November 2014

This month we are going to focus on Executive Function Skills.  With Quarter 1 complete, some students may still be struggling with organization, time management, planning, homework completion, and new schedules.  Please take a moment to review the website w have listed below as well as the definition of Executive Function Skills.  There are many helpful tips and resources available on this website.  

As defined by www.cognitiveconnectionstherapy.com:

Executive function skills are the core set of cognitive skills required for planning, completing and evaluating the completion of tasks, as well as overseeing our communication exchanges.  These cognitive skills are typically divided into lower level and higher-level skills.  The lower level cognitive skills refer to functions that control behavior, such as attention, motivation and emotion regulation.  The higher-level cognitive skills refer to metacognitive functions that guide behavior, such as planning, organizing, monitoring, reasoning, problem solving and flexibility.  There are episodic memories of our experiences that we form into schemas and routines.  We retrieve and flexibly apply these schemas for new communication and learning situations while we also monitor our goals, time and use of strategies.  We gradually develop these cognitive skill sets from young childhood through young adulthood.  

Here is an article we found that provides strategies to help students who may be struggling with executive function skills. Executive Functioning Strategies

Some Helpful Information:

• Remember to check Aspen regularly for grades, any missing assignments, and other important information provided by the teachers
• Acord Food Pantry Turkey Drive: November 5th to 17th - students will hear announcements about this program in their Homeroom classes.

Calendar of Upcoming Events:

• Tuesday, November 4th: No School for Students (Teacher Workshop Day)
• Friday, November 7th: Quarter 1 report cards sent home with students
• Tuesday, November 11th: No School (Veteran’s Day)
• Wednesday, November 26th: Early Release Day at 12:05
• Thursday, November 27th: Happy Thanksgiving!
• Friday, November 28th: No School (Thanksgiving Break)