“I need my binder, planner…What else?” Ellie, a third grader, looks at a visual checklist taped to the inside of her locker. “Oh, my homework folder!” Grabbing her materials, she heads to class.

At her desk, she grabs her planner and writes down the homework for the coming week. After placing her planner back in her binder, she looks at the clock. With three minutes until morning meeting, Ellie heads to her designated spot on the carpet.

How was Ellie’s morning routine so successful?

Executive functioning (EF) support is an integral part of the Quad Prep model. By strengthening the cognitive processes that help plan, organize, and complete tasks, manage time, and regulate emotions, neurodivergent students can better achieve their goals.

“All of our kids struggle with EF in some form, depending on their particular profile. It will impact them in the classroom, out of the classroom, when they leave school and graduate. It is paramount that we teach EF alongside their curriculum,” says Olivia Ordin, a Learning Specialist and EF Coordinator at the Upper School.

“Prior to this year, staff recognized that executive functioning impacted all of our students, but what was missing was something much more comprehensive and clearly stated as a plan for K through 12 throughout the school year,” Athena says. “Our students have a lot of potential, and I think oftentimes their executive functioning holds them back from being able to show that. I'm so excited to be a part of programming that helps them showcase their gifts.”

Throughout the year, Athena built on existing visual supports, including those developed by Sarah Ward, M.S. CCC-SLP, such as the “Get Ready, Do, Done” method and working clocks. In addition to developing and streamlining a new set of scopes and sequences, the program includes robust professional development.

At the Upper School, students took EF classes during the first semester called Bright Beginnings/ACE. At the Lower School, students participate in EF lessons during lunch.

Whether it’s packing up more efficiently or finding a place for all their papers in a folder rather than strewn throughout a backpack, students have steadily improved their EF skills and ability to advocate for themselves throughout the year.

After one EF class, a 10th-grade student approached Athena and said, “I think we need a lesson on procrastination,” so the two of them sat together and created a lesson.

“It was so cool to be able to have this conversation with a student and build something that was actually meaningful to him. He recognized what his strengths were, what his challenges were, and he could talk about it so openly,” Athena says. “That's the goal. I want kids to advocate for themselves.”

Aside from a specified EF period, what makes Quad Prep’s EF program stand out is continuous EF integration throughout the day.

“It’s not that we’re just offering an EF class in isolation and then students are going about their day and forgetting about EF,” Athena says. “They’re going to math, they’re going to movement, they’re going to ELA, and EF is infused in each of those classes.”

For Sarah Ward, this is exactly what makes Quad Prep so special. 

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