We all experience diverse emotions daily. Often, we have been disappointed, reacted to issues
and or circumstances through some form of anger, and even low self-esteem. I would like to
present to you the subject matter of “Executive Functioning.”
Executive Functioning is a term used in general to describe a person’s ability to effectively
manage and respond to an emotional experience. This can make everyday tasks difficult for our
early learners. Emotional experience involves the ability to restrain or stop certain emotions such
as trauma, joy, sorrow, fear, hate, what one may like or love. These emotions are regulated and
controlled by the prefrontal cortex and frontal lobe (impulse control, judgment, decision making,
time management, personality, task initiation, persistence) and the limbic system (regulation of
emotions).
Processing of Information
Working memory governs our ability to retain and manipulate distinct pieces of information over
short periods of time.
Mental flexibility helps us to sustain or shift attention in response to different demands or
to apply different rules in different settings.
Self-control enables us to set priorities and resist impulsive actions or responses.
Executive functioning development in childhood studies have shown different contexts
for different age ranges and in a wide-spread series of actions or steps taken to achieve a
particular end process.
Executive functioning skills are a set of abilities that are essential for thinking through
and completing tasks. They are the skills that allow us to problem solve, initiate and
complete tasks, and sustain attention through the completion of a task, they are needed
for every multi-step activity we do.
According to Dr. Matthew Rouse (2024), self-regulation is the ability to manage emotions and
behavior in accordance with situational demands. It involves resisting highly emotional reactions
to upsetting stimuli, calming oneself when upset, adjusting to changes in expectations, and
handling frustration without an outburst. These skills enable children to direct their behavior
towards a goal as they mature, despite external unpredictability and internal feelings. Executive
function encompasses several skills, such as paying attention, organizing, planning and
prioritizing, starting tasks and staying focused until completion, understanding different
perspectives, regulating emotions, and self-monitoring.
As an educator for more than 10 years, wonderful opportunities have flourished within
providing diverse positions within my early childhood education career. Throughout my teaching
experience I have discovered that when children are part of an environment that is reflective, the
individual learner can learn to make better choices when they are more thoughtful, reflective and
self-aware.
As educators learn to slow down and model self-reflection and self-awareness and self-
regulation for our early learners. Our early learners learn much more by imitation than they do
by instruction, for example, if a child sees or hears a lot of yelling from an adult and sees or
hears the adult in a frustrated issue and or concern when he or she is not able to get their way, it’s
no surprise if the child reacts in the same way.
In short, children often imitate what they see and hear, all the early learner knows is what they
know. If someone gets anxious when their child is frustrated or disappointed, the child will get
anxious as well. Early learners who are dealing with anxiety can often be mistaken for behavior problems or learning disabilities. Therefore, providing the support and resources that our early and parents require concerning executive functioning skill development are indeed an essential necessity for home and the school environment. I encourage parents and or guardians and people in general to learn all they can about executive functioning and how it shows up in various disorders.
About Kimberly Porter, M.Ed: She is an educator, national writer and author of Spiritual Guidance Through Alzheimer’s Dis-Ease