When we support our children with math, we tend to focus on helping them with specific content areas - for example knowing their facts, measuring distances, how to calculate volume - but did you know that there are other ways we can support them in math? Recent research suggests that executive function skills play a critical role in the development of mathematical proficiency and by helping our children develop these skills, we will help them improve their math.
Executive function skills are a set of cognitive skills that help us manage behaviour, pay attention, remember and follow instructions and think flexibly. They include:
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Planning
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Organizing
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Task initiation
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Self-monitoring
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Emotional control
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Impulse control
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Sustained attention
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Working memory
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Cognitive flexibility (ability to shift flexibly from one situation or activity or aspect of a problem to another)
Here are some ideas about how to support the development of these executive function skills at home:
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When building with blocks or Lego - before building, have your child plan what pieces they are going to use, have them sort pieces based on different attributes
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When starting a puzzle - ask how they plan to organize the pieces to help finish the puzzle (e.g., organize the pieces by colour, separate the border pieces from the inside pieces)
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When playing, encourage your child to make comparisons, look at things from a different perspective or approach the activity in different ways
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When reading a book, ask questions that will encourage your child to see things from different characters’ points of view
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Practice taking turns when playing
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Play games like Simon Says
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Ask questions that will require your child to hold multiple pieces of information in their mind in order to get the answer
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Play concentration card games
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Help your child get started on tasks by asking questions
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Support your child to come up with a plan on how to achieve a goal and break it down into smaller pieces
For more information about the cognitive processing areas, how they affect math learning and ways to support them, please check out the Math Learning Disabilities waterfall resource.
Check out the Monthly Math Problem!