Executive-Function Skills: Important Skills for Childhood Development

We’re not born with the executive-function skills we need to get things done, but the good news is these skills can be taught and supported. 

Executive-function skills help us stay on task, make plans, set goals, and carry them out successfully—even when complex things are happening around us.

This short video (2 minutes) describes three cognitive skills that make up Executive Functioning:

• Flexible Attention
• Working Memory
• Inhibitory Control

In this video, Stephanie Carlson, PhD, Director of Research, Institute of Child Development University of Minnesota, explains how executive functioning skills develop in kids. 

Watch as Dr. Carlson shares advice on ways to improve executive function in kids. Keep in mind, executive function has nothing to do with intelligence. (3 mins)