Course | Executive Functions Coaching & Study Strategies Certification Course

Prices

The price listed reflects the Lifetime Professional Access. An additional pricing option is available for this course at $997 for the first payment, then it's $157 per year onwards.

This course assesses an annual fee. You can cancel anytime and still access the content for the year you purchased.

Please note that each purchase for this executive functioning coaching course is for a single practitioner, teacher, or family. Group or institutional discounts are available by contacting Dr. Warren:

A free gift with this course.
When you purchase this course you will receive a coupon code for 50% off Dr. Warren's Executive Functioning Activities Library!

For further information, please visit Learning Specialist Courses website.

Instructor

Dr. Erica Warren
Executive Functioning Coach, Educational Therapist, Author of Educational Materials and Course Creator

For the past 25 yeaars, Dr. Erica Warren has been at the forefront of educational transformation, blending her expertise as an esteemed educational consultant, therapist, executive functioning coach, and prolific author. Her academic journey, culminating in advanced degrees that united educational psychology, school pyschology, special education, and coaching, set the stage for her pioneering contributions to the field. At the heart of Dr. Warren's mission is her commitment to fostering inclusive learning environments that celebrate and accommodate neurodiversity. Her direct involvement in school consultations and personalized remedial work with students has been pivotal in creating and authoring multisensory lessons, innovative cognitive remediation tools, and comprehensive assessments designed to meet the varied needs of learners. What truly sets Dr. Warren apart is her unwavering dedication to evidence-based practices. She invests considerable effort into researching each of her offerings, ensuring they are not only grounded in the latest educational theories but also proven to be effective through practical application. This meticulous approach has significantly enhanced the efficacy and impact of her products and resources. Dr Warren's visionary work continues to empower an ever-expanding community of learners and educators, bridging gaps and fostering an environment where education is not just a process, but a transformative journey.

Overview

This executive functioning coaching certification course offers the training tools to assist students in developing outstanding EF Skills and study habits. Videos, presentations, activities, and handouts, can be used directly with students.

Dr. Warren's method for teaching executive functions is a well-structured, concrete approach that simplifies cognitive processes into manageable skill sets. Through explicit, direct, systematic, and multisensory instruction, individuals are guided to:

1. Develop self-awareness and regulate emotions:
• Cultivate mindfulness and emotional intelligence to better understand and manage one’s emotional responses, promoting resilience and adaptability in both academic and personal challenges.

2. Encode and retrieve information into and out of long-term memory:
• Strengthen working memory through techniques like chunking, visualization, and mnemonic devices to enhance the encoding, retention, and retrieval of information.
• Employ study strategies such as spaced repetition and active recall to reinforce learning and improve long-term memory retention, making study sessions more effective.

3. Inhibit distractions and focus attention:
• Develop inhibitory control by practicing techniques that minimize internal and external distractions, enhancing sustained attention and concentration during study sessions.
• Learn to create optimal study environments and implement focus strategies, such as the Pomodoro Technique, to maintain concentration and productivity.

4. Shift tasks and perspectives:
• Build cognitive flexibility by engaging in activities that require adaptable thinking, allowing for smooth transitions between different study topics and the ability to view problems from multiple perspectives.
• Learn to approach study material with an open mind, applying different study methods and problem-solving techniques to accommodate various types of learning content.

5. Apply active listening skills:
• Enhance listening skills through exercises that promote deep listening, understanding, and retention of spoken information in lectures and discussions.
• Integrate active listening with effective note-taking strategies, such as the Cornell Method, to improve comprehension, retention, and the ability to review study material.

6. Plan, manage time, and organize tasks efficiently:
• Master time management by learning to break down complex academic tasks into manageable steps, setting realistic study goals, and establishing effective study schedules.
• Develop organizational skills by creating systems for managing study materials, notes, and assignments, reducing stress and increasing academic productivity.
• Practice strategic planning for exams and assignments by setting up study plans that include reviewing material over time, practicing past papers, and using study aids like flashcards and mind maps.

7. Apply effective study strategies:
• Implement spaced repetition techniques to ensure information is reviewed at optimal intervals, enhancing long-term retention.
• Use time chunking methods, such as the Pomodoro Technique, to break study sessions into focused intervals, maximizing productivity and preventing burnout.
• Create an ideal study environment by minimizing distractions, organizing materials, and setting up a space that is conducive to learning.
• Apply advanced note-taking strategies, such as the Cornell Method or mind mapping, to organize information effectively and facilitate easy review.

About Executive Functions
Executive functioning (EF) has become an increasingly important topic in education, as more students are identified with EF challenges or deficits. This recognition has left many schools and teachers scrambling to address the needs of this growing population of learners. Consequently, a new question is emerging in the field of education: Should teachers explicitly instruct executive functioning skills and provide students with the tools to manage and control their minds and emotions?

Research indicates that executive functioning skills are essential building blocks for the development of both cognitive and social capacities. These skills are particularly crucial for early math and literacy development (Early Experiences Shape Executive Function, n.d.-a, p. 3; Foundations of Mathematics and Literacy: The Role of Executive Functioning Components). What’s needed now are academic resources that help teachers cultivate these vital skills in their students. Additionally, many teachers require support, training, and materials to effectively manage classrooms where students exhibit weak EF skills. When these skills are lacking, instructional time is often disrupted, leading to a cascade of challenges that contribute to teacher anxiety, discouragement, and burnout (Brouwers & Tomic, 2000).

It’s clear that many children, adolescents, and even adults need direct instruction in EF skills to enhance cognitive functioning, behavior, focus, emotional control, and social interaction.

Defining Executive Functioning?

A simple way to grasp the concept of executive functioning is by reversing the words to think of it as a "functioning executive." This part of the brain serves as the administrative or managerial control center, consciously overseeing cognitive processes. Executive Functioning (EF) is the brain's control hub, located in the frontal lobes just behind the forehead. Its primary role is to communicate with and coordinate goal-directed activities across different brain regions.

What Metaphor Best Describes EF?

While some prefer to use the metaphor of an air traffic controller to describe the duties of executive function (InBrief: Executive Function, 2021; Early Experiences Shape Executive Function, 2021; Hodgkinson & Parks, 2016), I find it more fitting to compare executive function to a conscious conductor leading a multisensory orchestra of cognitive processes. Like a skilled maestro or respected music director, executive function unifies the brain's various instruments, sets the tempo, executes plans, listens critically, shapes the composition, interprets sensory input, and controls the pacing of thoughts. When executive function is well-conducted, it produces a harmonious symphony of consciousness.

Why This Course?

This course provides teachers, practitioners, and parents with the essential tools and training to deliver step-by-step executive functioning coaching and study skills instruction. Dr. Warren also offers free monthly Zoom sessions to build community, answer questions, and review challenging cases. These resources are versatile, suitable for both one-on-one sessions and classroom settings. Upon passing a written and oral exam, participants can earn an executive functioning certificate and be listed on a free referral directory, provided they maintain an active course membership. As the course continues to evolve, participant feedback, ideas, and suggestions are welcomed to shape its future.

Cartoon-Like Images and Videos Make Lessons Fun and Memorable

The images below showcase the range of age-appropriate materials designed for students from elementary school through college and beyond. Students receive black-and-white versions of these illustrations, which they can color and annotate while listening to lessons. It's crucial to understand the skills we aim to develop, so a key component of this program is teaching students about executive functions, empowering them to take control and strengthen these essential abilities.

References are available in the course.

Course Curriculum

- This course assesses an annual fee
Learn more: Course billing and subscriptions

1. Special gift
Special gifts

2. Developing executive functions and study strategies introduction for teachers and parents
• Why executive functioning? Start here
• Why executive functioning coaching and not teaching? (for teachers, professionals, and parents)
• Executive functioning: Sample coaching questions
• Thoughts on executive functioning (for teachers, professionals, and parents)
• Executive functioning: The internal and external impact (for teachers, professionals, and parents)
• Inbrief: Executive function skills for life and learning by the Center of the Developing Child, Harvard University (for teachers, professionals, and parents)
• Practitioner executive functioning and study skills curriculum course curriculum and checklist (for teachers, professionals, and parents)
• Student executive functioning and study skills curriculum course curriculum and checklist (keep track of students’ progress through the resources)

3. Executive functions: What is that?
• An introduction to executive functioning (for teachers, professionals, parents, and older students)
• Executive functions: What is that? (for all students)
• The symptoms and myths of executive functioning challenges (for teachers, professionals, parents, and all students)
• More about working memory: A deeper dive (for all students)
• New: Inner voice assessment
• New: Visualization assessment
• More about inhibitory control: A deeper dive (for teachers, professionals, parents, and all students)
• New: Metacognition assessment
• More about cognitive flexibility: A deeper dive (for teachers, professionals, parents, and all students)
• Higher level executive functions: What is that? (for all students)
• Executive functions: What is that elementary comics and scripts lesson
• Executive functions: What is that secondary comics and scripts lesson
• Executive functions color activity (elementary)
• Executive functions coloring activity (middle school+)
• Executive functioning: What is that elementary student assessment
• Executive functioning: What is that secondary student assessment
• Executive functioning tools for the classroom (for all students)
• Executive functioning in the classroom discovery questions (for all students)

4. Moving from inactive/passive learning to active learning
• Assessing my study habits: Inactive, passive, or active (for all students)
• What do active learners look like? (for all students)
• New: Neurodiverse teaching and the student processing inventory
• New: Lessons and assignments that honor the 12 ways of processing

5. Comprehensive digital-based assessments (great for initial consultations)
• Executive functioning assessments
• Executive functioning coaching assessment promo video
• Executive functioning remedial assessment
• New: The student processing inventory SPI promo video
• New: Executive functioning self-assessment and goal tracker
• New: Complete menu of Dr. Erica Warren assessments

Checklist

- Include a list of items to support the central theme of your page. Bulleted lists are a great way to parse information into digestible pieces.
- Many videos, assessments, presentations, pdf handouts, and other resources for your coachees or students.
- All participants that earn an "executive functioning coach" course completion certificate will be placed on a free, referral list as long as they maintain an active yearly membership.
- Trainer videos as well as lesson videos can be shared with students.
- Support & guidance – Ask Dr. Warren anything in her free monthly Zoom calls..
- Recommended resources.
- Community Facebook page and access to interact with fellow practitioners.
- Evergreen site with new updates and resources.
- Upon completion of the course and passing a written and oral exam, you will receive an "executive functioning coach" course completion certificate. In addition, you can be listed on Dr. Warren's referral list.

Certificate of Completion

If you would like to earn an executive functioning coach certificate, you can submit an assignment/evaluation to Dr. Warren after you have completed the course and used the content with at least 3 students.

How Much Content is Offered?

• 42+ videos totaling 8+ hours (new videos are added periodically)
• 70+ podcasts averaging about 50 minutes each (two new podcasts added per month)
• 22+ downloadable handouts (additional handouts are added periodically)
• 8 usable PowerPoints
• 6 Downloadable and printable assessments
• 12 Documents with information, links and references (additional information is added periodically)
• Monthly, free monthly Zoom meetings for active participants