Beating Procrastination

Why do we make things more complicated than they need to be? At some point, each of us will avoid doing something that needs to get done. We'll ignore it or find a distraction — anything to avoid the actual task at hand. Adults and adolescents share the procrastination habit. It's not confined to our teenage years, unfortunately. Thus, it pays to have a plan of attack when procrastination hits. This blog post aims to do just that.

Recognizing the Storm on the Horizon

Procrastination, a common issue among students, often follows discernible patterns. Some students postpone tasks when they feel overwhelmed by their workload, while others procrastinate when confronted with assignments they perceive as too challenging or uninteresting. Likewise, organizational and time management deficiencies can lead students to delay assignments until the eleventh hour. Regardless of the trigger, developing self-awareness is vital for students to steer clear of procrastination’s pitfalls.

At Illuminos, we firmly believe in using structured systems to empower students to identify and address the underlying causes of procrastination. Our goal is to equip students with the tools and self-awareness needed to work more efficiently and effectively. Students can develop strategies to stay on track and achieve their academic goals by understanding the predictable patterns of procrastination. In the upcoming sections, we will delve deeper into these systems, exploring how they can help students overcome procrastination and excel in their studies.

Executive Function Systems to Combat Procrastination

We help students systematize success by addressing the most persistent academic challenges, including procrastination. To combat this common issue effectively, we follow a structured approach that focuses on identifying students' strengths and leveraging the four critical pillars of Executive Function (EF): organization, time management, learning skills, and impression management. By understanding what works best for each student, we aim to impart valuable habits that lead to academic success. Here are three tactics designed to combat procrastination:

Tactic #1: Utilize a Binder to Reduce Opportunities to Procrastinate 

Every student needs one essential anti-procrastination tool in their academic arsenal: a well-organized binder. While binders are often recognized for their ability to eliminate late grades and missing assignments, they also play a significant role in combating procrastination. How? By minimizing opportunities for disorganization and distraction.

Searching for misplaced materials or assignments can be a significant obstacle to starting the work. Consider a scenario where a student spends valuable minutes rummaging through their cluttered backpack to locate a math worksheet or struggles to find where they saved their English paper on their computer. These moments of disarray are breeding grounds for procrastination. Binders and well-organized electronic systems eliminate these unnecessary obstacles by ensuring that students have everything they need at their fingertips when it's time to work.

It's important to understand that procrastination is often rooted in a hesitation to start, not an inability to finish. Yes, procrastination has a motivation element. But we can reduce the importance of motivation by removing obstacles that prevent students from starting their work. Effective organization alleviates the barriers preventing students from initiating their tasks. By having all necessary materials neatly arranged and readily accessible, students are more inclined to dive into their work promptly, reducing the temptation to procrastinate.

Tactic #2: Overcoming Distractions by Eliminating Them

In today's digital age, notifications pose a significant challenge to students striving to stay on task. Social media notifications, smartphone alerts, and the allure of endless internet browsing can easily sidetrack even the most well-intentioned students. To address this, we provide strategies for recognizing and overcoming distractions, thus helping students maintain their focus and productivity.

Outside of technological distractions, a cluttered or disorganized study space is a prime enabler of procrastination. To combat this, we encourage students to create a study environment that fosters concentration. The goal is to have everything a student needs within arm's reach when it's time to work. By eliminating physical and digital distractions from their workspace, students can effectively reduce the temptation to procrastinate. Our approach emphasizes the importance of crafting a dedicated study area that is free from unnecessary diversions, making it easier for students to stay on track and maintain their concentration.

Tactic #3: Effective Time Management Makes the Task Clear and Manageable 

Effective time management lies at the heart of procrastination prevention. Many students procrastinate because they feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of work before them. This is where time management skills come into play. We teach students to break down their tasks into manageable chunks and establish a realistic schedule that encourages steady progress.

An essential aspect of time management is the art of prioritization. Not all tasks are created equal; some carry greater weight than others. We help students identify their most important tasks and allocate their time and energy accordingly. This approach not only serves as a deterrent to procrastination but also ensures that students are directing their efforts toward what truly matters in their academic journey.

Accountability and Support: The Keys to Consistency

Combating procrastination involves a comprehensive approach that encompasses organization, distraction management, and effective time management. By implementing these three tactics, students can significantly reduce procrastination's grip on their academic performance and cultivate habits that lead to sustained success. 

Once we've identified these success strategies, the next step is to provide students with the accountability and support they need to stay on track. Accountability is crucial in maintaining consistency in your approach to tasks and assignments. Our academic coaches act as guides, helping students stick to their plans and overcome obstacles.

Procrastination is a common challenge for students, but it's not an insurmountable one. By developing self-awareness, implementing effective time management strategies, learning to prioritize, and building resilience, students can overcome procrastination and achieve their academic goals. At Illuminos, we're here to provide the guidance and support needed to turn procrastination into productivity, helping students unlock their full potential.

We’re here to help! Our one-on-one academic coaching program connects your student with a procrastination pro. We help students develop Executive Function systems that prevent procrastination and maximize success. Contact us to learn more today.

Recovering from a Low Grade

Resilience is fundamental in nurturing a growth mindset, a concept at the core of Illuminos' Executive Function curriculum. We firmly believe that every student possesses the capacity to excel academically. Our approach emphasizes students' ability to take charge of their academic journey, particularly when dealing with the ups and downs of grading.

In the ever-changing landscape of education, unexpected challenges often arise, requiring students to respond effectively. We recognize that genuine academic progress isn't a linear path of consistently high grades. Instead, it's a journey marked by occasional low grades, which can serve as essential learning opportunities for students.

This non-linear, growth-oriented way of thinking about academic progress is especially important during times of transition. Identity problems often occur when students matriculate from elementary to middle school, middle school to high school, or high school to college. A student who is used to getting the best grade on every assignment can fall victim to this expectancy bias when someone turns up the academic rigor. However, changes in external markers (i.e., grades) are not always a mark of a student’s intelligence. More often than not, an unexpectedly low grade is a sign of a faulty system or a misunderstanding of the expectations of the new environment.

Students must learn to see unexpected low grades as warning signs rather than new labels. “Smart” students get a surprise grade every now and then. The key to healthy student development is recognizing a low grade as an opportunity for growth.

At Illuminos, we aim to equip students with the tools and mindset necessary to navigate these academic challenges skillfully. We understand that the ability to bounce back from setbacks and develop resilience is a crucial life skill that goes beyond academics.

In other words, students need a system for responding to low grades. Like any other academic obstacle, a solution-oriented approach serves the student in the short term and the long term. The urgent goal is to make sure that bad grade does not become a trend. But in the long term, a system for responding to low grades helps students develop a growth mindset. Critical to all of the Executive Function skills we teach at Illuminos is self-efficacy—how much a student believes that his or her actions can affect outcomes. An expected or unexpected low grade is the perfect time to encourage resiliency and help your student develop a growth mindset.

This blog post provides a roadmap for nurturing resilient, growth-oriented students ready to face and overcome academic obstacles. Like all the Executive Function skills we teach, the goal is student independence. When students have a meaningful way to respond to challenges, they embrace the growth mindset that has been shown to outperform other measures of academic success. The following sections break down these strategies further, offering actionable steps for parents to help their children embrace resilience and cultivate the essential qualities of a growth mindset when a low grade inevitably arrives. We recommend a three-phase approach: contextualize, examine, and act.

Help Students Contextualize Comparison

Every low grade causes an emotional response followed by reason-inspired action. But the emotional response can overpower the reasonable action plan if a student is not careful. Help students gain perspective early in the “failing forward” process.

Be vulnerable. Admit that you didn’t ace every test in school; no one does. Students need to learn that failure is a necessary ingredient for success. There is something to learn in failure. In fact, it's incredibly useful. Beginning with a realistic look at failure helps students develop a growth mindset and paves the way for a legendary comeback.

Help students put that low grade into context. Demystify the inner mechanisms of the grade book to show that this is, in fact, not the end of the world. Most teachers grade in a way that prevents an all-or-nothing assignment. Encourage students to remember a time when a past failure led to a future success. Quell the emotional outrage that comes with the sting of failure so your student can move to the second phase of this recommended response plan.

Encourage a Scientific Response

As we’ve discussed, a low grade is not the end; it’s the beginning. The most crucial steps in bouncing back from failure are reflection and action. Encourage students to reflect on what caused the result. In other words, what inputs caused this output?

There are so many ways to classify a low grade. Encourage students to come up with a reason for the low grade. “I just didn’t do well” is not a good reason. Dive deeper into the root causes of the problem. For example, the student might have procrastinated. The input of decreased study time caused the output of a low grade. Or, maybe the student thought she understood the material better than she actually did. In that case, altering the study plan to include more objective progress markers would help. Perhaps this assignment tested the student’s understanding of a foundational concept that was not directly included in the study materials. For example, a student in an Algebra II class might struggle if he misunderstood a foundational concept in Algebra I. Likewise, a student might have understood the concepts but misunderstood the tactics for succeeding on the exam. A multiple choice test requires different skills than a true and false test. Some teachers value clear, organized explanations over shoddy but correct responses.

Go through the four or five possible causes above with your student. This list is by no means exhaustive. Create your own over time. Learning to classify low grades makes them manageable. Instead of “I just failed,” the student now says, "I did not fully understand factoring trinomials with a non-zero coefficient, and I failed to objectively test my understanding of the material before the exam.”

Which response to failure boosts a student’s self-efficacy?

Find a Way to Respond

Now that your student understands the problem, it is time to act. Responding to a low grade with some urgency is vital, and one often overlooked step after a bad grade is creative thinking to make up the deficit. As we frequently remind students, teachers want to help. Most teachers provide ample opportunities for students to recover from low grades: test corrections, extra-credit assignments, another assessment over the same material, and informal signaling through tutorial time. Encourage your student to review the syllabus, explore the website, or ask for opportunities to make up for the deficit of the low grade. The smallest action is more effective than the greatest intention.

We Can Help

For more information on how to help your student develop a growth mindset or other aspects of our Executive Function curriculum, please read our other blogs. We offer one-on-one academic coaching services to help students build skills that transcend the classroom. Reach out today to find an academic coach for your child!

Organization for the Modern Student

The first pillar of Executive Function (EF) is organization, and it's crucial for students to develop this skill to effectively manage their time and priorities. This blog post highlights the significance of organization and provides strategies for students to create robust EF systems that help them achieve their academic goals.

As a parent or educator, it's clear how an excellent organizational system can benefit students. However, convincing them of its importance can be a challenge. To overcome this hurdle, it's crucial to help students understand the advantages of organizational systems and how they can benefit from them. With this understanding, students will be more motivated to implement effective organizational strategies.

Pitching Organization to a Busy Student

Organization is a crucial skill for students, and it offers several benefits. Firstly, it increases efficiency, freeing up more time for students. Searching for misplaced items can be frustrating and time-consuming. However, our unique binder system eliminates this problem, making it easier for students to find their materials. In addition, students can quantify the impact of missed points from late assignments, which motivates them to adopt better organizational habits.

Secondly, well-organized students have an advantage when it comes to exam preparation. Cumulative exams can be overwhelming, but a tidy binder can help students take advantage of extra credit opportunities and maintain better relationships with teachers. This can make all the difference during finals week. For example, a student who always turns in work on time and shows responsibility through their organized binder is much more likely to have an 89 rounded up to a 90.

Lastly, organization is an excellent impression management tactic. By conveying commitment and responsibility, binders help students gain more freedom while reducing anxiety for everyone in the household. Most students want to be left alone and not be bothered about school by parents and sometimes teachers. However, freedom is costly, and students must take on more responsibility to have more freedom. By framing better organization as a means to gain more freedom, students are more likely to adopt and maintain better organizational habits.

In conclusion, organizational skills are essential for students. By implementing an effective organizational system, students can increase their efficiency, prepare better for exams, and manage their impressions. In the next section, we'll outline specific Executive Function (EF) tactics students can use to stay organized and achieve their academic goals.

Start with Binders

Most students’ organization struggles involve paper. Assignments get misplaced or shoved into a backpack, where they get ripped and tattered. The best way to prevent this is by establishing a binder system. Every piece of paper needs a home. Our binder system uses subject dividers to achieve this. Then, it goes a step further by adding subdividers based on the type of paper within the subject—this way, when a student knows exactly where to put papers and where to find them. 

Binders are the best place to start with organization because they have an immediate impact and they're easy to check. Students who build and use a binder will notice the difference after just a few days. They will see increased efficiency, better grades, and improved impression management. That’s the goal. 

Organization is like a virus; it spreads. Once a student keeps an organized binder, other areas will start to become more orderly. Encourage this development and let organizational principles spread to a student’s desk, locker, drawers, and school supply cabinets. The more effort students put into these systems on the front end, the more time they will save. 

Organization in a Digital World

When used appropriately, digital tools can supercharge the principles we discussed earlier. Google Drive, Microsoft OneNote, Dropbox, and Evernote all offer features that make organization even simpler. For example, Google Drive allows for easy collaboration with classmates or teachers, while OneNote offers the ability to take handwritten notes and record lectures. Dropbox offers automatic syncing across devices, and Evernote allows for the creation of digital notebooks and the ability to clip and save information from the web.

Students should use the principles of the physical binder to create ‘e-binders.’ This means having a file for each subject and sub-dividers for each type of assignment. By using these apps, students can easily access their notes and assignments from anywhere with an internet connection. This means no more forgotten homework or lost papers. Additionally, these apps offer the ability to search for specific documents or keywords, saving even more time and boosting productivity.

Overall, using digital organization tools is a must for students in today's digital age. By adopting a consistent naming system and folder structure, students can easily navigate their files and find what they need quickly. This not only saves time but also helps to reduce stress and anxiety associated with disorganization. By utilizing these tools, students can set themselves up for success and achieve their academic goals.

Beyond the Basics

In addition to sorting and search functions, these apps also offer the ability to integrate with other tools and platforms. For example, Google Drive integrates with Google Classroom, allowing for easy submission and grading of assignments. OneNote integrates with Microsoft Teams, providing a centralized location for class materials and communication with classmates and teachers. These integrations further streamline the organizational process and make it even easier for students to stay on top of their work. The benefits of using digital organization tools for students are clear. By adopting a consistent and effective organizational system, students can save time, reduce stress, and increase productivity. And with the added features of sorting, searching, and integration, students can take their organization to the next level and unlock the full potential of technology.

Once students build the habit of organization, they can apply these principles to the other components of Executive Function. For instance, students who understand the importance of staying organized are more likely to keep a clear system for tracking assignments because they know it will help them be more efficient and productive. Likewise, students will translate organization principles into their studying by looking for ways to deconstruct a new chapter to make it easier to understand. Thus, organization forms the foundation for all EF skills. 

Closing Thoughts

Organization is the first pillar of our unique EF curriculum for a reason. It’s critical for student success and encourages discipline and self-efficacy. Like many of our executive function lessons, the goal is to teach something that transcends the classroom. The goal of teaching organization to students is to show them that habits and systems matter. Students who use binders and other organization tools suddenly become better students, but that’s misleading. It’s the same student; he or she just has the tools to show their potential. 

For more information on our unique EF-driven curriculum, please check out our other blogs or reach out to find your child a one-on-one academic coach!

Executive Function During the Summer

Summer is a blessing and a curse. When students finish exams, parents face a new problem. What is their child supposed to do for the next three months? Summer creates a problem with unstructured time. Freedom in moderation is wonderful, especially after nine grueling months of homework, tests, and projects. However, too much freedom often creates problems. Without the metronomic force of the school routine, many students fall out of rhythm, and the results can be catastrophic. Summer isn’t just about the summer; it affects the start of next school year. The academic calendar is much more cyclical than many people think. This blog explores the ‘“fifth quarter” of the school year, how parents should handle unstructured time, and the best ways to improve Executive Function (EF) during the summer months.

Two Ends of the Summer Scheduling Spectrum

There are two types of students over the summer: the underscheduled ones and the overscheduled ones. The paragraphs below show the problems with both and one potential solution. Ultimately, the key to boosting a student’s EF skills over the summer while ensuring rest and recovery is properly calibrating unstructured time.

Underscheduled students sleep too much or way too little. Videogames and social media soon dictate the schedule, as many students watch their summer days dwindle without growth or advancement. Decades of studies show that students fall victim to the so-called summer slide. Particularly in the areas of mathematics and verbal reasoning, students lose as much as 15% of their accumulated school-year learning during the summer months. Why? Inactivity. The lack of routine and lack of academic enrichment cause students to atrophy, and it’s more than academics. Many students suffer debilitating losses in their executive function skill development over the summer months due to the lack of routine. All of the gains in organization, time management, learning skills, and impression management are too quickly forgotten when the days become a slew of pool parties, video games, and sleep. What a pity!

Overscheduled students follow a rigid routine. Some parents opt for a summer activities schedule that would put a Fortune 500 CEO’s calendar to shame. With standardized test prep, summer camps, family vacations, and resume-building commitments, many students remain just as overscheduled as they were doing the school year. This is pretty merciless for a student who powered through final exams with the dream of not setting an alarm during the first week of June. In a flash, June and July are over, and it’s time for back-to-school shopping once again. Without an opportunity to refresh and recharge, these students start the year off at a motivation trough rather than a crest. They’re just kids. After all, don’t they deserve a break – some time away from the structure and stress of a daily schedule? Then, there’s the third option.

The Third Option & an EF Opportunity

To help students build EF skills, they need some unstructured time. The summer is a unique opportunity for students to practice organization, time management, learning skills, and impression management outside the confines of the normal school year. By intentionally building in time for rest and relaxation while also providing opportunities for enrichment and skill-building, students can strike a balance between structure and freedom. The key is to choose the right activities and the right amount of free time for the summer months. So what should your child focus on during the summer?

One way to build executive function skills is through self-directed learning. Students finally have the time to pursue subjects or passion projects that just don’t fit the normal school curriculum. Choosing a topic or project, designing a project plan, and executing it is a great way to build some structure into the summer. It’s also a great way to improve a student’s EF skills. This is one of the many summer services Illuminos offers. Students will learn important skills like planning, time management, focus, research, outlining, writing, and presenting, proving to themselves that they can achieve their goals. At the end of the project, students will showcase their learning in a creative way that aligns with their interests.

Learning loss is another consideration. Every summer, students lose about a third of the knowledge they gained during the school year. Because of pandemic-era educational closures, many students are even further behind. Although math and science subjects are the most affected by learning loss, students also show deficiencies in social-emotional learning, compensatory skills, and executive functioning due to learning loss. Saving some time over the summer for readiness and enrichment preparation is a wise move.

High school students can also get a jump on college applications, essay writing, and SAT/ACT test preparation. This can help with the summer slide, but it also provides a goal to focus a student’s academic attention. Much like self-directed learning, students who engage in college application writing and standardized test prep will learn important skills like planning, time management, focus, and recovery. All of these are pivotal to long-term EF development.

These are just a few of the many options students have over the summer. Again, it’s important not to overload a student’s schedule. If possible, plan the summer during the school year. If a student struggles in a particular subject, schedule enrichment and readiness for the summer period. If a student expresses an interest in a particular subject, carve out some time over the summer to pursue it. Ultimately, the activity is not determinative of summer EF success. Striking the right balance between structure and freedom is the key to developing EF skills over the summer.

Illuminos Is Here to Help This Summer

At Illuminos, we believe that executive function skills are critical for academic success, and we offer one-on-one academic coaching programs that focus on developing these skills. Whether it's time management, organization, or study skills, our coaches work with students to identify areas of weakness and provide targeted support to help them improve.

We offer summer enrichment and support for students where they need it most: retention, understanding, or acceleration! We help students balance the need to relax and have fun with the need to keep their brains sharp. Summer is the time when students lose skills they gained during the school year, known as the “summer slide,” which we can help students avoid!

Our expert coaches can help your child build learning and writing strategies, develop Executive Functioning skills, support Summer assignments, bolster subject matter knowledge, and feel prepared and confident about going back to school this Fall.

So if you're looking for ways to help your child grow and develop their executive function skills this summer, we're here to help. Reach out to us today to learn more about our coaching programs and how we can support your child's academic success.

Executive Function During Exams

Exam Week: A Unique Obstacle

Few periods of the school year test a student more than the fortnights that bookend the fall and spring semesters. Students face a gauntlet of cumulative exams – academic endurance tests that measure concentration and willpower just as much as subject fluency. Instead of spreading these academic tribulations over several weeks, schools, largely out of logistical necessity, jam these exams into one week, maybe two. Three other factors compound the threat of exam week. Both of them are related to mental health. 

First, students face immense pressure during this period. In high school and progressively through college, semester exams make up a healthy share of a student’s final average. A back-of-the-napkin calculation reveals a long-held academic secret: the vast majority have more to lose than to gain from exam scores. Here’s a helpful heuristic for high school exam-to-average predictions. To change a student’s average by one point (from an 89 to 90 or vice versa), students must score seven points higher or seven points lower than their current average. Thus, it’s a lot easier to drop below your target score than to improve your average. For borderline grades, the math is brutal. If a student has an 89 heading into the final exam, they would need to score a 96 to break the 90 threshold of ‘A-.’ A mere 75 drops them from a ‘B+ to a flat ‘B’ at most schools. Exams rarely improve a student’s grade. 

Second, exams are an academic snapshot akin to a blood test. Doctors often say that blood tests can be misleading. That’s why they tell patients to fast before doing bloodwork. The healthiest ultra-marathon runner can show cholesterol problems on blood tests if they eat the wrong breakfast before the lab. Similarly, the best students in the class can bomb the final exam. Every teacher has seen it before. A student walks in with a 97 average. She pays attention in class and shows up to tutorials, but the final goes poorly. It’s perplexing, but it happens every year. Maybe they had the flu or couldn’t sleep the night before the test. Sometimes a student just has an off day – the questions don’t make sense in the moment, or they can’t recall that one key concept. Students know this is a possibility, even with the best preparation. 

Third, exam week lies just before a period of deep rest and relaxation, meaning it’s prime time for burnout. The last few feet of the marathon are often the toughest. As the semester dwindles to just a few days, students can become complacent and run out of gas at the critical moment. Anyone who has taught a class on the last school day before Thanksgiving knows what I am talking about; students struggle to stay focused when a break is right around the corner. It’s difficult to focus on exams when it’s almost over. 

Seeing the Benefits & Rising to the Occasion

Despite the ominous preamble to this blog post, exam week isn’t all bad. It offers a truncated version of the school year and a litmus test for a student’s Executive Function (EF) skills. We teach EF skills in four phases or pillars. These four pillars should be in the spotlight during exam season: organization, time management, learning skills, and impression management. Like the rest of the school year, success on exams is about more than subject-matter knowledge. Students who meet their exam week goals focus on the process. They use habits, systems, and tactics to perform at their best. A student’s EF skills are on full display during exam week. Therefore, it’s a great time to assess progress and identify areas for improvement. 

In the section below, we chart a course for exam week success using the four pillars of Executive Function. At Illuminos, we believe that every student is capable of succeeding in school; exam week is no exception. With the right approach, any student can conquer the unique challenges that the last two weeks of the semester offer. 

Exam Week in Four Pillars

Effective organization is essential for acing cumulative exams. Students must structure their study time, responses to essay questions, and approach to test day. Unfortunately, many students tend to overlook the organizational component of exam preparation. The familiar image of a ‘study bunker’ is often misleading. Watch any historically accurate war movie. The bunker isn’t a disorganized, chaotic mess. It’s organized. All of the tools are in the right place, within reach. There is room to work and maneuver. A ‘study bunker’ should follow suit. 

First, students should pick the right environment for studying. Find a spot that’s quiet but not too quiet. Natural light is a plus. Most importantly, pick a spot designed to make good decisions easy – not in a room with a TV, your cell phone, or with an attention-seeking dog. Next, put the right things within reach and the wrong things in another room. The right things are extra paper, a computer changer, water, healthy snacks, and all helpful study material. The wrong things are cell phones, unhealthy snacks, and anything that tempts procrastination. A student who makes the right choices before studying has fewer choices to make while studying. 

Time management is also vital during exams when preparing for the test and in the exam room. Planning study time instead of diving in is recommended. No self-respecting architect pours the foundation before drawing the blueprints. Students should break down each subject into concise chunks with clear deliverables and schedule breaks accordingly to avoid burnout and overstudying. Slow and steady wins the race, particularly when preparing for cumulative exams.

These tactics prevent cramming. Cumulative exams require cumulative efforts, not hours of furious pag-turning. Likewise, students should not overlook the importance of diminishing marginal returns.

Study skills are essential to long-term student success. As a student matriculates through the grade levels, the emphasis shifts more and more toward student-directed learning. In college, professors expect students to do most of their learning outside the classroom. Class time, in their minds, is for clarifying questions and framing the key issues for the exam. Thus, students should craft their own study technique arsenal as early as possible. 

Students who perform best on exams have commonalities in how they study: a macro-to-micro approach, realistic self-testing, and interleaved practice. They focus on understanding broader concepts before diving into the details. They design practical practice tests well before the exam to gauge their understanding. They want no surprises on exam day, so they work hard to minimize guesswork. Lastly, students who crush exams lean on the concept of interleaved practice. Interleaved practice means controlling the pace and space between study intervals to reduce short-term memory bias. A student who knows the material after three hours of going through flashcards might forget it after a few hours away. Changing the routine and creating time to forget is the key to exam-day confidence. 

Impression management, the final pillar of our curriculum, should not be overlooked when preparing for final exams. After all, the exam doesn't fall from the sky; a teacher puts it together and grades the end product. Review sessions are not about learning; they’re about decoding. Teachers will hint at what’s coming on the exam. They will also suggest formats for short-answer questions and tactics for time management. Attending review sessions and office hours also shows teachers that students care about succeeding in the class. Social capital is an excellent investment. 

Closing Thoughts

Executive Function is the key to crushing exam week. You don’t have to do it alone. We’re here to help during exams, sure, but during the school year and summer as well. Whether it’s encouraging office hour appointments, helping to schedule study group sessions, or finding a one-on-one academic coach for this stressful time period, accountability goes a long way to keeping your child confident and sharp during exams. 

For more ideas like this, please check out our blog. If your child could benefit from one-on-one academic coaching, please reach out today to learn more about our services.

Academic Coaching vs. Tutoring

It starts with a disappointing report card or parent-teacher conference. When you find out your child is struggling in school, options for intervention strategies are nebulous. But what does your child actually need to get back on track? In this blog post, we explain two of the most common types of support for struggling students: academic coaching and tutoring. 

Academic coaching is not tutoring; tutoring is not academic coaching. These two types fo help combat different problems and propose different solutions. Parents of struggling students must understand the respective domains of academic coaching and tutoring to support their children. Just like a hammer won’t fix a problem that requires a screwdriver, a tutor won’t fix a problem that requires an academic coach. The diagnosis determines the appropriate medicine. 

Traditional Tutoring

Every student hits an academic brick wall at some point. Whether it’s seventh-grade algebra, high school chemistry, or AP English Literature, academic obstacles are unavoidable. Not every student is built the same way. Moreover, not every subject is taught the same way. The most diligent, capable student will eventually face a class that feels impossible. This is where academic coaching can help bridge the gap between confusion and understanding. 

Traditional tutoring is about specialization. These subject matter experts have one job: translate complex materials into a comprehensible form. Although the range of help may vary slightly, tutors are concerned with results, not processes. Tutoring helps students master a particular subject or score within a certain range on a specific exam. Tutors have targeted knowledge in a specific subject area. Whether that subject is an academic discipline or a standardized exam (SAT, ACT, etc.), tutors resolve short-term problems. They build expertise, convey test-specific tactics, and achieve short-term results. 

The vast majority of tutors cannot or will not help with long-term results. While a traditional tutor can provide a band-aid solution for a calculus exam or the ACT, they cannot help students beyond their range of expertise. Effectively, most tutors provide a band-aid solution. If a student can’t figure out calculus or AP History, a Band-Aid will suffice. But what about students who struggle with more than one class? What about students who get the desired grade but lack the compensatory skills (organization, time management, etc.) to thrive in the long run? 

Academic Coaching

At Illuminos, we look beyond the next test, beyond this class, and beyond this school year. Our goal is to help students develop the critical skills necessary to thrive in any academic or professional environment. Illuminos offers academic coaching. More specifically, we offer coaching in the four pillars of Executive Function(EF): organization, time management, study skills, and impression management. 

Academic coaching teaches students systems and strategies that apply to all classes. For instance, a student who struggles in chemistry and AP English Literature could benefit from two subject-matter experts. However, that might not be the best approach. Looking behind the curtain (at a student’s report card) may reveal a unifying theme between chemistry and English. Students may struggle to turn assignments in on time, deconstruct long-term projects, or build rapport with the teacher. Struggles outside the stoichiometry or poetry analysis call for the expertise of an academic coach, not a tutor. 

Perhaps the key distinction between an academic coaching and traditional tutoring is the expected outcome. Tutors work with objective, short-term outputs – a test score or a final average. Academic coaches work with students to develop confidence, self-sufficiency, and long-term growth. While tutors concern themselves with one class and one class only, academic coaches care for the whole student. Academic coaches understand that a less-than-ideal geometry grade might not be about a student’s fluency with the Pythagorean theorem. Academic problems are measured in GPAs and letter grades, but they result from intangibles. 

A student’s report card assesses more than academic performance; it measures Executive Function. All other things equal, a student with excellent Executive Function will outperform a student who lacks these vital compensatory skills. Academic coaches capitalize on the disproportionate role EF skills play in student performance. 

What Does My Child Need? A Tutor or an Academic Coach?

The information above should help determine what kind of support your child needs. For students who have an isolated problem with a particular subject, a traditional tutor makes sense. For students who struggle with a range of subjects or who aren’t performing at their potential, an academic coach is a smart move. Take stock of your child’s performance. Is it a process problem or a concept problem? Process problems are rooted in EF skills. Concept problems hinge on the contours of the class itself. For almost every student, the process matters much more than the concepts of this test, this class, or this school year. 

Process problems may lie dormant for many years. Talented students who lack compensatory skills like organization and time management often hide their EF deficiencies with raw intelligence or social savviness. They might downplay low homework and participation grades, pointing to their excellent test averages as proof of mastery. Likewise, smart students can mask process problems through a combination of social maneuvering and short-term willpower. These students recover from zeroes and late grades with extra credit and clutch cumulative exam performance. They downplay parental and teacher concerns by appealing to the ends and ignoring the means. “The results were fine, so the process doesn’t matter,” they claim. Year by year, these clever kiddos recover until they can’t. 

In the end, the process is more important than the results. Students who struggle to stay organized, manage their workload, prioritize the right tasks, and garner social capital from teachers, parents, and peers run out of luck. Academic coaching helps capable students demonstrate their abilities. It helps students develop the core skills that transcend the classroom. When a struggling student has the content down, it’s time to turn to an academic coach. EF skills ensure capable students perform at their potential. Skilled academic coaches guide students through the school year, sure, but they set they look beyond this term. Academic coaches, unlike traditional tutors, encourage success beyond the classroom. So, what kind of help does your child need? Academic coaching or tutoring? 

Illuminos’ Research-Driven Academic Coaching Program

We provide in-home, one-on-one academic coaching services for capable students who need process help. We teach students Executive Functioning skills while supporting their homework and subject matter needs. Our flagship research-based Executive Function (EF) curriculum can help your child succeed through our emphasis on core competencies that transcend the classroom. We provide the structure, motivation, and accountability to help capable students bridge the gap between their potentialareport cards. 

Executive Functioning skills are crucial for children to succeed academically and in life. We can help children develop these skills by creating a structured and supportive environment, providing supportive feedback, and encouraging self-sufficiency. At Illuminos, we offer personalized, one-on-one academic coaching that focuses on developing Executive Functioning skills for the long-haul

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your child develop Executive Functioning skills and succeed academically and in life. For more information on Executive Function, please visit our services page or read our other posts. 

Executive Function Explained

Executive Functioning is a term that is increasingly common in education circles and for good reason. However, even with its newfound awareness in social and educational circles, Executive Function remains mysterious to most parents and teachers. Executive Functioning (EF) skills refer to cognitive processes that enable individuals to effectively plan, organize, prioritize, initiate, sustain, and monitor their behavior. According to the Harvard Center for the Developing Child, "executive function skills are like an air traffic control system in the brain—they help us manage information, make decisions, and plan ahead."

EF skills are critical for academic success as they enable students to manage their time, prioritize tasks, set goals, and regulate their emotions and behavior. Students with strong EF skills are better equipped to adapt to changing situations, make responsible decisions, and solve problems effectively. The good news is that EF skills are teachable, and students can improve their EF abilities with practice, habits, and coaching. By explicitly teaching students strategies to manage their time, organize information, set goals, and regulate their behavior, educators can help students develop the EF skills they need to succeed in school and beyond. That’s our goal here at Illuminos.

Executive Functioning skills are especially important for students with learning differences such as ADD, ADHD, Dyslexia, and Processing Challenges. While neurotypical students spend their time in class figuring out subject-matter knowledge, neurodivergent students often struggle with the processes that make subject-matter knowledge possible. For these students, it’s not the ‘what’ of learning that is difficult; it’s the ‘how’ – the EF skills that students are expected to develop as they matriculate through school. 

In the following sections, we will take a closer look at the pillars of EF. Then, we will discuss how a student’s EF skills must adapt over time. Lastly, we will explain how you, as a parent, can help improve your child’s EF skills. 

The Pillars of Executive Functioning

At Illuminos, we divide EF skills into four sections – what we call the pillars of student success. While all these skills are vital for long-term growth, the sections below have a cumulative component. Students who master organization and time management can better implement learning strategies to reach their goals. Likewise, students who master the learning process need impression management skills to truly reach their potential. Our unique EF coaching program helps students develop in all four pillars of EF. 

Organization

Organization involves keeping track of materials, prioritizing tasks, and maintaining a clean and productive workspace. This component of EF requires diligent adherence to systems from lockers to study spaces to binders. Parents, teachers, and academic coaches can help their children by modeling organization at home and providing tools such as color-coded folders, calendars, and checklists. They can also encourage their child to develop routines and set aside time each day for organizing their materials and tasks.

Time Management

Time Management involves using a planner effectively, prioritizing tasks, and planning for homework, assessments, projects, and papers. It is critical for achieving a healthy school-life balance, but students may encounter obstacles such as procrastination, distractions, and unrealistic expectations. Teaching students how to use a planner and encouraging them to break down large tasks into smaller, manageable steps ensures their goals align with their report cards. 

Study Skills

Study Skills involve effective reading, writing, note-taking, maximizing retention, and test-taking with confidence across all subject areas. However, students may face obstacles such as poor reading comprehension, lack of motivation, and test anxiety. Parents can help students by encouraging them to practice active reading techniques, such as highlighting and summarizing and providing a distraction-free study environment. They can also help their child break down complex concepts into manageable parts and encourage them to ask questions and seek help when needed.

Impression Management

We believe traditional intelligence (IQ) is important to a point, but emotional intelligence (EQ) is the edge students need to perform at their best! Impression management is the art of managing the impressions students leave on teachers, parents, and peers. Long-term success is about much more than grades and test scores. This component of our curriculum is the missing ingredient for many students. Developing self-awareness, self-efficacy, and self-confidence creates opportunities for self-advocacy and social capital.

Executive Functioning Skills and School Demands Change over Time

As students progress through their academic careers, their Executive Functioning (EF) skills continue to develop and change. From elementary school to college and beyond, students acquire the skills necessary to plan, organize, and self-regulate. Let’s take a closer look at how EF skills change over time. In the elementary school years, students begin to develop basic EF skills. They learn to identify future events, work towards predetermined goals, and consider the steps required to complete simple tasks. Students also begin to develop basic control of emotions, impulses, and attention. The ability to pay attention to teachers during class time, follow short, uncomplicated series of directions, develop primary control over behavior and impulses, and regulate themselves to follow rules are vital in these early years.

By middle school, students become more independent and able to identify problems and solve them with limited adult support. Students are expected to concentrate for longer periods and to manage larger workloads. Students who struggle to meet these expectations often require adult support to jumpstart their EF skills development. As students matriculate to high school, they are expected to manage complex school and extracurricular schedules and complete asynchronous projects while facing a significant increase in both freedom and responsibility. This is when many students’ EF skills deficiencies come to light. 

There is typically a significant increase in expectations and a significant decrease in oversight during high school. Students must develop self-assessment skills to ensure that these changes result in personal growth rather than trouble. By the time students begin college, they are expected to have mastered many EF skills, even though the brain region responsible for these skills is not fully developed until well into a person’s twenties. 

How We Help Children Develop Executive Functioning Skills

We provide in-home, one-on-one academic coaching and tutoring services for students starting in elementary school. We teach students Executive Functioning skills while supporting their homework and subject matter needs. Our flagship research-based Executive Function (EF) curriculum can help your child succeed through our emphasis on emotional intelligence. We help empower students with Executive Functioning tools to be more responsible, invested, and rewarded for success. We provide structure, motivation, and accountability.

Contact us today to learn more about how we can help your child develop Executive Functioning skills and succeed academically and in life. For more information on Executive Function, please visit our services page or read our other posts. 

Steps After Applying to College

Written by: Wilson Kong

Your child just submitted the last college application! All the hard work earning good grades, scoring well on the SAT/ACT exams, and writing strong college essays will soon pay off. Before you both take a sigh of relief and relax, the work is not yet done. There are still many important activities both you and your child can do after the application process is over. Here are some important tips to keep in mind the rest of the school year.

1. Watch for correspondence

After applying to each of your schools, you’ll likely receive additional emails regarding the next steps. Some schools may encourage your child to open a student portal. Here, you can check the status of the application as well as follow up with other campus notifications. Just make sure to keep those usernames and passwords in a safe place. Remind students to check their email (and snail mail) for important communications from schools. It just might be that acceptance letter!

2. Applying for financial aid       

If you haven’t already, now is the time to start (or continue) applying for financial aid. Seek out merit-based and/or need-based scholarships. If applicable, be sure to fill out your FAFSA. Colleges often use the FAFSA information to determine if you qualify for other types of aid on their campuses. Add all the schools you applied for on the application and review their Student Aid report. The deadline for FAFSA is June 30th, so make sure to mark your calendars!

3. Maintaining good grades

It goes without saying that your child should maintain good grades for the rest of the school year. While colleges may not have the most up-to-date grades transcripts originally submitted with the application, poor final-term grades can potentially hurt students’ chances of gaining or maintaining admission. Keeping a strong academic profile may even open new opportunities leading up to freshman year. So don’t let that dreaded senioritis take over! 

4. Schedule school visits

The winter and spring months are a great time for scheduling in-person campus visits to the schools your child is interested in attending. Even if a school looks perfect on paper, it may feel different spending time on campus and talking to other students. You will also be able to see the facilities, living spaces, and even schedule a campus tour with a group. The campus environment, city life, and cost of living may influence both you and your child’s final decision. Also, admissions offices often track touch points with students because they demonstrate ongoing interest in the school.

5. Staying on top of deadlines

There are so many things to remember when it comes to applying for college. Deadlines are one thing you certainly do not want to forget. Whether they are deadlines for submitting transcripts, dorm applications, or financial aid, make sure to keep track of due dates for each school. Remember that even formal acceptances to a school have deadlines. This would be a great use of those time management and executive functioning skills!

Illuminos understands and supports the importance of helping you take the proper steps after applying to college. Illuminos ensures that each and every student we support academically has the necessary skill set and knowledge to further their education into college and beyond. Be sure to check out our Top Tips for a Less Stressful College Application Process as well for more information. 

Reach out to Illuminos today to see how we can help prepare you or your student for college! 

Learning Differences Awareness Month

Written by: Tatum Bloch

October was Learning Differences (LD) Awareness Month, and as a business that works primarily with students with learning differences, this holds near to our core values, and we are honored to bring awareness this month. This is a special time to be aware of the challenges children and adults with learning differences face every day. In addition, it is a special time to provide various tools, strategies, and initiatives for educators to cultivate a safe environment for different types of learners in the classroom. 

The National Center for Learning Disabilities states that 1 in 5 American students have learning or attention issues, such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia. Whether you or someone you know is affected by a learning difference, it is important to be aware of the barriers and challenges these students and adults face every day. 

We hope to continue to highlight the strengths of all children and adults with learning differences and encourage parents of children with learning differences to continue to nurture and celebrate the accomplishments of these children every day. 

Let’s talk about the different ways we can highlight students with learning differences this month all while bringing awareness to them! 

Get Involved This Month  

There are a variety of ways that you can get involved this month to spread awareness and shine a spotlight on learning and attention disorders. Getting involved with your child’s school or community is a great way to spread awareness. Be sure to have an open line of communication with your child's teacher as well as the school to ensure that your child is receiving the proper accommodations and support that they need. 

Taking action within your community and spreading awareness will help to create a safe space for children who may feel on the outskirts, loved, and accepted. There are many ways that you can get involved such as going to events in your area that support students with learning differences or volunteering at your child's school.  

Focus on Effort, Not Results 

This month it is especially important to remember that children with learning differences may not always receive the highest grade or score the highest score on a test. Focusing on the effort that these students put into their work and not the results is especially important to improving their confidence and giving them the strength they need to grow. 

The key to success is not always all A’s on the report card, but the effort that they put into that project, or the skills and knowledge obtained from the assignment. Focusing on the effort, and not the results is a growth mindset. Focusing on results can lead to comparison of self to others rather than implementing self-evaluation. 

Continue to Support the Children's Intellectual Curiosity

Continuing to support children with learning differences, a love of learning, and curiosity about new material is essential to giving them the support that they need. Encourage them to ask questions, dig deeper into subjects that interest them, and explore different elements of learning to expand their knowledge. 

What Can You Do? 

Taking action together as a community will bring us all one step closer to bringing more awareness to learning differences and breaking those negative stigmas. During Learning Differences Awareness Month, we invite you to be more aware of your surroundings, word choice, and how you interact with those who may be different from you. As a community, we can make a change together. Illuminos is here to support students and parents with all different types of learning differences. 

Final Thoughts

Illuminos is dedicated to teaching students with all different types of learning capabilities to thrive the best that they can. Whether you are affected directly or indirectly by a learning difference, be sure to be aware of the community around you. Learning differences are not a barrier to education and this month is all about increasing awareness of the need for learning access for all. Be sure to check out the outstanding services Illuminos offers to give your student the extra push they need to excel in school. 

The Connection of Fidget Toys and ADHD

As a business that supports students with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), we value the importance of raising awareness and educating our readers on new studies, tools, and resources that aid in the success of students with ADHD.  In honor of October being ADHD Awareness month, we’d like to share the impact of fidget toys on students, and how to properly use them to help students improve executive functioning skills and academic studies.

Fidget Toys are great tools for students with ADHD. The impact on the brain’s executive function process is impeccable. Executive Functioning skills are important for everyone, especially for students with learning differences such as ADD, ADHD, Dyslexia, Processing Challenges, etc. Fidget toys can be a great outlet for students with learning differences to excel academically and improve their executive function when used the proper way. 

Fidget Toys are a great way to create a well-rounded homework schedule and a customized organizational system tailored to your child. This allows him or her to locate homework quickly and use allocated study time more productively. Additionally, learning to effectively communicate and manage impressions left on teachers, peers, counselors, and others are key for your child to succeed. Instead of looking at Fidget Toys as a nuisance, look at them as a valuable tool to your children's success in learning imperative Executive Functioning skills that they will take with them throughout their future into adulthood and beyond.

The Science

Studies show that fidgeting with a toy while working helps ADHD students focus longer and think with more clarity. Fidget toys help the blood flow to the prefrontal cortex, where the brain’s executive function processes sit. Fidgeting stimulates neurotransmitters in the brain, giving the nervous system the stimulation it needs to stay focused. In other words, fidgeting is a way to power up the brain, an adaptive part of the problem-solving process. Every student responds differently to fidgeting, and the amount of improvement versus becoming a distraction also varies.

Potential Risks 

Although fidget toys are popular with students, and can be lots of fun, there are a few risks to consider when using fidget spinners during academic studies or play. 

Adverse effects of fidget devices include:

Electronic Fidget Toys

Always use the cable that comes with the toy. There have been cases of fidget toys catching fire or overheating due to improper charging or use.

Choking Hazard for Children under 3.

Kids ages 3 and under can be at risk of choking on the small removable pieces found on spinners, toys, or push buttons. It is imperative to ensure that your child or student is at the proper age and maturity level to use these fidget devices as learning tools, instead of toys for pure enjoyment when in the classroom for academic purposes. These pieces are often caps, bearings, or washers. Be sure to keep spinners away from children under 3 and supervise them when in play for toddlers.

Spinning Fidget Toys

Studies have shown that spinning fidget toys are ineffective and distracting in classrooms. Using a fidget spinner was associated with increased reports of attentional lapses, diminished judgments of learning, and impaired performance on a memory test. In addition, there have been multiple cases in various cities of students being hospitalized from throwing fidget spinners.

How to use fidget toys properly?

The presence of fidget toys in classrooms can be distracting to those who do not need them to focus. It’s  important to teach your children how to productively use fidget toys and how to choose the best fidget toys for their environment. It’s vital to communicate with your students that fidgeting is a productive step in completing their work instead of something to hide when the teacher looks their way; be sure to communicate with your child’s school about the use of fidget toys within the classrooms.

How do I get the school to let my child use fidgets?

Communicate with your child's teacher about specific fidget toys that are allowed in the class, and the benefits of fidgets for your child. IEPs and 504 plans commonly outline fidgets as accommodations. If your child does not have an IEP or 504 plan, it might be wise to reach out to your child’s counselor or learning specialist. Here is a list of “good” fidget toys features for the classroom:

• Silent: Your child won’t get shushed for disturbing the class.

• Unobtrusive: Children with ADHD don’t want to draw attention to themselves; fidgets should fit in a fist.

• Tactile (not visual): Fidgets shouldn’t draw restless eyes away from the teacher.

• Safe: Kids can choke on small items; some stretchy fidgets sting when they snap.

• Tools (not toys): Balls shouldn’t bounce, for instance — too distracting.

• Inexpensive: They’re likely to be lost (like their lunch bags).

• Teacher-approved: Consult the teacher before sending in new items.     (Source: ADDitude)

At Illuminos, we teach students Executive Functioning skills while supporting their homework and subject matter needs. Our experienced academic coaches personalize our curriculum, report progress, and collaborate with teachers and others in the child’s “circle of support.” Our science-based and research-tested, flagship Executive Function curriculum can help your child succeed through our emphasis on emotional intelligence. We help empower students with Executive Functioning tools so they can be more responsible, invested, and rewarded for their own success. Check out the outstanding services Illuminos offers to give your student the extra push they need to excel in school.