executive function coaching

7

high school student working as a grocery store clerk over the summer

What Should My High Schooler Do This Summer?

By | NESCA Notes 2025

By: Lyndsay Wood, OTD, OTR/L
NESCA Executive Function and Real-life Skills Program Manager

As summer approaches, many parents find themselves asking the same question: “What should my high schooler do this summer?” While it’s tempting to let the months slip by in a haze of late mornings and screen time, summer can be an incredible opportunity for teens to grow in ways that go far beyond academics. Whether your child needs to build their resume, explore career interests, or just enjoy some well-earned downtime, there are plenty of ways to use the summer months meaningfully. Here are six ideas to help your teen make the most of their summer break:

Get a Job

It doesn’t have to be glamorous or connected to their dream career; just having a job can make a big difference in a teen’s development. Research shows that teens who work, even part-time in unrelated fields, often have better long-term outcomes, including higher earnings and stronger work habits. A summer job teaches responsibility, time management, and communication skills, while also boosting confidence and independence. Whether it’s scooping ice cream, lifeguarding, or stocking shelves, your teen will be gaining skills that matter.

Volunteer

If a paid job isn’t in the cards this summer, volunteering can be just as valuable. Volunteer work offers teens a chance to develop important job-readiness skills, like collaboration, commitment, and leadership. It can also provide a strong sense of purpose and build self-esteem, especially when the cause is one they care about. From local food banks to animal shelters to community theater, volunteering helps teens learn what it means to contribute and be part of something bigger than themselves.

Attend a Camp Related to a Career Interest

Is your child into coding, engineering, creative writing, or environmental science? Summer camps focused on specific interests or career paths can be an exciting way for teens to dig deeper into a passion. These experiences are not only educational but also energizing, they can spark new goals, introduce teens to mentors and peers who share their interests, and even inspire future college and career plans. Many camps now offer virtual or hybrid options, making it easier to find a good fit.

Build Skills through Coaching

Summer can be the perfect time to focus on the skills that teens don’t always have time to develop during the school year. Executive function skills, self-determination, and future planning are all crucial for a smooth transition to adulthood. One-on-one coaching can help teens explore careers, practice goal-setting, and learn strategies for time management and self-advocacy. At NESCA, we offer a variety of summer intensives focused on transition planning, career exploration, executive functioning, self-awareness, and sexual health and relationship education. Many students benefit from individualized instruction in these areas to stay safe, informed, and confident. These short-term programs are designed to empower students and help them build a meaningful roadmap for the future. If you have any interest in these programs, NESCA’s intake form can be found here: https://nesca-newton.com/intake/

Try an Overnight Experience to Practice Being Away from Home

Whether it’s a traditional sleepaway camp, a weekend college program, a college prep experience, staying with extended family, or planning a trip with friends, having an overnight experience can be a powerful step in your teen’s growth. Being away from home helps young people practice independence, responsibility, and problem-solving in a new environment. It can also reveal areas where they may need more support, like managing personal hygiene, communicating needs, or sticking to routines, giving families a clearer picture of what to work on before college or adulthood. Even short trips away from home can boost confidence and build valuable life skills.

Allow Time for Fun and Independence

While structure and growth are important, don’t underestimate the value of downtime. Summer is also a time for teens to relax, socialize, and explore who they are without the pressures of school. Giving your teen some autonomy (whether it’s planning a trip with friends, trying a new hobby, or managing their own schedule) helps them build self-confidence and a strong sense of identity. Fun and independence aren’t just luxuries; they’re essential parts of growing up.

There’s no one “right” way to spend the summer, but with a little thought and planning, your teen can come away from the break with new skills, deeper self-knowledge, and renewed confidence. Whether they’re working, volunteering, exploring a passion, or simply learning how to manage their time, every experience counts. The goal isn’t to fill every hour; it’s to offer opportunities that support growth, discovery, and a smoother transition into young adulthood.

For more information about NESCA’s summer programming opportunities for students, check out our recent newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/nesca-newton/summer2025.

About Lyndsay Wood, OTD, OTR/L

Lyndsay Wood, OTD, OTR/L, Vermont-based Executive Function and Real-life Skills Program Manager, is an occupational therapist who focuses on helping students and young adults with disabilities to build meaningful skills in order to reach their goals. She has spent the majority of her career working in a private school for students with ASD. She has also spent some time working in an inpatient mental health setting. Lyndsay uses occupation-based interventions and strategies to develop life skills, executive functioning, and emotional regulation. While completely her doctoral degree at MGH Institute of Health Professions, Lyndsay worked with the Boston Center for Independent Living to evaluate transition age services. She uses the results from her research to deliver services in a way that is most beneficial for clients. Specifically, she focuses on hands-on, occupation-based learning that is tailored the client’s goals and interests.

Dr. Wood accepts Vermont- and Massachusetts-based transition and occupational therapy assessments. Her in-home and community-based coaching services are available in the greater Burlington, Vermont area. Dr. Wood can accept virtual coaching clients from both Massachusetts and Vermont.

To book coaching and transition services at NESCA, complete NESCA’s online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, New York (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

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1:1 EF coaching image with quote from Jasmine Badamo, EF coach

What Sets Executive Function Coaching Apart from Other Study Skill Supports?

By | NESCA Notes 2025

By Jasmine Badamo, MA
Educational Counselor; Executive Function Coach

As families and schools are putting more focus on the importance of study skills for their child’s academic success, the idea of executive function coaching has become more mainstream. There are now more apps, online courses, school curriculum, and private companies offering this kind of support. When I give families examples of executive functioning skills – organization, planning, time management, focus, prioritization – they immediately recognize them and see how their child could benefit from strengthening these skills. However, it can be difficult to understand exactly how (and why) hiring a 1-on-1 executive function coach is such an effective way to support a child’s executive function development.

While executive function skills overlap with study skills, they go beyond that. They are foundational higher-order cognitive skills that are required for every individual to engage in goal-directed behavior, which is, well…almost everything! Yes, executive function skills are necessary when your child wants to create and execute a study plan for their upcoming math exam, but they are also necessary in order for your child to wake up each morning and complete their morning routine in time to get to school at 8:00am.

A properly trained executive function coach has training and expertise in these cognitive skills and their development, and are equipped with strategies for strengthening these skills across multiple contexts. These strategies may include some of the “tips & tricks” you’ve read about online (e.g. Set a 5-min timer and see how much cleaning you can get done!), but they also include the use of coaching methodologies to guide an individual in recognizing patterns in their past experiences, identifying core barriers, and establishing meaningful goals in their life. Every day in my coaching, I make use of the training I received in my post-graduate coursework, and being a part of a group practice affords me the added benefit of pulling from the knowledge and perspectives of several masters- and doctorate-level occupational therapists, transition specialists, special educators, and neuropsychologists.

A partnership with a trained coach offers structured, consistent, and personalized instruction that builds executive function skills in a clear progression towards a student’s goals and greater independence. Unlike using online focus apps or joining a group study-skills class, a 1-on-1 coach, especially one that has been thoughtfully matched with your child based on specialty area and personality, is able to facilitate a real connection and trust with a student. This relational approach is essential for sustainable student engagement and effective individualized support.

My colleague Sara LaFerriere perfectly described this when she said, “It’s hard for students to understand their full potential if the providers they work with can’t make a connection with them.” Aside from the increased effectiveness of a 1-on-1 coach, it’s just plain nice for a student to have another trusted adult in their corner, especially when they are struggling and feeling vulnerable (and especially when their parents or caregivers are at the end of their ropes from repeated attempts to improve their child’s executive function challenges).

On the family side, hiring an executive function coach beefs up your child’s support team. At NESCA, we put a lot of weight on collaboration, not just within our practice, but with other professionals. Whenever possible, I like to initiate communication across my students’ different service providers. For me, it provides a more robust understanding of my students and helps me ensure my coaching is aligned with the work they’re doing in other areas of their life. For families, it can provide relief to know that everyone on their child’s team is on the same page and working towards the same big-picture goals. A coach can even serve as another line of communication between a child and their family, sharing feedback with parents about the interventions and strategies that work best for their child, and giving parents ideas for successfully implementing strategies at home.

NESCA offers executive function coaching for students from elementary school through adulthood who are looking to bolster their organization, scheduling, time management, goal setting, and routine building skills. Students work 1-on-1 with occupational therapists and education specialists to identify specific skills that will help them be more organized and in control of their academic and general life tasks. If you have concerns about your child or student’s executive function challenges and want to try our 1-on-1 coaching, please complete our online Intake Form.

About the Author

Jasmine Badamo, MA, is an educational counselor and executive function coach who works full-time at NESCA supporting students ranging from elementary school through young adulthood. In addition to direct client work, Ms. Badamo provides consultation and support to parents and families in order to help change dynamics within the household and/or support the special education processes for students struggling with executive dysfunction. She also provides expert consultation to educators, special educators and related professionals.

Ms. Badamo is a New York State Certified ENL and Special Education teacher. She has more than 10 years of teaching experience across three countries and has worked with students and clients ranging in age from 7 to adulthood. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Cornell University and her master’s degree in TESOL from CUNY Hunter College. She has also participated in graduate coursework focusing on academic strategies and executive function supports for students with LD, ADHD, and autism as part of the Learning Differences and Neurodiversity (LDN) certification at Landmark College’s Institute for Research and Training. In addition to being a native English speaker, Ms. Badamo is also conversationally fluent in verbal and written Spanish.

Having worked in three different New York City public schools, Ms. Badamo has seen firsthand the importance of executive function skills in facilitating student confidence and success. Her coaching and consultation work focuses on creating individualized supports based on the specific needs and strengths of each client and supporting the development of metacognition (thinking about one’s own thought processes and patterns), executive function skills, and independence. She will guide clients to generate their own goals, identify the barriers to their goals, brainstorm potential strategies, advocate for support when needed, and reflect on the effectiveness of their applied strategies.

Ms. Badamo is a highly relational coach. Building an authentic connection with each client is a top priority and allows her to provide the best support possible. Additionally, as a teacher and coach, Ms. Badamo believes in fostering strong collaborations with anyone who supports her clients including service providers, classroom teachers, parents, administrators, and community providers.

To book executive function coaching with Jasmine Badamo or another EF or Real-life Skills Coach at NESCA, complete NESCA’s online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, New York (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

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Image of two people studying together or Body doubling

The Power of Body Doubling

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By Jasmine Badamo, MA
Educational Counselor; Executive Function Coach

Have you heard of body doubling before? Body doubling is when two (or more) people lend each other their presence while doing individual work. You can think of it as a “buddy system” for productivity. Having another person with us while we work can increase our motivation to start a task, boost our focus, and even have a calming effect. In fact, the sheer act of scheduling a body doubling session with someone helps hold us accountable to our to-do list.

Body doubling is a powerful accountability strategy that I use with my clients as well as with friends and family. If you think about it, it’s likely that you have used this strategy, too. Have you ever silently studied in a group, with a friend, or in a public space such as a library or cafe? That was body doubling! What about calling up a friend and scheduling a time to go to the gym together? Body doubling! Do you ever chat with a friend while you cook, fold laundry, or grocery shop? Once again, body doubling! (It doesn’t always have to be silent.)

Body doubling is a foundational strategy that I explore with many clients – first explaining the concept and benefits of it, and then providing them with opportunities to practice it. We may start by body doubling during our video calls, testing out if it’s more effective to keep cameras on or off, mics muted or not, screens shared or not. We’ll experiment with duration to see what’s enough time to get work done, but not too much time to get distracted. Our goal is to find the sweet spot where body doubling is supportive, but not distracting. We also implement structures to make body doubling time as productive as possible. This may look like using a prep checklist to make sure my client has all the materials they need to work; establishing a work plan that includes a goal and the first steps to take; or determining checkpoints when they want me to interrupt with prompts or reminders.

This structured practice is particularly effective because we have fostered a safe and collaborative coaching relationship that is centered on getting work done. With this guided practice, my clients can dip their toes into the world of body doubling and prepare to utilize this strategy on their own – with a natural resource (a person or group of people who is available in their everyday life).

As my clients build independence, we discuss creative ways for them to incorporate this strategy into their everyday lives. We’ll go through the list of people in their lives and think through who would make good body-doubling partners, and who would make socializing too big a temptation to resist. We might remove the temptation to talk altogether and body double with a pet dog or rabbit. I’ve even worked with clients to create “asynchronous” body doubling where they listen to audio messages from friends while they get house chores done.

As body doubling has become more popular, people have found ways to incorporate technology and social media. The YouTube channel @MerveStudyCorner has videos of various lengths showing a person studying in different locations. The Dubbii App by @adhd_love_provides body doubling videos specifically for individuals with ADHD. The FLOWN app offers “coworking” drop-in or power sessions. And some people are hosting TikTok Live while doing chores or working on homework so you can tune in and join. Very clever!

Body doubling is an adaptable and powerful strategy that can help anyone boost productivity, focus, and accountability. Whether you’re experimenting with silent study sessions, enlisting a friend to tackle errands, or exploring innovative tech tools, there’s no shortage of ways to make this strategy work for you. So, why not give it a try? If you need help getting started, reach out to NESCA to work with one of our expert real-life skills and executive function coaches by completing our Intake Form at: www.nesca-newton.com/intake.

Want to do more reading on body doubling? Check out these articles:

Additional Information

Body doubling can also be done outside the context of productivity, often referred to as “parallel play.” Sitting next to a trusted human and allowing yourself to get lost in a preferred task or hobby can be a truly enjoyable experience, deepening your relationship without even talking! For individuals who find talking tiring or for those who have an easily-drained social battery, this is an accessible way to engage and RESIST isolation.

About the Author

Jasmine Badamo, MA, is an educational counselor and executive function coach who works full-time at NESCA supporting students ranging from elementary school through young adulthood. In addition to direct client work, Ms. Badamo provides consultation and support to parents and families in order to help change dynamics within the household and/or support the special education processes for students struggling with executive dysfunction. She also provides expert consultation to educators, special educators and related professionals.

Ms. Badamo is a New York State Certified ENL and Special Education teacher. She has more than 10 years of teaching experience across three countries and has worked with students and clients ranging in age from 7 to adulthood. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Cornell University and her master’s degree in TESOL from CUNY Hunter College. She has also participated in graduate coursework focusing on academic strategies and executive function supports for students with LD, ADHD, and autism as part of the Learning Differences and Neurodiversity (LDN) certification at Landmark College’s Institute for Research and Training. In addition to being a native English speaker, Ms. Badamo is also conversationally fluent in verbal and written Spanish.

Having worked in three different New York City public schools, Ms. Badamo has seen firsthand the importance of executive function skills in facilitating student confidence and success. Her coaching and consultation work focuses on creating individualized supports based on the specific needs and strengths of each client and supporting the development of metacognition (thinking about one’s own thought processes and patterns), executive function skills, and independence. She will guide clients to generate their own goals, identify the barriers to their goals, brainstorm potential strategies, advocate for support when needed, and reflect on the effectiveness of their applied strategies.

Ms. Badamo is a highly relational coach. Building an authentic connection with each client is a top priority and allows her to provide the best support possible. Additionally, as a teacher and coach, Ms. Badamo believes in fostering strong collaborations with anyone who supports her clients including service providers, classroom teachers, parents, administrators, and community providers.

To book executive function coaching with Jasmine Badamo or another EF or Real-life Skills Coach at NESCA, complete NESCA’s online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, New York (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

50

Occupational Therapist Leah Bridge, MSOT, OTR, Joins NESCA’s Coaching Team

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By: Jane Hauser
Director of Marketing & Outreach, NESCA

NESCA welcomed Occupational Therapist Leah Bridge, MSOT, OTR, as a per diem Real-life Skills and Executive Function Coach this past fall. Learn more about Leah and what she brings to her clients from our recent interview.

How did you become interested in occupational therapy?
As a younger student, I was diagnosed with a learning disability and was exposed to other students with various challenges in my classes and while receiving services. Through that experience, mostly in high school, I became interested in helping other friends and students engage with their work. That kickstarted my desire to work in an area where I was able to support the specialized needs population engage more in their everyday lives.

When I started my undergraduate degree, I actually didn’t know about occupational therapy at all. After ruling out other career paths and with the help of my advisor, I realized that OT was exactly the path I wanted to go down. It encompassed so much of what I love to do.

Once I started my occupational therapy graduate program, I learned about the mental health side of OT, which I hadn’t really known about before. That was very interesting to me, so I did a clinical placement at a behavioral health hospital, which set me on the path to becoming a mental health occupational therapist. From there, I ended up working at Cambridge Health Alliance for the past two years in the inpatient pediatrics, adolescents, and neurodevelopmental unit. Since these are acute settings, the patients mainly come in after a mental health crisis, and my job was to help stabilize them and work with them on self-regulation and coping skills.

Why are you a NESCA Real-Life Skills and Executive Function Coach?
I wanted to work with clients from start to finish, showing them the necessary skills for life. I came on board at NESCA as a per diem coach and quickly learned just how amazing it is to help people build skills. I love working with people, watching them progress, become more resilient, and build skills.

What approaches do you take in working with our coaching clients when they are so unique from one another?
I want my clients to feel like I’m easygoing and approachable. I use a very warm, empathetic approach and a lot of humor to make connections with them. I also like to see where individuals are at and follow their lead – never pushing someone too quickly and meeting their comfort level throughout the process. Once we have a foundational relationship, I can see where to challenge them.

What skills do you work on in Real-life Skills Coaching?
It can be a whole range of things. So far, I’ve worked on behavioral activation, meal prepping, note taking, folding laundry, taking out the trash, placing things into the dishwasher – generally helping people to take more of an independent approach to their daily tasks.

In the community, it could be anything from going into a store and feeling comfortable interacting with different employees in that store. I may take an individual into a store and practice some of the different types of jobs we are working on, like organizing a shelf in Target that was a bit disheveled and putting items back in their places. It’s a more interactive way to work on the organizational skills we may be building. We may also just walk around a crowded grocery store or mall where we can determine different self-regulation techniques that work in these overstimulating and overwhelming moments. It helps individuals be confident that, in the future, they may be able to go to these places alone and feel completely comfortable there.

What is the profile of some of the students that you’ve worked with?
I like working with people of all ages, and I love the differences among all of the patients, students, and clients I’ve seen. I’ve worked with a whole wide variety. At Cambridge Health, I worked with kids who are struggling from depression, anxiety, or a mood disorder, like bipolar, borderline personality disorder or psychosis. In the neurodevelopmental unit, I worked with a lot of different kids with autism, have an intellectual disability, or a traumatic brain injury. While there, I worked with kids who are both very resistant to working together as well as those who are incredibly self-motivated and really want to do the work.

At NESCA, I’ve also seen a variety of clients who are really fun to work with. We do things like work towards building skills they can use when they go off to college, helping them to be more independent and live on campus more confidently. I’ve also worked with students who are taking some time off from college or graduate school to rebuild their confidence and mental health before going back into the school setting. We’re working on a lot of daily tasks to help them feel more regulated and less overwhelmed, and on strategies to help in those difficult moments and remember that they can do this.

How do you gain buy-in from the individuals you work with?
Meeting coaching students where they’re at is so important. I go in with an open attitude and determine where they are at in each session, adjusting my plan from there. I never force anything, but rather go at their pace. I find I’m more successful when we just take time to get to know each other, build trust and understanding, and then the buy-in comes.

Most people are more willing to participate when they know why they are engaging in an activity or some type of coaching. When they learn that I am trying to teach them skills to help them advocate for themselves, they feel more empowered – not just that their parents are making them do this. It’s been very helpful to show them that they have a say in the process and a voice that helps them get to that place of independence.

How does NESCA’s collaborative approach help you in your coaching practice?
It offers amazing value. As an example, I may be thinking of an approach to use in a session, and then I hear from or consult with someone from another discipline within the practice about how they may approach it. It opens your eyes to a whole other way of looking at something. I’m also someone who is very eager to learn and improve my own skills, so I love getting input from other people and delving into the resources they suggest. I always want what’s best for my clients and my patients, so I am always happy to collaborate with everyone to be able to get that for them.

What’s your approach to designing a program or curriculum for someone?
I start off with doing some assessments to determine the areas that are within the domains of OT, such as activities of daily living, leisure activities, work/school activities, and also looking at what skills the individual can already do on their own, and ranking their performance level within each of those along the way. Some clients are able to complete these assessments independently, and some require input from their parents or caregivers. From there, we choose what areas we want to start with and set goals, mainly based on what the greatest areas of need are. We typically work in increments of eight-week sessions. Near the end of the eight weeks, we reevaluate and see if we want to do more.

What are some of the goals your students are working on?
A person may have the goal to go to a grocery store and pick out items from a shopping list. We may not start with going to the grocery store right away. Instead, we may sit down and look at a map of the grocery store and get a feel for what each aisle looks like and what we can find in each one. We may do this kind of work for the first four sessions and then spend the next four sessions going to different places where we can look at how different stores are set up, and how we can find items when the aisles look different from store to store. If we can’t find the items, we work on how to approach someone and ask where we can find them.

What is your take on using different technology tools or apps?
I’m someone who loves learning all about new approaches, including technology, to see what may work. I’m open to exploring new technology and introducing it to students if I think it is something that will support them in reaching their goals. There are some great ones available for anxiety, which may help them engage in our sessions together. There are others for banking, scheduling, and calendaring. If a student prefers using Google Sheets or Excel to help organize their day, I am definitely willing to work with them using those as long as they are a support.

Is there anything else that you would like people to know about you?
I love working with individuals who are going through mental health challenges, whether short-term or chronic. But it’s not the only area I am interested in. I’m someone who feels I can offer a lot and am willing to do the work to really learn and feel as though I can provide the best care to those with whom I work. So, for me, there’s really nothing that I feel I want to avoid. I’m a very open person in that sense that I really just want to help as many people as I can.

About Leah Bridge, MSOT, OTR

Leah Bridge, MSOT, OTR, is a licensed occupational therapist with a passion for helping individuals develop the skills needed to Headshot of Leah Bridge meaningfully engage in their daily lives. With a Master’s degree in Occupational Therapy from Regis College and a Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Leah brings a well-rounded educational background to her practice. She is currently licensed to practice in Massachusetts.

Throughout her career, Leah has specialized in mental health-based occupational therapy across various settings, including inpatient units, partial hospitalization programs, and schools. She has worked closely with individuals aged 4 to 26, addressing critical areas such as activities of daily living (ADLs), self-regulation techniques, executive functioning, and routine development. Her experience spans a wide range of diagnoses, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), and mental health conditions such as depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), and bipolar disorder.

Leah’s therapeutic approach is client-centered and holistic, adapting her interventions to suit the unique needs of each individual and their environment. Whether facilitating community engagement with adolescents in schools, providing vocational consults and life skills groups at partial programs, or teaching coping and self-regulation techniques in inpatient settings, Leah is committed to tailoring her strategies to each client’s specific goals.

Leah’s work is deeply collaborative, and she frequently partners with families and with other professionals such as social workers, psychiatrists, nurses, and psychologists to ensure comprehensive care. Her ability to foster strong therapeutic relationships, combined with her humor and validation techniques, helps clients feel comfortable and supported throughout their therapy journey.

To schedule an appointment with one of NESCA’s coaches, please complete our online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, NY (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

7

Technology Tools to Boost Your Productivity Part 3

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By: Lyndsay Wood, OTD, OTR/L
NESCA Executive Function and Real-life Skills Program Manager

Summer is coming! We are finally feeling that sunshine on our skin. You may be noticing your motivation increasing as you thaw from your winter hibernation. A lot of people find that this is a great time to start tackling those goals and projects you have been putting off through the dark days of winter. Perhaps now it is time to do that thorough spring clean, or maybe you want to meet a new fitness goal. No matter what you are trying to do, there are technology tools that can help. Below is a list of apps that can help kickstart that renewed sense of motivation you may be feeling. These are just a few tools, but please feel free to check out my previous two blogs on this topic to find even more helpful tools and apps.

Todoist: Todoist is a task management app that helps you organize and prioritize your tasks effectively. Through this app, you can create to-do lists, set deadlines, and manage your activities. Todoist integrates with various other apps and platforms, making it easier to keep track of your tasks across all your devices.
TickTick: No, I do not mean TikTok, which typically has the opposite effect on productivity and motivation! TickTick combines a to-do list and a calendar. It allows you to create tasks, set reminders, and even track your habits.
Shmoody: Shmoody is an app designed to help improve your mood and overall mental health. Whether you’re dealing with stress, anxiety, or just feeling down, Shmoody offers practical activities and tools to boost your spirits. The app provides daily mood check-ins, gratitude journaling, and guided exercises to help you develop a positive mindset. It also allows you to set goals and objectives for the day.
Remove Distracting Apps: Perhaps it is time for a social media detox. Are you finding yourself scrolling endlessly through TikTok, Instagram, etc.? Discover which app you are using the most and take a break. Maybe it is just for the afternoon, or maybe a whole month. See how your productivity, mood, and motivation change when you step away from the scroll. Use built-in features on your smartphone, like Screen Time on iOS or Digital Wellbeing on Android, to track your app usage and set limits. Taking a break from distracting apps can free up your time and mental space, allowing you to focus on more meaningful activities and goals.

Embrace the summer energy and make the most of these tools to boost your motivation and productivity. Whether you’re aiming to improve your mental health, get organized, or eliminate distractions, these apps can help you achieve your summer goals. Happy summer!

About Lyndsay Wood, OTD, OTR/L

Lyndsay Wood, OTD, OTR/L, Vermont-based Executive Function and Real-life Skills Program Manager, is an occupational therapist who focuses on helping students and young adults with disabilities to build meaningful skills in order to reach their goals. She has spent the majority of her career working in a private school for students with ASD. She has also spent some time working in an inpatient mental health setting. Lyndsay uses occupation-based interventions and strategies to develop life skills, executive functioning, and emotional regulation. While completely her doctoral degree at MGH Institute of Health Professions, Lyndsay worked with the Boston Center for Independent Living to evaluate transition age services. She uses the results from her research to deliver services in a way that is most beneficial for clients. Specifically, she focuses on hands-on, occupation-based learning that is tailored the client’s goals and interests.

Dr. Wood accepts Vermont- and Massachusetts-based transition and occupational therapy assessments. Her in-home and community-based coaching services are available in the greater Burlington, Vermont area. Dr. Wood can accept virtual coaching clients from both Massachusetts and Vermont.

To book coaching and transition services at NESCA, complete NESCA’s online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, New York (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

6

Allow Them to be Challenged! (Examples of Balancing Support with Challenge): Part 2

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By Jasmine Badamo, MA
Educational Counselor; Executive Function Coach

Last week’s blog discussed the “zone of proximal development” and the importance of providing young people with calculated challenges in order to facilitate their executive function development (https://nesca-newton.com/allow-them-to-be-challenged-building-childrens-executive-functions-part-1/). Because the balance between providing support and allowing challenge is highly individual, I wanted to write a follow-up blog providing some examples of how this balance can be implemented:

EXAMPLE 1: A middle schooler is struggling to turn in their assignments on time, even when they already have them completed.

EXAMPLE 2: An elementary-aged child is struggling to keep their work desk clean, and it’s causing a lot of conflict and stress during homework time.

EXAMPLE 3: A high school student wants to find a summer job so they can earn some money and build their resume.

Remember that every child and family is unique, and there is no one right answer. It may take time to find the right balance for your child, but it is well worth the effort!

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Did you know that NESCA offers parent coaching tailored to helping parents facilitate their child’s executive function growth? While many families take advantage of the opportunity to have their student’s work directly with our executive function coach and utilize parent coaching as a support for generalizing the strategies the students are learning, this has also been an invaluable service on its own for many parents.

About the Author

Jasmine Badamo, MA, is an educational counselor and executive function coach who works full-time at NESCA supporting students ranging from elementary school through young adulthood. In addition to direct client work, Ms. Badamo provides consultation and support to parents and families in order to help change dynamics within the household and/or support the special education processes for students struggling with executive dysfunction. She also provides expert consultation to educators, special educators and related professionals.

Ms. Badamo is a New York State Certified ENL and Special Education teacher. She has more than 10 years of teaching experience across three countries and has worked with students and clients ranging in age from 7 to adulthood. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Cornell University and her master’s degree in TESOL from CUNY Hunter College. She has also participated in graduate coursework focusing on academic strategies and executive function supports for students with LD, ADHD, and autism as part of the Learning Differences and Neurodiversity (LDN) certification at Landmark College’s Institute for Research and Training. In addition to being a native English speaker, Ms. Badamo is also conversationally fluent in verbal and written Spanish.

Having worked in three different New York City public schools, Ms. Badamo has seen firsthand the importance of executive function skills in facilitating student confidence and success. Her coaching and consultation work focuses on creating individualized supports based on the specific needs and strengths of each client and supporting the development of metacognition (thinking about one’s own thought processes and patterns), executive function skills, and independence. She will guide clients to generate their own goals, identify the barriers to their goals, brainstorm potential strategies, advocate for support when needed, and reflect on the effectiveness of their applied strategies.

Ms. Badamo is a highly relational coach. Building an authentic connection with each client is a top priority and allows her to provide the best support possible. Additionally, as a teacher and coach, Ms. Badamo believes in fostering strong collaborations with anyone who supports her clients including service providers, classroom teachers, parents, administrators, and community providers.

To book executive function coaching with Jasmine Badamo or another EF or Real-life Skills Coach at NESCA, complete NESCA’s online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, New York (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

6

Allow Them to be Challenged! (Building Children’s Executive Functions): Part 1

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By Jasmine Badamo, MA
Educational Counselor; Executive Function Coach

Executive function – the ability to engage in goal-directed behaviors, such as planning, organization, focus, and self-regulation – is a set of cognitive skills that all individuals possess and use on a daily basis.

Like any skill, each person’s executive function is at varying stages of proficiency and development. Furthermore, a person’s day-to-day capacity for executive functioning can fluctuate based on a variety of factors, including age, cognitive profile, environment demands, emotional state, physical illness, stress, mental health, etc.

As the role of executive function in learning, working, and general life tasks is becoming more widely acknowledged and understood, it is also becoming more common to make accommodations for young people to support their executive function challenges. It is exciting to see more of this consideration and inclusion; however, I often find myself in conversations with families, educators, and related professionals regarding the difficulty of balancing executive function support and accommodation with allowing space and opportunities for growth and skill development.

How can we resist the temptation to completely alleviate a young person’s struggle, especially when we know that the individual needs opportunities to practice the executive function skills they are attempting to master? It comes down to exposing young people to calculated challenges.

Facing challenges is an important part of learning and developing independence. It is also important to be thoughtful about the level of challenge we present to an individual. In my coaching, I like to think of Lev Vygotsky’s theory of learning in which every person has a “zone of proximal development” that encompasses the skills or tasks that they cannot yet do on their own, but that they can achieve with guidance or assistance (often referred to as “scaffolding”). When a learner receives support attempting a task that is just beyond their individual reach or capacity, it allows them to stretch their skills and current knowledge. With guidance and repeated practice, the learner develops the ability to utilize the skills and knowledge independently; their zone of proximal development shifts, and they can tackle more complex and challenging skills (citation).

Challenge is essential to growth. But finding a person’s zone of proximal development is not an exact science – it’s individual, shifts with time and circumstances, and it can be difficult in the moment to know if you’ve struck the right balance between supporting your child while simultaneously allowing for sufficient challenge.

You may be thinking, “What’s too little challenge? What’s too much? Is my child facing an overwhelming amount of executive function demands, or are these challenges good growing and learning opportunities for them?” Next week’s blog will give a few examples of how parents and caretakers may be able to balance support vs. calculated challenge. And, in the meantime, consider collaborating with an executive function coach! It’s a great way to answer these questions and learn how to independently identify the appropriate level of challenge for your child.

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Did you know that NESCA offers parent coaching tailored to helping parents facilitate their child’s executive function growth? While many families take advantage of the opportunity to have their student’s work directly with our executive function coach and utilize parent coaching as a support for generalizing the strategies the students are learning, this has also been an invaluable service on its own for many parents.

About the Author

Jasmine Badamo, MA, is an educational counselor and executive function coach who works full-time at NESCA supporting students ranging from elementary school through young adulthood. In addition to direct client work, Ms. Badamo provides consultation and support to parents and families in order to help change dynamics within the household and/or support the special education processes for students struggling with executive dysfunction. She also provides expert consultation to educators, special educators and related professionals.

Ms. Badamo is a New York State Certified ENL and Special Education teacher. She has more than 10 years of teaching experience across three countries and has worked with students and clients ranging in age from 7 to adulthood. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from Cornell University and her master’s degree in TESOL from CUNY Hunter College. She has also participated in graduate coursework focusing on academic strategies and executive function supports for students with LD, ADHD, and autism as part of the Learning Differences and Neurodiversity (LDN) certification at Landmark College’s Institute for Research and Training. In addition to being a native English speaker, Ms. Badamo is also conversationally fluent in verbal and written Spanish.

Having worked in three different New York City public schools, Ms. Badamo has seen firsthand the importance of executive function skills in facilitating student confidence and success. Her coaching and consultation work focuses on creating individualized supports based on the specific needs and strengths of each client and supporting the development of metacognition (thinking about one’s own thought processes and patterns), executive function skills, and independence. She will guide clients to generate their own goals, identify the barriers to their goals, brainstorm potential strategies, advocate for support when needed, and reflect on the effectiveness of their applied strategies.

Ms. Badamo is a highly relational coach. Building an authentic connection with each client is a top priority and allows her to provide the best support possible. Additionally, as a teacher and coach, Ms. Badamo believes in fostering strong collaborations with anyone who supports her clients including service providers, classroom teachers, parents, administrators, and community providers.

To book executive function coaching with Jasmine Badamo or another EF or Real-life Skills Coach at NESCA, complete NESCA’s online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, New York (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

46

Preparing for a College Visit

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By: Kelley Challen, Ed.M., CAS
Director of Transition Services, NESCA

With vacation weeks coming up in Massachusetts and New Hampshire, many local families—especially those with juniors in high school—are contemplating visits to college campuses. School vacation weeks in the spring are a great time to visit colleges because you can tour the campus at a point in time when students are engaged in a typical flurry of academic and extracurricular activities. Summer may allow for more convenient or peaceful tours, but it is not a time of year when the happenings on campus accurately reflect student life (unless there is a very active summer session). Instead, spring and fall are often considered the optimal seasons for campus visits. For those of you planning upcoming visits, here are a few tips to consider—especially if you are a student with a learning disability, autism, or a mental health diagnosis.

Sign up ahead of time for the tour through the college’s web site. Even if a college does not require registration, potential students should go ahead and register for the college tour so that they get “credit” for their visit. There are lots of metrics that count as part of the college admissions process, and one of these important variables is literally the number of times that a potential student makes contact with the college. Things like registering for a tour, emailing admissions, following the college on social media, visiting with college representatives at college fairs, and signing up to receive materials by mail or email can all be considered “points of contact” with the college and may help students to ultimately be accepted.
Be prepared to answer a few questions about yourself. Most college information sessions or tours will start with the admissions staff and/or tour guide introducing themself and asking a few questions about the students in the group. Students should be prepared to share things like their name, hometown, grade, potential major, and clubs or activities they might want to participate in during college. Not all of this information will be requested outright, but some will typically be part of introductions and more may be asked during a presentation or tour. For students who have a hard time answering questions on the spot, they will feel much more comfortable if they have thought about—and practiced—answering these questions before the tour. They can also be more actively involved. Terms like undergraduate, graduate, first-year, and transfer may also come up when visiting colleges, and it can be helpful to review some college vocabulary ahead of time so that students are not flustered in the moment.
Ask questions of your own! (But make sure you are asking the right people your questions.) Information sessions and college tours are typically facilitated by admissions staff and college students. These are the times when you are learning about the college in general and getting a sense of campus culture, facilities, and services available to all students on the campus. For legal reasons, college admissions and college disability supports are notably separate entities. This means that college information sessions and tours are not typically the time and place for accommodation- and disability-specific questions. So, what questions should you ask? Well, there are plenty of web-based resources that you can look to in order to create your own personal list of tour questions. Here are just a few you might find interesting:
- 60 Questions to Ask on Your College Tour – https://www.princetonreview.com/college-advice/questions-to-ask-on-a-college-tour
- 16 Must-Ask Questions on Your Next College Tour – https://www.highpoint.edu/admissions/16-must-ask-questions-on-your-next-college-tour/
- Don’t Waste Your College Visit, Ask the Right Questions – https://www.forbes.com/sites/brennanbarnard/2023/02/06/dont-waste-your-college-visit-ask-the-right-questions/

Even if you have done online research about a college, it’s a good idea to ask a few questions about items that are important to you to see if things on campus are really as described. Also, if you are a student with a disability, you might ask some of the questions that get at culture and inclusion: What’s it like to be a new student on campus? How do you see the college demonstrate commitment to diversity and inclusion? What controversial issues have come up on campus?

Don’t panic if you don’t see yourself or your student in the tour guide. College tour guides are typically some of the highest performing, actively involved students at the college and are usually representative of an extreme rather than the “average” student. While these students are certainly a part of the campus and culture, it is important to get a sense of who else is on the campus. Take time to observe and talk with other students you see walking around on campus. If you can, circle back to an academic building in an area of interest and find a student to talk to there. Or just stop a few students around campus and ask informal questions (e.g., Why did you pick this college? What do you wish you could change? What do you do like about being a student here? What do you wish you knew before you started college here?).
Take time to eat on campus. Make time before or after your tour to eat in a main cafeteria or campus center. If you are going to be eating three meals a day on campus, its important to know what that experience will be like. Certainly, the food is important. You need to know if there are a variety of food options and that there is something you would be comfortable eating for all meals. Also, you want to get a sense of the atmosphere, including how crowded it is and how easy it is to find a table.
If you are just getting started on your college search process and do not have a set list of schools yet, don’t worry. You can still get out and visit schools. I often suggest starting with different college archetypes (e.g., big school, little school, school spread out in a city, school with more defined campus, private, public, community, etc.). It can be good to just pick a few different school types, visit the colleges, and then do some real downloading of information and preferences immediately after the visits. I often ask students to do some ratings of colleges as they leave the schools so that they can quantify their “gut feeling” about a school and use that for comparison even if they aren’t sure exactly what it was that they liked or disliked. Even a bad college visit can help to determine some of the things that are most important about the college search process!

Embarking on college campus visits is a bit of a house hunting process—you are looking at potential academic homes. It can definitely be overwhelming, especially when it’s a process that you have not been through before and you may not know exactly what you want or what’s worth looking at. But you have to start somewhere. Following these suggestions should allow you to get a true sense of campus life and culture while also learning about yourself and your own preferences and values. Be prepared, but also trust yourself, and let each experience help you learn who you want to be as a future college student.

NESCA offers many services designed to help students bridge the transition from high school to college, work, and more independent adult life. Such services include executive function coaching, pre-college coaching, transition planning, and neuropsychological evaluation. To learn more specifically about our coaching services, visit: https://nesca-newton.com/coaching-services/ . NESCA also offers postsecondary transition consultation to families who want support identifying whether students are ready for college transition, or they may need a step in between or a scaffolded transition: https://nesca-newton.com/transition/#planning. To schedule an appointment with one of our expert clinicians or coaches, please complete our intake at: https://nesca-newton.com/intake/.

About the Author
Kelley Challen, Ed.M., CAS, is an expert transition specialist and national speaker who has been engaged in evaluation, development, and direction of transition-focused programming for teenagers and young adults with a wide array of developmental and learning abilities since 2004. While Ms. Challen has special expertise in working with youth with autism, she enjoys working with students with a range of cognitive, learning, communication, social, emotional and/or behavioral needs.

Ms. Challen joined NESCA as Director of Transition Services in 2013. She believes that the transition to postsecondary adulthood activities such as learning, living, and working is an ongoing process–and that there is no age too early or too late to begin planning. Moreover, any transition plan should be person-centered, individualized and include steps beyond the completion of secondary school.

Through her role at NESCA, Ms. Challen provides a wide array of services including individualized transition assessment, planning, consultation, training, and program development services, as well as pre-college coaching. She is particularly skilled in providing transition assessment and consultation aimed at determining optimal timing for a student’s transition to college, technical training, adult learning, and/or employment as well as identifying and developing appropriate programs and services necessary for minimizing critical skill gaps.

Ms. Challen is one of the only professionals in New England who specializes in assisting families in selecting or developing programming as a steppingstone between special education and college participation and has a unique understanding of local postgraduate, pre-college, college support, college transition, postsecondary transition, and 18-22 programs. She is additionally familiar with a great number of approved high school and postsecondary special education placements for students from Massachusetts including public, collaborative, and private programs.

Ms. Challen enjoys the creative and collaborative problem-solving process necessary for successfully transitioning students with complex profiles toward independent adulthood. As such, she is regularly engaged in IEP Team Meetings, program consultations, and case management or student coaching as part of individualized post-12th grade programming. Moreover, she continually works to enhance and expand NESCA’s service offerings in order to meet the growing needs of the families, schools and communities we serve.

When appropriate, Ms. Challen has additionally provided expert witness testimony for families and school districts engaged in due process hearings or engaged in legal proceedings centering on transition assessment, services and/or programming—locally and nationally.

Nearly two decades ago, Ms. Challen began her work with youth with special needs working as a counselor for children and adolescents at Camp Good Times, a former program of Milestones Day School. She then spent several years at the Aspire Program (a Mass General for Children program; formerly YouthCare) where she founded an array of social, life and career skill development programs for teens and young adults with Asperger’s Syndrome and related profiles. Also, she worked at the Northeast Arc as Program Director for the Spotlight Program, a drama-based social pragmatics program, serving youth with a wide range of diagnoses and collaborating with several school districts to design in-house social skill and transition programs.

Ms. Challen received her Master’s Degree and Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Risk and Prevention Counseling from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education. While training and obtaining certification as a school guidance counselor, she completed her practicum work at Boston Latin School focusing on competitive college counseling.

Ms. Challen has worked on multiple committees involved in the Massachusetts DESE IEP Improvement Project, served as a Mentor for the Transition Leadership Program at UMass Boston, participated as a member of B-SET Boston Workforce Development Task Force, been an ongoing member of the Program Committee for the Association for Autism and Neurodiversity (AANE), and is a member of the New Hampshire Transition State Community of Practice (COP).

She is also co-author of the chapter, “Technologies to Support Interventions for Social-Emotional Intelligence, Self-Awareness, Personality Style, and Self-Regulation,” for the book Technology Tools for Students with Autism: Innovations that Enhance Independence and Learning.

To schedule an appointment with one of NESCA’s transition specialists, please complete our online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; the greater Burlington, Vermont region; and Brooklyn, NY (coaching services only) serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

13

The Intersection of Mental Health and Executive Function

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By: Carly Edelstein, MSW, LCSW
Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Executive Function Coach

Mental Health challenges and executive function (EF) deficits are often intertwined, as one can easily impact the severity of the other. As a psychotherapist and executive function coach, I find myself regularly assessing my clients with comorbid EF and mental health challenges in order to identify which presented first.

Why does this matter?
Emotional regulation and executive control both live in the frontal lobe of the brain. They operate close together and impact one another. Because of this, mental health challenges, such as depression and anxiety, can be overlooked and mislabeled as an executive function deficit. Identifying the root cause of a student’s EF struggles is critical for properly planning appropriate next steps and necessary supports. For example, if a student’s depression is causing them not to initiate and/or complete work, the depression usually needs to be addressed before they receive EF coaching. If the student is already working with a mental health professional, such as a therapist, it is important for them to be cleared by the therapist to add in an EF coach. Working on too many new skills at once can be overwhelming, so it is important that enough foundational coping skills are learned first.

An example of anxiety causing an EF deficit:
Clara gets extremely anxious in social situations due to a lack of self-esteem. She had a negative experience in middle school where other students made fun of her lisp whenever she read out loud in class. Now, in high school, Clara is afraid to ask questions, even when she is confused. She is left not fully understanding the material, class assignment expectations, or how to approach studying for quizzes and tests. Rather than asking for help, Clara keeps to herself. Even when teachers offer to help her, she responds with, “Thank you, but I’m all set.”

Clara’s parents can see that she struggles to initiate homework assignments, rarely studies for upcoming tests, and that her grades are declining. They don’t fully understand why, because when they ask her, she is quick to deflect and change the subject.

By checking in with Clara’s teachers, her parents may receive feedback that she often shies away from their support. With a lack of understanding why, her teachers aren’t sure how else to approach the situation other than continuing to check in. Jumping into EF coaching to address her task initiation and study skills may help, but it doesn’t address the root of the problem. A more appropriate action plan would be for Clara to first receive psychotherapy, addressing the bullying that led to her social anxiety and self-esteem issues and then shifting to EF skill building.

An example of an EF deficit causing anxiety/depression:
Gabriel is a seventh grade student diagnosed with ADHD. He has a difficult time advocating for himself and asking for help due to some additional communication challenges. His ADHD also makes it challenging to stay on task and pay attention to details. This results in Gabriel constantly forgetting what his homework assignments are and when they are due, creating a lot of missing work. Gabriel’s teachers are often redirecting him and reminding him of incomplete work. They have tried to help him develop plans to make it up, but he struggles to follow through with these plans. At home, Gabriel’s parents often share their frustrations with him and try to help him get back on track. With adults constantly reminding him he’s behind, Gabriel has developed internalized anxiety, often wondering why he can’t be like everyone else. He tries so hard to remember what his homework is and when it is due, but can never seem to get it right. Over time, he begins to experience symptoms of depression as his self-esteem declines.

In this situation, Gabriel’s lack of EF skills is the root cause of his negative thinking patterns. By receiving EF coaching, he can learn ways to regularly track his assignments. He can be taught how to break them down into smaller, more manageable tasks in a way that helps him overcome procrastination. Additionally, he is able to become proactive and communicate with his teachers so that they are kept on the same page. As these skills get stronger, Gabriel becomes more responsible, and gets praise from his teachers and parents in return. Given the impact of this situation, he may also benefit from short-term counseling to better understand the connection between his EF and anxiety. Increased self-awareness helps students learn how to advocate for themselves the next time they encounter a similar situation.

Does this sound familiar?
These scenarios are common and can be difficult to navigate without proper assessment and guidance from professionals. If you or your child struggles with mental health and EF-related challenges and you are not sure where to start, book a free introductory call with me or one of our other wonderful and experienced EF coaches. NESCA also offers comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation services and neuropsychological consultation for families who are wondering about possible missed learning, attention, mental health, or other diagnoses. We look forward to working with you!

About the Author

Carly Edelstein is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker practicing in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Having worked both in private practice and schools, she has extensive experience supporting students, families and educational teams to make positive changes. Ms. Edelstein provides executive function coaching and psychotherapy to clients ranging from middle school through adulthood. She also offers consultation to schools and families in order to support her clients across home and community environments.

To schedule an appointment with one of NESCA’s counselors, coaches, or other experts, please complete our online intake form.

NESCA is a pediatric neuropsychology practice and integrative treatment center with offices in Newton, Plainville, and Hingham, Massachusetts; Londonderry, New Hampshire; and staff in the greater Burlington, Vermont region and Brooklyn, New York, serving clients from infancy through young adulthood and their families. For more information, please email info@nesca-newton.com or call 617-658-9800.

45

Summer Planning for Teenagers

By | NESCA Notes 2024

By: Kelley Challen, Ed.M., CAS
Director of Transition Services, NESCA

March is an incredibly busy time in my household. Three out of four of our family members celebrate birthdays, winter sports turn into playoffs, and school events seem to pop up every week. March is also the time when we finalize our “summer camp plan” and manage lengthy online registration processes. If you have a teenager in the household, particularly a teen with a disability, you may also be thinking about summer and feeling particular pressure to “make the most” of the time while your child is still in high school. In case you are still scrambling for your own summer plan, I wanted to offer up several activities that are worth considering as part of your teen’s summer plan.

Get a paid summer job! Time and time again, research indicates that individuals who have paid employment in high school are more successful college students and more successful in obtaining employment as adults. If your child is college bound, having a paid work experience among their high school activities is a huge boost to their college applications. And, if not, paid work experiences teach soft skills for employment, help students figure out more about their career interests and preferences, and help to build meaningful resumes. Being able to do work that meets someone else’s standards is a vital life skill, and summer is an optimal time to build that skill.

Gain overnight experience. Students who plan to go to college but have never spent a night away from home need to know how they are going to handle that experience. There are all sorts of summer programs where students can spend time overnight, away from home, among peers. Overnight programs vary in length. Students who are just venturing out for the first time may feel most comfortable in a program that lasts a week or less, whereas other students may want a 3-week or 6-week experience. For college-bound students, I often recommend taking advantage of programs that happen right on college campuses in dorms. But there are also great programs outdoors or even travel programs in the United States or overseas. Knowing that you can spend the night away from family (and knowing what it’s like to “live” among a whole group of young people) is often a critical step in setting post-high school goals.

Use the time to build new executive functioning or emotional regulation skills. Students who struggle with executive functioning or emotional regulation often need coaching or therapy during the school year, just to keep up with school activities. However, students and families often reach out for these resources because they are already in crisis. A student will seek out an executive function coach when a student is already behind with assigned work or grades. Families often seek out therapy when an emotional crisis has occurred. School provides a number of executive functioning and emotional demands, so it can be hard for a coach or therapist to build new skills with a student while the student is also meeting those demands. Summer can be an optimal time to work more intensively to build new skills, strategies, and systems because it is a time when other demands are reduced. If your teen has a therapist, tutor, executive function coach, social pragmatic coach, or other support person who is helping them to tread water during the school year, it’s definitely worth asking whether intensive services over the summer might help the student to build skills that will last long-term and help the student be better prepared for the following school year.

Summer can also be a great time to tackle time-consuming activities, like completing the college application, drafting a college essay or two, cleaning out a bedroom or reorganizing study space, or building a new life skill, like driving, cooking, or mastering a laundry routine.

March is a great time to take stock of what your teenager wants to do after high school, what challenges might impede them smoothly transitioning to those activities, and thinking about how summer might be the perfect time to eliminate some of those challenges!

NESCA offers many services designed to help students bridge the transition from high school to college, work, and more independent adult life. Such services include executive function coaching, pre-college coaching, transition planning, and neuropsychological evaluation. To learn more specifically about our coaching services, visit: https://nesca-newton.com/coaching-services/. NESCA also offers postsecondary transition consultation to families who want support identifying the most meaningful ways for their student to spend the summer: https://nesca-newton.com/transition/#planning. To schedule an appointment with one of our expert clinicians or coaches, please complete our intake at: https://nesca-newton.com/intake/.