The Executive Function Playbook

A practical and contemporary toolkit based on the latest reliable evidence for the parents and professionals helping youth with ADHD navigate the challenges it presents In The Executive Function Playbook, ADHD and Executive Function Specialist Mike McLeod, delivers an evidence-based, effective toolkit for parents, teachers, therapists, counselors, principals, directors, and superintendents who work with and care for youth with ADHD. It's a playbook for success that equips you with the knowledge, acceptance, understanding, and info you need to dramatically improve the lives of young people who work every day to manage the challenges and struggles associated with ADHD. The book is filled with real, practical strategies that work in the classroom, at home, in workplaces, and online. It demolishes the myths and pseudoscience served up by social media algorithms and draws on the author's extensive experience living with ADHD and treating youth with this diagnosis, as well as the latest research conducted by reputable academics and practitioners. Inside the book: Candid, accurate discussions about the realities of living with ADHD and how to assist young people with the disorder to capitalize on their strengths and mitigate their weakness Specific, actionable strategies to deal with the most disruptive symptoms of ADHD, including impulsivity, inattention, time management deficits, and more A comprehensive exploration of the root causes of the executive function deficits caused by ADHD and the techniques you can use to help address them ADHD is a complex and poorly understood disorder that is difficult to treat effectively. This does not mean that the parents and professionals who are responsible for youth with ADHD are doomed to a lifetime of frustration and futility. The Executive Function Playbook contains a powerful and complete collection of tools, strategies, case studies, success stories, and frameworks for significantly improving the lives of young people with ADHD. Readers will benefit from the latest research, information, and best practices as they confront the significant – but manageable – challenges that ADHD presents.

Foreword by Dr. Lawrence Brown of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia vii Chapter 1 Your New Parenting Playbook 1 Chapter 2 The Foundation I: Nonverbal Working Memory and Visual Imagery 17 Chapter 3 The Foundation II: Verbal Working Memory and Self-Talk 27 Part I Self-Awareness 41 Chapter 4 The First Pillar 43 Chapter 5 The Playbook on Self-Awareness 55 Part II Self-Regulation 69 Chapter 6 The Second Pillar: What You Deal with Most Often 71 Chapter 7 The Playbook on Self-Regulation 83 Part III Self-Motivation 103 Chapter 8 The Third Pillar: Everything Is Nonpreferred 105 Chapter 9 The Playbook on Self-Motivation 117 Part IV Self-Evaluation 137 Chapter 10 The Final Pillar: Developing True Independence 139 Chapter 11 The Playbook on Self-Evaluation 147 Chapter 12 ADHD Hope 163 Acknowledgments 183 References 185 Index 201