Quotes from Richard Guare

Two Dimensions of Executive Skills: Thinking and Doing Executive skills involving thinking (cognition) Working memory Planning/prioritization Organization Time management Metacognition Executive skills involving doing (behavior) Response inhibition Emotional control Sustained attention Task initiation Goal-directed persistence Flexibility

Your teen is probably trying—and trying hard—to do everything his or her peers are expected to do as they mature and face increasing responsibilities. But it's a daily struggle when the teen has a deficiency in what are called executive skills, the functions of our brains and thought processes that help us regulate our behavior, set goals and meet them, and balance demands and desires, wants, needs, and have-tos.

While all executive skills are important, when it comes to teenagers, parents are likely to be particularly aware of the impact of specific skills. For example, in managing the demands of school, sports, work, and an active social life, the skills of planning/prioritization, organization, task initiation, and time management are particularly important.

Working memory involves two different but related skills. The first is the ability to hold information in mind while performing complex tasks.

A related but more complex aspect of working memory gives us the ability to draw on past learning or experience and apply it to the situation at hand or predict future outcomes.

Neuroscience research tells us that the adolescent brain is primed for the acquisition of new skills. Teens are driven to seek out new experiences, more intense social and emotional relationships, and, for better or worse, new risks.

While motivation can play a significant role in teens' behavior, it's important to recognize that some behaviors reflect a skill weakness rather than a lack of motivation.

To evaluate weaknesses in your teen, be aware of his capacity to engage in effortful (and nonpreferred) mental tasks. If he is bright and a good "consumer" of information (interested in a range of topics, likes to read and watch educational programs), but is not a good "producer" of information (struggles with projects, papers, etc.), executive skills are likely involved.

To highlight these issues of development in the adolescent brain, a recent article in Parade magazine compared the teenage brain to a Ferrari. It is fast, shiny, sleek, and it handles well. The problem is it has lousy brakes.

Over a period of 10 to 12 years, beginning around puberty, the plasticity of the adolescent brain allows for rewiring. What the final wiring diagram looks like depends on two factors: what teens bring with them up to puberty and what experiences they have over the next 10 years or so.