Executive functioning skills are the “command and control” processes in our brain. For middle school students, honing these skills is crucial for academic success. As special educators, we have the responsibility to teach and foster these abilities in our students, including their ability to stay organized at school. In this blog post, we’ve included a sample middle school staying organized video lesson and free accompanying lesson plan. Scroll to the end of this post to check out the free Staying Organized Video Sample!
Understanding Executive Functioning Skills
Executive functioning skills encompass three primary areas:
- Working Memory – Holding information for the purpose of completing a task.
- Cognitive Flexibility – Adapting to new information or demands.
- Inhibitory Control – Resisting impulses and focusing on a task.
By targeting these areas, we can help our students develop better organizational habits, improved focus, and increased resilience.
Staying Organized Video Lesson Plan
Objective:
Equip students with strategies to harness their executive functioning skills for improved organization.
Materials:
- Whiteboard & markers
- Notebooks for each student
- Everyday Speech video lesson
Introduction (5 minutes)
- Discuss the importance of staying organized.
- Introduce the three primary areas of executive functioning.
Interactive Discussion (10 minutes)
- Ask students to share instances when they felt disorganized and its consequences.
- Highlight the benefits of staying organized: less stress, better grades, more free time, etc.
Everyday Speech Video Lesson (10 minutes)
- Play the sample video lesson from Everyday Speech that provides real-life scenarios and demonstrates the use of executive functioning skills in day-to-day situations.
- Post-video, facilitate a Q&A session to gauge understanding.
Students learn best from watching real students their own age model skills. Try out our entire Social-Emotional Learning platform free for 30 days here!
Related Blog Posts:
Free Interactive Activity for the First Day of Middle School
Empathy: A Key Skill for Building Strong Friendships in Middle School
Enhancing Focus and Self-Regulation with the Five Finger Breathing Exercise
