Getting started with
executive functions
Getting started with executive functions
What are ‘executive functions’?
Executive functions are a set of brain-based skills that help us learn, work towards goals, organise information and adapt to different situations. Neuropsychologists first came across executive functions when working with patients with brain damage. They have now been studied for over a century across the fields of neuroscience, psychology and education. These functions have been gaining attention as more evidence from research supports their role as a set of foundation skills that can add to learners’ experiences while also contributing to important longer-term outcomes. Evidence suggests that focusing on executive functions early can support learners with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) to be better prepared for education during their adolescence.
The glossary explains some of the terms used in this guide.
The term executive functions was introduced as researchers explored the important role that the prefrontal cortex (the area of the brain immediately behind the forehead) plays in complex thinking and decision-making. It comes from the idea of carrying out (‘executing’) plans and putting ideas into action. This is separate from knowledge. Just knowing about something or knowing that we should do something doesn’t mean that we will do it.
The skills and processes linked to this area of the brain act a bit like a control centre as they guide our thinking and behaviours. ‘Executive’ also has links to self-management (overseeing and managing other skills). ‘Functions’ are the different mental skills we perform. For example, in a busy lunchroom, a child might simultaneously line up and wait for their turn, listen to a friend who is telling them about something that happened that morning, and feel their sock crumpled up in the toe of their shoe. Which of these should they deal with first? Several channels of the brain are active at the same time, all calling out for different courses of action. Executive functions co-ordinate the different types of information coming in, and the internal thoughts and plans a child might have, to manage and arrange appropriate actions in order. We use them constantly throughout the day.
Executive functions are the skills that help us adapt to a situation, rather than just doing whatever we have always done. Scientists have identified three main aspects of executive functions.
1. The first is working memory, where we hold things in our minds on a kind of mental sketch pad. Working memory is what allows us to think about what we just learned. We can consider how the information held on our mental sketch pad connects to things we already know or how it may help with a task at hand. Doing mental arithmetic is an example of using working memory.
2. The second is being adaptable – able to change the way we think or do something when there are reasons to do so. This is called switching or cognitive flexibility and allows us to not stay stuck on an idea or action that isn't working. We use this skill when we explore new ideas and different approaches for a ‘better fit’. We also use it when dealing with several things that are competing for our attention at the same time, like the example in the lunchroom above.
3. The third is inhibition. This is when we hold back on something when it isn’t appropriate, whether that’s blurting out a comment that would be best left unsaid or eating the piece of cake when we are trying to make healthier choices. Inhibition allows us to deliberately control our behaviour, attention or thoughts in a way that helps us navigate a situation.
Our executive functions often work together in various combinations in our everyday life, such as during group discussions about the best plan to help us achieve a goal. These brain skills build our capacity to make choices that will pay off in the long run, whether that’s in our social relationships, in school or in other areas. They are our superpowers that really shine when we are able to be our most mature, thoughtful selves. Naturally, we all have times when we are tired or overwhelmed and we might fall back into impulsive ways or habits because our executive functions are just worn out. For learners, these times might be predictable during the school day or the school week or might be related to experiences at home.
When we tap into our executive function skills, we are thinking about what is appropriate, what we really want to achieve and what the next steps might be. When we don’t use these functions, we might just be using reflexes to respond to things around us. Executive functions allow us to do all of this while taking into account that we live in a social world that is constantly changing.
Watch this video to understand more about executive functions:
What does the research say?
Many studies over several decades have shown that executive functions are foundations for all areas of our lives. People with strong executive functions tend to thrive more academically, socially and financially and have better health in the longer term (see the findings from the famous life course study in New Zealand, for example). In general, executive functions help us in being ready to learn. They help us develop our higher-order thinking skills and they contribute to self-management . We refer to many forms of thinking skills in our Leading, learning and teaching resources, including support for teachers on Metacognition.
Research shows that babies start to develop executive functions during the first year of life as they become more able to co-ordinate their movements and choose what they look at. Of course, babies aren't yet mature and much of what they do is still driven by reflexes. As children’s brains develop and they move into more formal school settings, their executive functions also naturally become stronger. These functions continue to improve right up until early adulthood, often to the mid-twenties and beyond. There is then a period of relative stability, after which researchers have recorded a decline in executive functions in older age.
Our executive functions can also be shaped by the experiences we have as we go through life. They tend to be increasingly specialised brain skills, refined to adapt to the situation. For example, when adults interact one-on-one with infants and young children and respond to them in a sensitive manner, they create opportunities to develop executive functions. On the other hand, babies and young children living in very disorganised environments that are not sensitive to their needs will have fewer opportunities to develop their executive functions. In classrooms, both the physical environment and the interactions learners have with teachers can contribute to shaping their executive functions. The expectations for learners’ behaviour vary from one culture to another, and sometimes even from one classroom to another. These factors can all affect the way children use their executive functions.
As executive functions are brain-based skills that can be shaped by the environment, we tend to think of them as something that might be used in different ways at different times rather than a fixed ability. In education, it is important to think about how we support learners to use their executive functions effectively in a variety of situations. In particular, this might mean working with learners to refine their ‘thinking about thinking’ (metacognition). Metacognition can help learners use their executive functions appropriately in changing circumstances.
What other terms are associated with executive functions?
Executive functions are closely associated with self-regulation. If you look closely at the aspects of executive functions described earlier (inhibition, working memory and flexibility), you can see how these brain-based skills might support the broader idea of self-regulation. The terms are sometimes used interchangeably, with executive functions being more frequently associated with research in psychology, and self-regulation with work in education. (See the work by Stephanie Jones and team to map terms related to executive functions.) Nevertheless, the overlap and interplay between the brain-based skills and the observable outcome is very strong.
Educators with an interest in neurodiversity might also come across terms associated with executive functions. The ‘spiky profiles’ that are often characteristic of neurodivergence, with relative high functioning in some areas and more challenges in others, can reflect underlying executive functions. The obvious example is when learners’ attention appears to drift away from some tasks, while at the same time they might be deeply focused on others.
Different pathways to learning to read and write might be partly explained by working memory profiles. Understanding how executive functions vary among neurodivergent learners can help educators recognise that learners may approach tasks, organisation and problem-solving in different but equally valid ways. This awareness can encourage more inclusive and flexible teaching practices that respond to diverse learning needs. For further guidance on supporting all learners, see our resources on Inclusive Education.
What are the benefits of executive functions?
Being ready to learn
The first way that executive functions support learning is by getting the learner into the right state of mind. We might call this being ‘ready to learn’. Executive functions play an important role in this. If we come into school feeling extremely excited about something we're looking forward to, or feeling down because something has affected our mood, it can be difficult to put that aside and pay attention to the learning opportunities around us. It could also be that something happens during class which causes emotions to run high. Again, these are perfectly natural experiences, but big emotions can get in the way of learning if they can't be managed. One benefit of executive functions is that they can help us calm down when we feel overwhelmed, so that we can focus on the task at hand. This can be particularly useful when things do not go as planned. Persistence in the face of a challenge is a key skill for learning. Frustration is a normal part of being stretched beyond your comfort zone. Executive functions come into play here, enabling learners to overcome the feeling of frustration and to keep trying. The ability to solve problems depends not only on being able to put aside natural frustrations but also to come up with alternatives that we might not have tried before.
Big emotions are not the only thing that can distract learners during the day. Other pupils talking, adults coming in and out of the room, or not being able to find pencils or books are all normal distractions. Being able to tune these out or, in the case of pencils and books, being organised enough always to find these when they are needed, relies on learners using their executive functions. If they do, these normal distractions are minor disruptions that they can easily overcome and then return to learning.
When thinking about the different aspects of executive functions, being able to ignore distractions shows inhibition. However, just ignoring an irrelevant event does not necessarily mean that learning can take place. We also have to remember what we were supposed to be doing in the first place. Keeping a set of instructions or goals in mind and mentally revising them as circumstances change uses working memory. For example, if a learner is working on an essay outline, they need to keep referring to the topic and any resources they are using and update the outline as they make progress.
Having strong executive functions is like having those extra sketch pads in your head. If our working memory is more limited, instead of relying on these mental sketch pads it can help to make things concrete and visual by writing things down on a piece of paper and using graphic organisers for planning writing, or using small physical objects for counting tasks. Working memory is known to be particularly important when it comes to mathematical thinking.
Another aspect of being ready to learn that is supported by executive functions is the ability to weigh up various goals or solutions and choose the most appropriate one. In its simplest form, this might be the ability to prioritise homework throughout the week. Deciding what is most important to dedicate time to is a key skill in more extended projects or longer pieces of work and for the workplace, too. Executive functions are useful for thinking about the bigger picture. For example, this could mean deciding to spend 30 minutes each evening working on a longer essay rather than spending the same amount of time on something with more immediate positive feedback, like chatting with friends. Naturally our impulses would lead us to spending time on the short-term goal motivated by immediate positive feedback. However, executive functions help us to put aside our impulses when investing in a longer-term goal will lead to greater benefits, even if those benefits might be delayed.
Classrooms are naturally social. We should not underestimate how much managing people’s behaviour and interactions for several hours each day can affect learners' executive functions. Learners often have ideas they want to share but must wait their turn. While waiting, and keeping their own idea fresh in their mind, they are supposed to listen to others, consider what is being shared, reflect and respond. Responding to feedback from peers or teachers requires handling ideas which may contradict each other, build on each other or simply put the focus on one particular detail. The ability to consider many perspectives is critical if learners are to be able to make the most of learning opportunities and leave the classroom with more than they came in with. Sometimes this means changing our minds and doing things differently, which can significantly support learning.
Higher-order thinking
The second way that executive functions can support learning is by contributing to higher-order thinking skills, such as being creative, thinking outside the box and not approaching tasks in the same old way. This is not just about being ready to learn but going beyond completing basic tasks and being innovative. When it comes to critical thinking, which is another higher-order thinking skill, executive functions also support a learner's ability to analyse various sources of information, evaluate their strengths and weaknesses and come to their own informed conclusions. Without executive functions it would be very difficult to stop ingrained ways of thinking or doing.
Self-management
This is the third way that executive functions can support learning.
Self-management means making good choices and not acting on every impulse or idea that crosses our minds. It can involve looking after your own belongings, knowing where to be at certain times without needing a reminder and asking for help when needed. It also means taking the initiative, without always waiting to be told exactly what to do next. Self-management involves contributing appropriately in a group. When doing this, we need to consider other people's thoughts and feelings, as well as various environmental factors like whether the conversation is taking place in the corridor of the school informally or in a structured discussion in the classroom. Self-management can look different to younger and older learners. Older learners benefit from being able to plan ahead, prioritise tasks and monitor their own progress towards goals. Younger learners are still developing the ability to pause, think and choose an appropriate response in the moment. In both cases, strong executive function skills help learners become more independent, reflective and purposeful in how they approach their learning and interactions with others.
The Cambridge International report, Navigating the Future: Preparing Learners to Thrive in a Changing World, which includes a section highlighting the importance of self-management skills for students’ future success.
Watch this video about the importance of executive functions:
What are the misconceptions around executive functions?
One common misconception about executive functions is that they simply reflect how far rules are followed in the classroom. Instead, executive functions allow learners to evaluate expectations and assess their own contributions in specific situations. As described earlier, executive functions enable learners to stop and think before acting, which in some cases will mean following rules. In other cases, for example, if a peer group is doing something undesirable, a young person’s executive functions make it possible for them to use their own judgement and not simply go along with the group.
Another common misconception is that executive function skills are a fixed trait, meaning that you are either ‘good’ or ‘bad’ at them. In fact, research shows that different circumstances will make it easier or harder to use executive functions. For example, if there are a lot of distractions – such as background noise, constant phone and computer notifications or other people moving around – you might find it harder to focus on an online lecture or complete a piece of written work. Being tired, stressed or even hungry can also temporarily reduce our ability to plan, prioritise or stay focused. It is more accurate to think of executive functions as arising out of a combination of brain-based skills and features of the environment. This means that the way we design learning spaces, plan routines and respond to learners’ needs can make a significant difference in how effectively these skills are used in practice. This points to the important role that parents, teachers and schools play in helping learners make maximum use of their executive functions.
Executive functions are not only important for the early years but continue to develop well into early adulthood. Although we tend to have stronger executive functions as we get older, everyone can have a ‘good executive functions day’ or a ‘bad executive functions day’. Many of the strategies we use to build executive functions in young children are also things we continue to use throughout our lives. For example, if you have a lot on your mind, writing a list can make this less stressful and keep you moving towards your goal. There is more information about this in our Learner Wellbeing resources.
It is also important to dispel the myth that executive functions can be meaningfully improved using apps or exercising our brains and bodies. We need to practise executive functions regularly throughout the day, in a variety of situations, to see any real improvements. Thanks to the brain maturing after adolescence, executive functions naturally get stronger, before diminishing again in later life.
Watch this video discussing some misconceptions about executive functions:
Practical tips
How can schools best support executive functions?
We can support the school community in learning about executive functions through professional development and communication with families. We have to address the misconceptions about executive functions – that they are often confused with keeping to the rules, thought to be the same as emotional regulation, or are stable traits that cannot be changed. Understanding executive functions as skills in their own right that can be strengthened will help them to develop. Developing a shared language for talking about executive functions in your organisation will support communication between colleagues and with families.
Look at the physical environment of the school. Are the walls and displays clear and free of clutter? Are there open-plan spaces that might overwhelm the senses when trying to focus on learning? Busy physical spaces can be distracting and can drain learners’ ability to pay attention to what is important. It might be useful to do an audit, and think about the physical space in the school from the point of view of executive functions.
Support students by setting school-wide routines and expectations. These may be attention-getters (such as ‘1-2-3 eyes on me’) to use in assemblies and expectations for learning posted throughout the school. Routines and expectations, which we discuss more below, free up capacity that might be spent wondering what is coming next. This means that learners can focus their brainpower, and so their executive functions, on their learning.
How can I best support executive functions?
Research in laboratories and classrooms shows there are several ways that you can support executive functions. A few important ways are:
- regular practice in a variety of settings;
- adjusting the experience to the learner’s level; and
- making connections with things that are meaningful for the learner. This boils down to a number of different strategies that you can put in place.
Develop routines
What does the start of the school day look like? Does each child have a hook for their jacket? Is there a book basket or library that students go straight to, to do some reading while their peers arrive and in the time before lessons begin? Now, thinking about learning time – how can a student ask for help? Do they raise their hand? Can they check with peers? Do students know these routines, or where they can check if they forget?
Answers to all these questions give insights into the routines you have established in your classroom. Routines make everyday classroom activities predictable and help guide young people to succeed in their learning. When learning routines are clearly defined, you are supporting learners’ executive functions.
Because routines make activities and classroom expectations predictable, they relieve the burden of working memory. If learners do something regularly, it becomes predictable, which means they can more easily remember and follow several directions in order to get on with the exciting business of learning. When we think of working memory as a mental sketch pad, having routines means less mental space needs to go towards thinking about regular activities and more space can go to new learning. This means learners can use their brainpower elsewhere.
Routines also keep uncertainty to a minimum. They provide a sense of security so that learners feel safe to try things out in an environment they know. When learners take risks in their learning, such as proposing a new hypothesis in a science lesson or sharing a connection they see between their experience and the main character of a book, they are using their executive functions. It takes cognitive flexibility to consider alternative solutions and working memory to make connections between new information. Executive functions can grow stronger when the comfort of routines give students the foundation to be adventurous in learning.
Make space for agency
Young people's agency in learning goes hand in hand with opportunities to develop key skills such as executive functions. Agency means that learners have a stake in their learning – they are able to influence what and how they learn. As executive functions help us work towards goals, the more agency pupils have in their learning the more they are able to refine their skills of planning, organising and taking steps to achieve their learning goals.
One way to give pupils more agency in the classroom is to involve them in complex decisions. This may be choosing between many kinds of formative assessment or deciding what changes to make to learning stations as the class starts lessons on the frog life cycle, for example. In both these scenarios, the students need to think about the steps it will take to reach an end goal and will use their executive functions along the way.
You can also support learners to reflect on what is working well and what could be better next time. For example, you may encourage students to identify their own reading goals. A student may decide they want to finish a chapter during the reading time they have been given. If they become distracted by their peers, they can make decisions to support their inhibition skills with their goal in mind. Maybe, for example, they can move to a quieter space in the classroom if they are allowed to move freely to support their own learning. When learners play an active role in plans for learning, they can use their executive functions more efficiently.
Giving learners agency doesn't mean leaving them to do things on their own. You can support them by providing a structure they can use their agency in, for example, the CHAMPS model. CHAMPS stands for Conversation, Help, Activity, Movement, Participation, Success. It is a way of setting expectations that learners can refer to while working to complete an activity. Like routines, having a structure to make decisions in means that learners can use their brainpower to focus on their learning.
Watch this video about strategies to support executive functions:
Build in time for play and open-ended experiences
Play happens in a range of ways, from organised games with rules, like
hide-and-seek or board games, to fantasy play where possibilities are endless. Not only can play be joyful and fun, it can also be a time when pupils get to practise their executive function skills.
In many types of play, children and young people have the opportunity to work together with their peers or play partners of any age. Think about the last time you worked together with a friend or colleague. You probably shared your ideas and listened to theirs, holding everything in your working memory to consider how the ideas fitted the project. You may have had to be flexible in your thinking, moving away from an idea in light of new information. And maybe you had to hold back from quickly criticising an idea that you weren't so keen on. Children, young people and adults practise all of this naturally in play as they negotiate ideas and games with others.
Many types of play also require children and young people to follow a set of rules. When learning a game's rules for the first time, we have to move through that game keeping the rules in mind so we can apply them to our next move. This is a chance to use working memory. Linking this to learning goals, some schools have introduced board games as a way for learners to practise their maths skills and problem-solving.
Taking turns in play gives children and young people the opportunity to practise inhibition. When there is a line for the slide at the playground, waiting your turn can mean controlling an urge to push to the front, no matter how much you wish you were on the slide.
Fantasy play offers time to practise the whole set of executive functions. Learners get to use their cognitive flexibility as they switch roles between astronaut in space and member of ground control, each character having different responsibilities in the mission. As we pretend, we are also constantly adapting to new situations – one minute there is a meteor that needs dodging and the next aliens are spotted on the horizon! We hold new information in our minds as the fantasy evolves and we take turns with our fellow adventurers, giving everyone the chance to fly the spaceship.
For some neurodivergent children, imaginative play provides a comfortable space to try out different roles and practise social interaction in ways that feel safe and enjoyable.Use classroom talk as a tool
In the classroom, talk unfolds as learners take part in conversations and storytelling, listen to others and share ideas. The way you include learners in classroom talk can support their executive function skills. (There is more information on using classroom talk in our resources on dialogic teaching and oracy.)
Classroom talk requires learners to put their executive functions to work. Active listening means ignoring distractions so the speaker can have your full attention. Waiting for your turn to share means not calling out and speaking over others. As ideas are debated and built on in conversation, learners are also expected to actively engage with others' ideas, which uses working memory as connections and extensions are made.
When you talk with learners, you are also creating a workable space that you can adjust to the learner’s abilities. Hearing learners' ideas and thinking can help you check their understanding. Then, you can extend thinking in a gradually supported way, such as through scaffolding.
Additionally, just like routines help learners to feel safe taking risks in learning, the way you approach classroom talk can create comfortable learning environments where learners can take the next step and try out new ideas or ways of thinking. Inviting learners to elaborate, reason, make hypotheses and share options shows them that their ideas are valued, and this builds a culture of trust and respect.
Supporting executive functions in the classroom is not about adding more to the curriculum but about shaping environments and interactions that help learners think, plan, and act with purpose. By understanding how these skills develop and how they can be nurtured through everyday routines, play and talk, you can give learners the power to take greater responsibility for their learning and thrive both in school and beyond.
Watch this video about talk, storytelling and play:
Finding out more
Books
a. This practical guide for classroom teachers in primary and secondary school includes an introduction to the basic aspects of executive functions and several real-world examples of how to include executive function support into everyday education
Faith, L., Bush, C. A., & Dawson, P. (2022). Executive Function Skills in the Classroom: Overcoming Barriers, Building Strategies. Guilford Practical Intervention in the Schools Series. Guilford Press.
b. This book features a structured approach for giving students responsibility for organising their own work, based on what we know about executive functions.
Weathers, M. (2024). Executive Functions for Every Classroom, Grades 3-12: Creating Safe and Predictable Learning Environments. Corwin Press.
c. This book helps educators learn about the importance of working memory in classroom learning.
Gathercole, S., & Alloway, T. (2008). Working memory and learning: A practical guide for teachers. Sage.
d. For younger learners, this book explains the research behind paying attention and keeping focused on learning. The book includes reflection questions for staff and suggestions of topics that can be shared with young learners to help them better understand how their own brains work.
Wass, S. & Goldenberg, G. (2025). Take action on distraction. The definitive guide to improving attention and focus in the Early Years and Key Stage One. Bloomsbury.
e. This book explores how the adolescent brain develops, showing how changes in neural structure and function shape teenagers’ emotions, decision-making and social behaviour.
Blakemore, S.-J. (2018) Inventing Ourselves: The Secret Life of the Teenage Brain. London: Doubleday.
Websites
a. Harvard’s Centre on the Developing Child A Guide to Executive Functions offers multilingual resources, including videos, briefs and practitioner resources, covering early childhood into adulthood.
b. Cambridge’s PEDAL Centre Resources on children’s agency (includes a video and academic paper as well as a website with teacher resources), linked to executive functions and self-regulation.
c. Cambridge’s PEDAL Centre Blog on executive functions and their role in games.
d. Cambridge's report 'Preparing learners to thrive in a changing world’ captures the voices of nearly 7000 teachers and students across 150 countries. A unique view of how students experience education today and the skills and attributes they and their teachers think are important for a future being shaped rapidly by technological advance, climate pressures, and shifting global dynamics. The report includes solutions and recommendations to help schools get started in responding to the challenges and opportunities explored.
Academic work
a. This paper explores the link between executive functions and metacognition to support learning.
Marulis, L. M., Baker, S. T., & Whitebread, D. (2020). Integrating metacognition and executive function to enhance young children’s perception of and agency in their learning. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 50, 46-54.
b. Stephanie Jones’ team have mapped out the different terms used in relation to executive functions and self-regulation in case you come across terms that are unclear.
https://acf.gov/sites/default/files/documents/opre/efmapping_report_101416_final_508.pdf
Supporting conversations with parents
Cambridge’s PEDAL Centre Infographic on executive functions designed for parents.
Supporting conversations with young learners
Frontiers for Young Minds – learn about executive functions alongside children with articles from an open-access scientific journal, written for children and reviewed by children.
a. Unleashing Your Inner Superpowers: the Control Center of Your Brain – an article providing an overview of executive functions.
b. A Core Set of Brain Regions Helps Kids Achieve Their Goals – a research study asking if children and adults use the same parts of their brains for executive functions.
Glossary
Cognitive flexibility
Another term for switching – the ability to shift thinking or behaviour when needed, for example, exploring new ideas or managing competing demands on our attention.
Emotional regulation
The ability to recognise, understand and manage emotions in a way that supports wellbeing, learning and positive relationships.
Executive functions
The mental processes that help us plan, focus attention, remember instructions and manage several tasks successfully. They include working memory, cognitive flexibility (also called switching) and inhibition.
Formative assessment
An approach integrated into teaching and learning that creates feedback for students and teachers to improve learning and guide next steps.
Inhibition
The ability to hold back a thought, comment or action when it isn’t appropriate. Inhibition helps us control our behaviour, attention or impulses so that we can make thoughtful choices and respond appropriately in different situations.
Neurodivergence
A term describing natural variations in how people’s brains develop and function, resulting in different ways of thinking, learning and experiencing the world.
Observable outcome
A visible or measurable result of a learning process, such as a performance, piece of work or product that provides evidence of what a learner can do.
Scaffolding
The teacher provides appropriate guidance and support to enable learners to continue to build on their current level of understanding to gain confidence andindependence in using new knowledge or skills.
Self-management
The skills and behaviours that enable learners to take responsibility for organising and regulating their learning or actions. For example, setting goals, planning, and managing time and effort.
Self-regulation
The process of monitoring and managing one’s own learning, emotions and behaviour in order to stay focused, motivated and effective.
Spiky profiles
Patterns of strengths and challenges in which a learner shows higher than average ability in some areas and difficulties in others. This uneven profile reflects individual differences in learning and cognition.
Switching
The skill of changing the way we think or do something when there’s a reason to do so. It helps us avoid getting stuck, and to adapt to new information or circumstances.
Working memory
The ability to hold information in our minds and work with it, thinking about what we’ve just learned, making connections with what we already know, and using this information to complete a task.
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