With 55% new material, the significantly revised second edition of this influential resource presents a refined coaching model and an expanded set of tools for helping K-12 students live up to their potential in school and beyond. The book describes how to provide evidence-based, individualized instruction and support for kids and teens with executive skills challenges. Guidelines are provided for partnering with students and improving their performance in such areas as time and task management, planning, organization, and impulse control. Adaptations for coaching students with disabilities are discussed. In a convenient large-size format, the book features over two dozen reproducible forms and handouts; coaches can download and print additional copies as needed.
New to This Edition
*Two new chapters on coaching 5- to 8-year-olds (K-3), and more material on younger students throughout.
*Shows how to enhance coaching by incorporating motivational interviewing and cognitive rehearsal strategies.
*Chapter of case examples, plus chapters on self-assessment for coaches and the building blocks of executive skills coaching.
*Expanded content on goal setting, action planning, and progress monitoring.
*Updated research and revised reproducible tools.
This book is in The Guilford Practical Intervention in the Schools Series, edited by Sandra M. Chafouleas.
See also the authors' Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition, designed for middle and high school students to use in conjunction with coaching, and the authoritative Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition. Plus, for parents: Smart but Scattered, Second Edition (with a focus on 4- to 12-year-olds), and Smart but Scattered Teens.
Rezensionen / Stimmen
"Professionals will find a diverse toolbox of strategies designed to promote self-regulated learning. As readers try out these strategies, Dawson and Guare also provide tools to measure progress and tailor approaches to the unique needs and contexts of younger and older students. Critical updates in the second edition include an increased emphasis on collaboration and shared decision making, as well as current information on applications of digital technology."--Margaret H. Sibley, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine
"The second edition is comprehensive and pragmatic. It provides detailed insights on everything from identifying good candidates for coaching to conducting sessions and monitoring progress. The discussions of school-based and peer coaching programs are instrumental, as they broaden the scope of intervention to the institutional level. As a clinical psychologist working in a school setting for over 20 years, I can attest that executive skills coaching can be life changing for many students."--Isabel de Puigdorfila, PsyD, school psychologist, Baldwin School of Puerto Rico
"Dawson and Guare have done it again with the second edition of this masterpiece, providing an excellent framework for coaching students of all ages to manage their executive skills challenges. It's not hyperbole to say that the appendices alone provide more pragmatic support than most books on the topic do in their entirety. Whether discussing the language that builds agency in clients or the use of specific tools, the book is both comprehensive and clear. I highly recommend this guide for anyone who wishes to make a difference with K-12 students."--Michael Delman, MEd, Founder and CEO, Beyond BookSmart
"This book should be on the shelf of every professional working with neurodivergent young people. It is a practical, easy-to-follow guide that equips professionals with all the tools they need to get started doing executive skills coaching with children and teens. The new chapter on foundational strategies, as well as other updates in the second edition, are very welcome."--Victoria A. Bagnall, MA, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Connections in Mind
"As director of a company that assists many individuals with learning difficulties and disabilities, I have found this book a 'must have.' It guides educators in a step-by-step coaching process using evidence-based strategies. This a very practical, informative resource for anyone who works with students with executive skills challenges."--Natalie Williamson, Director, LAB Learning Clinic, Australia-This manual is a current, valuable guide to skill development in executive thinking....This manual stands out, as it stresses voluntary participation and provides best practices with evidence-based tools and progress monitoring that enable paraprofessionals, peers, or laypeople to be coaches.--Doody's Review Service, 9/29/2023 "Professionals will find a diverse toolbox of strategies designed to promote self-regulated learning. As readers try out these strategies, Dawson and Guare also provide tools to measure progress and tailor approaches to the unique needs and contexts of younger and older students. Critical updates in the second edition include an increased emphasis on collaboration and shared decision making, as well as current information on applications of digital technology."--Margaret H. Sibley, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine
"The second edition is comprehensive and pragmatic. It provides detailed insights on everything from identifying good candidates for coaching to conducting sessions and monitoring progress. The discussions of school-based and peer coaching programs are instrumental, as they broaden the scope of intervention to the institutional level. As a clinical psychologist working in a school setting for over 20 years, I can attest that executive skills coaching can be life changing for many students."--Isabel de Puigdorfila, PsyD, school psychologist, Baldwin School of Puerto Rico
"Dawson and Guare have done it again with the second edition of this masterpiece, providing an excellent framework for coaching students of all ages to manage their executive skills challenges. It's not hyperbole to say that the appendices alone provide more pragmatic support than most books on the topic do in their entirety. Whether discussing the language that builds agency in clients or the use of specific tools, the book is both comprehensive and clear. I highly recommend this guide for anyone who wishes to make a difference with K-12 students."--Michael Delman, MEd, Founder and CEO, Beyond BookSmart
"This book should be on the shelf of every professional working with neurodivergent young people. It is a practical, easy-to-follow guide that equips professionals with all the tools they need to get started doing executive skills coaching with children and teens. The new chapter on foundational strategies, as well as other updates in the second edition, are very welcome."--Victoria A. Bagnall, MA, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Connections in Mind
"As director of a company that assists many individuals with learning difficulties and disabilities, I have found this book a 'must have.' It guides educators in a step-by-step coaching process using evidence-based strategies. This a very practical, informative resource for anyone who works with students with executive skills challenges."--Natalie Williamson, Director, LAB Learning Clinic, Australia-This manual is a current, valuable guide to skill development in executive thinkingaEUR|.This manual stands out, as it stresses voluntary participation and provides best practices with evidence-based tools and progress monitoring that enable paraprofessionals, peers, or laypeople to be coaches.--Doody's Review Service, 9/29/2023AE'AE'This book will be helpful for school psychologists serving any grade level, as it provides resources, templates, and language for all students. [It] is a truly practical resourceaEUR|.These authors give readers all the information necessary to start coaching to address students' executive functioning challenges, including ways to assess their practices to determine areas for improvement.--NASP CommuniquA (c), 9/1/2025
Peg Dawson, EdD, is a psychologist who provides professional development training on executive skills for schools and organizations nationally and internationally. She was previously on the staff of the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Dr. Dawson is a past president of the New Hampshire Association of School Psychologists, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and the International School Psychology Association, and a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from NASP. She is coauthor of bestselling books for general readers, including Smart but Scattered, Smart but Scattered Teens, Smart but Scattered--and Stalled (with a focus on emerging adults), and The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success (with a focus on adults). Dr. Dawson is also coauthor of The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition, and books for professionals including Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition.
Richard Guare, PhD, BCBA-D, is a neuropsychologist and board-certified behavior analyst who frequently consults to schools and agencies on attention and executive skills difficulties. He is former Director of the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Dr. Guare is coauthor of bestselling books for general readers, including Smart but Scattered, Smart but Scattered Teens, Smart but Scattered--and Stalled (with a focus on emerging adults), and The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success (with a focus on adults). He is also coauthor of The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition, and books for professionals including Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition.
Autor*in
Center for Learning and Attention Disorders, United States
I. Theoretical and Research Background
1. The Development of Executive Skills in the Brain: Biology and Experience
2. Theoretical Underpinnings for Coaching
II. Our Coaching Model
3. Introduction
4. Coaching Secondary Students
5. Coaching Elementary Students
6. Case Examples
III. Coaching Techniques
7. Motivational Interviewing
8. Communication Techniques for Elementary Coaches
9. Self-Assessment as a Tool for Honing Coaching Skills
10. Goal Setting and Action Planning
11. Progress Monitoring
IV. Strategies and Special Applications
12. Strategies to Support Executive Skills Coaching
13. Adaptations for Coaching Students with Disabilities
14. Other Forms of Coaching
15. Parting Thoughts
Appendix 1. Getting to Know You Survey
Appendix 2. Executive Skills Questionnaire
Appendix 3. Executive Skills Questionnaire--Adult Version
Appendix 4. Executive Skills Problem Checklist
Appendix 5. Executive Skills Semistructured Interview--Student Version
Appendix 6. Parent Handout
Appendix 7. Consent for Services: Executive Functioning Coaching
Appendix 8. Model of an Independent Coaching Contract
Appendix 9. Goal-Planning Template
Appendix 10. Daily Coaching Form
Appendix 11. Coach Feedback Form--Student Version
Appendix 12. Coach Feedback Form--Coach Version
Appendix 13. Executive Skills Questionnaire for Children--Preschool/Kindergarten Version
Appendix 14. Executive Skills Questionnaire for Children--Lower Elementary Version
Appendix 15. Executive Skills Questionnaire for Children/Adolescents
Appendix 16. Executive Skills Problem Checklist--Elementary Version for Teachers
Appendix 17. Executive Skills Problem Checklist--Elementary Version for Parents
Appendix 18. Basic Self-Assessment
Appendix 19. Advanced Self-Assessment Score Sheet
Appendix 20. Motivational Interviewing Resources
Appendix 21. Environmental Modifications Menu
Appendix 22. Example of Elaborate Incentive System
Appendix 23. Strategies for Specific Executive Skills
Appendix 24. How to Write an Essay
Appendix 25. How to Plan and Complete Long-Term Projects
Appendix 26. Studying for Tests
Appendix 27. How to Organize Notebooks/Homework
Appendix 28. How to Take Notes
Appendix 29. Learning to Solve Problems
References
Index
