• September 13, 2018

    Teenagers with School Challenges: Flexibility

    Flexibility

    Flexibility is the ability to change and shift plans, tasks and approaches to solve a problem, complete a task or activity or maintain open communication.

    Flexibility can be understood in a few different contexts. It helps us adapt and manage a variety of situations and expectations. Flexibility can be important in problem solving, in routines, and in social interaction and relationships.

    Flexibility Challenges Can Occur in Multiple Settings

    Inflexibility can pose challenges for a teenager in school, at home and in social settings.

    Some teens may be inflexible in all areas of life, and others may be inflexible in one context and not in another. Teens who are struggling significantly with flexibility may have anxiety or Autism Spectrum symptoms.

    Problem Solving

    The first context is flexibility in problem solving.

    Can a teenager explore different approaches and consider perspectives from the teacher/ classmates/ group work partners to solve a novel problem?

    Some teenagers get stuck. They see a task from only one angle, failing to think flexibly about how to solve the problem.

    Helpful Strategies

    These teens may need to be taught specific strategies to try at least 3 ideas for solving a problem.

    Another strategy is for the teen to teach another student how to solve the problem, and then that student teaches the teen a different way to solve it. They take turns being a teacher and being a learner.

    Flexibility in Routine

    The next related context for flexibility is flexibility in routine.

    This concern may be evident at home when you have a teenager who must always follow the same routine after school.

    For example, he must always do his math homework at the kitchen table, have a snack, and then take a break.

    If you have a doctor’s appointment or a school program, this change is met with stress and sometimes refusal because the schedule is changing.

    Encourage Flexibility

    Encouraging some flexibility in a teenager’s routine is good.

    Certain activities, like getting ready for school or bedtime, benefit from a predictable routine. Find time to vary it up, encourage spontaneity and try new things with your teenager.

    Flexibility Challenges at School

    Inflexibility in routines and schedules can also cause challenges at school if changes occur. For example, an assembly, a fire drill, or a substitute teacher may alter the flow of the day, the routine, and the expectations.

    These changes can cause frustration and stress in a teenager who is inflexible.

    At school, it can be possible to create choices for a student who struggles in these situations. Allow a student to select preferred seating at an assembly or to leave the class early for a fire drill. Provide notice that the teacher is out sick, and have the student choose to stay in the classroom or take his reading to the library.

    Provide Choices

    A very inflexible teenager may need choices built into the day when schedule changes or other differences in the day may provoke anxiety.

    Some schools will be accommodating no matter what. Others may require a Section 504 plan noting the presence of a disability, like anxiety or autism, to provide accommodations for these changes in routine.

    Social Interactions and Relationships

    The third type of flexibility is important in social interactions and relationships.

    An inflexible teenager may feel misunderstood by a certain teacher and may refuse to work on the relationship. Some teenagers struggle to see the perspective of others, to take the time to understand differences of opinion. Teens who are inflexible in relationships tend to feel they are always right.

    Teenagers with autism especially need to feel like a teacher understands and respects their point of view; otherwise they often discount a teacher and don’t try to learn from them. These teens may also have conflict with others who have differing opinions and perspectives.

    Teaching Life Lessons

    Flexibility to be able to listen to teachers, classmates, friends and parents and to consider other perspectives and opinions helps build relationships. Helping teenagers see the value in hearing all sides of an issue will improve their ability to build relationships.

    If your teenager struggles significantly with social interactions and relationships, a counselor or school psychologist-led social group may be helpful. Teenagers must practice being collaborative and learning from each other; learning social flexibility is an important life lesson.

    If your teenager has considerable difficulty with any or all aspects of flexibility, try some of these strategies. See CLEAPE for other free ideas and strategies: https://cleape.com/organizing/flexibility/ https://cleape.com/behaving/rigid-behavior/ https://cleape.com/socializing/perspective-taking/.

    Connect with CLEAR

    If you need more support or believe your child might have a disability, like autism or anxiety, CLEAR Child Psychology can help. Call or email today to schedule a consultation.

    Contact CLEAR today by calling 303-222-7923 or visiting our website at www.clearchildpsychology.com.

     

  • September 4, 2018

    Teenagers with School Challenges: Executive Functioning

    Executive Functioning is a fancy term to refer to challenges with planning, initiating, executing and organizing tasks and information.

    When students move into high school, they are expected to independently navigate a schedule of 5-8 classes, all with different timelines, expectations and assignments. Students must keep up with materials, deadlines and schedules to be sure work is submitted on time to the right teacher in the right format.

    Even with the websites and emails and ways to track and schedule using technology, these skills are not easy for any of us (adults included).

    Teens Get Overwhelmed

    For some teenagers, these tasks feel daunting and overwhelming.

    Many teenagers just give up.

    Others try their best but fail to execute a complete plan. They may do the work but never turn it in at school.

    Parents are scratching their heads or yelling in frustration. “Why are you failing math?” “Where is your missing geography homework?”

    How to Help Your Teen

    It is most helpful when a student can have just enough support to learn these skills.

    A teenager needs to experience success to have the motivation to keep trying. For some teens, this support means having a teacher or mentor who helps them make a schedule and checks in weekly on the assignments and progress.

    Taking big projects and breaking them into manageable chunks with due dates for each part can help a teen maintain organization.

    Teens, Teachers, and Parents Working Together

    A teacher or mentor also needs to have some email communication with both the teenager and a parent so that a teen can have support at home in meeting deadlines. This small team can really help scaffold executive functioning skills for a teenager.

    Students with learning disabilities, ADHD or Autism tend to have impaired executive functioning skills already, making this process more difficult than it is for teenagers who have fully functioning prefrontal cortexes. Often, schools are willing to be more accommodating and provide more scaffolding and support for those students who have a disability.

    Connect with CLEAR

    If you think your child might be struggling more than other students with executive functioning skills, CLEAR Child Psychology can help. We can assess skills to see if a disability is present and/or consult with families to work out a plan to tackle these issues.

    Also, on our companion website CLEAPE, we offer free articles on “organizing” that provide more information and strategies to parents and teens. www.cleape.com

    Don’t let your teenager put his or her head in the sand. Executive functioning is an important life skill. Get help before challenges escalate and grades start to fall.

    Help your student achieve success, build skills and maintain high motivation.

    Contact CLEAR today at 303-222-7923 or visit our website at www.clearchildpsychology.com.

  • July 10, 2018

    Authors of Cleape Launch Psychology Practice: Clear Child Psychology

    Summer 2018: Grand opening for new psychology practice from the authors of Cleape. CLEAR Child Psychology is based in Colorado, but is a primarily web-based clinical psychology practice that makes Clinical expertise accessible and reliable (CLEAR). A team of psychologists started full time this summer with the mission to help 1 million families find the right help for their kids.  Visit the site at clearchildpsychology. To learn more about what psychologists do see https://cleape.com/professionals/licensed-psychologist/.

    Here on cleape readers have FREE access to a wide variety of resources and psychological information. For example, learn about processing speed and what it means for your child here https://cleape.com/understanding/processing-speed/ 

    Cleape is free and will always be free. CLEAR is a psychology business offering up fee-based services for kids and their parents who have concerns about mental health, development, or education.