiple hours/day

4. List 3 interventions to teach a student how to visualize complex tasks and long term projects and then sequence and plan the requisite steps to complete assigned work

5. Develop an intervention program to foster a student’s independent executive function skills by describing therapeutic activities to improve situational awareness, self-talk and forethought, self-regulation and following routines, task planning, task initiation and transition within and between tasks, active self-management of the factors related to the passage of time, and student management of materials.