Hello, this is Mrs. Quintero, the proud head of school of The Honor Roll School, and welcome back to The Pod, the Dolphin Podcast. Please follow us on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Search us as The Tank, official THRS Dolphin Podcast. 
Don't forget to turn on those notifications so you don't miss an episode. Today, I will be joined by Mrs. Humlichek, our upper school principal, and Mrs. Fox, our student services coordinator. They will be expounding on executive functioning skills that are essential to a child's growth and learning ability. 
But first, let's dive right into what's coming up. A parent Zoom for grades four through eighth about the Honor Roll School's involvement in the Baylor TIP program will be on Monday, November 10th. Check last week's Dolphin Days newsletter for more information. 
Friday, November 14th, quarter two progress reports will be out on Alma. My goodness, quarter two progress reports. We're just moving right along. Lastly, stuff the bus food drive is in full swing, so send in those non-perishable items to benefit families in Fort Bend. 
This will run through December 1st, and we need to get going because our big white bus can hold a lot. And now, welcome Ms. Humlichek and Mrs. Fox. Hi, Ms. Fox. Welcome to the tank. Thank you so much. 
I'm excited to be here. Excited to have you. One of the things that we know about our students' success at the Honor Roll School and beyond is the power of their executive functioning skills. What is executive functioning? 
And just tell us what that means for our learners. Sure. So executive functioning involves our brain. If I can just give a business analogy, an executive would be in charge of the management processes that would take place in an organization to really make that business successful. 
The same goes with our brain. It's the boss of our body, and it's in charge of setting into motion plans to achieve a goal through managing tasks and behaviors. There are really three parts to executive functioning, and we'll go into these in more detail, but they're working memory, cognitive flexibility, and inhibition control. 
So what are some key skills that we see fall under executive functioning? And how do they show up in a school setting? I think that it's really important to understand that building executive functioning is really a part of child development. 
So as students get older, they are being expected to take on more of these skills. So for example, planning for the future, organizing information, time management, and working memory are just a few. 
It can also, though, involve focusing on tasks or having flexibility to make changes when they're given new information. Finally, executive functioning involves self-regulation. This is also known as inhibition control. 
So managing emotions is part of executive functioning. So really all of these skills are used daily within our school day. So for example, a younger student, they may need to listen to a teacher read a story, and then they may be asked to recall details of the story to answer questions. It’s important that students understand why we do these things. The same goes for building executive functioning skills.
We want these skills to be practiced routinely to show they’re not only meaningful, but that they help build muscle memory. I always tell parents—show them how you stay organized. Take out your planner. Talk about how you keep up with appointments in daily life. Use timers in your house to help students develop time management skills.
Another great idea is to co-create a family checklist—things you may need to take on a trip or to the beach. And really talk about emotions and appropriate emotional responses, because that’s part of executive functioning too, which involves inhibition control.
If you want to go big, think about all the food you’re going to eat for a week. Create a meal plan with your child and have them help you make the grocery list. Let them estimate how long they think it’ll take to prepare dinner, then have them help cook and see if they were right.
Executive functioning really is key in school, but more importantly, it’s an integral part of success beyond school.
If I could narrow down advice for families—it’s to remember that executive functioning develops over many years. If a teacher expresses concerns that a student isn’t keeping up with peers, it may be time to explore what’s going on behind the scenes. Executive functioning can be affected by ADHD, autism, traumatic brain injuries, anxiety, depression, or poor sleep hygiene.
These things can negatively impact a child’s confidence, especially if they’re struggling with organization or deadlines. Sometimes students understand the material but miss assignments because they didn’t turn it in on time. That can really impact grades and self-esteem.
As kids grow older, it becomes more challenging. Executive functioning also involves inhibition control—how emotions are managed and how children respond. We want to ensure all parts of their executive functioning are healthy.
As parents, we can support time management and organization through honest conversations. Model and practice what you expect. Show kids the expectations and why they matter. Use goal-setting to motivate them, set achievable goals, and celebrate success meaningfully. Ownership of actions is important, and natural consequences help reinforce lessons.
Remember, they’re kids. Nobody’s perfect. Have honest conversations and draw on your own experiences—times when you missed a deadline or made a poor choice—and talk about how you improved next time.
If your child is struggling, reach out for support. Email is often best since teachers wear many hats and are in and out of classrooms.
You can find the Dolphin Podcast in the weekly Dolphin Days newsletter, on the THRS app, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Look for the Fighting Dolphin logo.
Until next time—this is Mrs. Quintero, Mrs. Humlichek, Mrs. Fox, signing off from the tank.
This podcast is for informational and entertainment purposes only. All content is protected by copyright law. All rights reserved to SEG Inc.