Three Common Myths About Planners, Calendars, and Agendas

Parents and teachers,

In this video, I want to talk about three common myths people have about planners, calendars, and agendas.

My name is Seth Perler. I’m an executive function coach based in Boulder, Colorado. I work with students who struggle with executive function and help them learn how to better navigate school and life.

Let’s dive into the three biggest myths I see.

Myth #1: Giving a Kid a Planner Is Enough

Many adults believe that if we simply give a student a planner, they’ll automatically know how to use it effectively.

Unfortunately, that’s not true.

Learning how to plan, organize, and manage responsibilities using a planner requires a complex set of executive function skills. There are many micro-skills involved in the process.

Typically, students receive planners around fifth or sixth grade. Some students pick them up quickly with minimal guidance and start using them successfully. Other students look at the planner and think:

“What am I supposed to do with this?”

Not only do they find it uninteresting, but they genuinely don’t understand how to use it.

The students who seem naturally good at using planners often have already been developing executive function skills for years. By fifth or sixth grade, they’ve built a foundation through experiences in earlier grades.

These students tend to be:

• More linear thinkers

• More sequential thinkers

• More detail-oriented

• More process-oriented

As a result, planners make sense to them.

On the other hand, students who haven’t developed those skills—or who tend to be more creative, big-picture thinkers—often find planners overwhelming.

They look at the planner and think:

“How am I supposed to keep track of all of this?”

So the first myth is that giving a child a planner is enough.

It’s not.

Planning is a high-level skill that must be taught, practiced, and developed over time.

Myth #2: One Size Fits All

Many schools purchase thousands of identical planners and distribute them to every student.

A middle school with 1,500 students might give all 1,500 students exactly the same planner.

The assumption is that one planner can work equally well for everyone.

But that’s simply not true.

These planners often include:

• School handbooks

• Hall passes

• Periodic tables

• Lists of commonly misspelled words

• Instructions on how to use the planner

Students may receive a brief explanation from a teacher, but that’s rarely enough.

The Problem with “Best Planner” Reviews

The same myth appears online.

People search:

“What’s the best planner?”

They find highly-rated planners with glowing reviews. The creator may have written books, created courses, and built an entire system around that planner.

But here’s the important thing:

The people writing five-star reviews are usually people who already enjoy planning.

They’re motivated to learn the system and invest time in using it effectively.

A student who struggles with executive function isn’t likely to spend hours learning a planner system independently.

The planner itself isn’t magical.

Successful planners work because the user already has, or is developing, the underlying planning skills.

There is no perfect planner for everyone.

Different planners work for different people.

Myth #3: Planners Don’t Work for My Kid

Many students say:

“Planners don’t work for me.”

What they’re often really saying is:

“I don’t know how to use a planner effectively.”

Imagine handing someone a guitar who has never played before.

A guitar is a sophisticated instrument. To use it well, you need to understand:

• Strings

• Frets

• Pickups

• Tone controls

• Technique

• Maintenance

Without those skills, the guitar won’t magically produce music.

A planner is similar.

It’s a sophisticated tool designed to help people manage responsibilities and tasks.

When a student says:

“Planners don’t work for me,”

they often lack the foundational skills necessary to use the tool successfully.

It’s not that the planner doesn’t work.

It’s that the student hasn’t yet learned how to make the planner work for them.

So How Do You Choose the Right Planner?

I’m not going to leave you hanging without some practical advice.

The first thing to understand is that students often choose planners based on appearance rather than functionality.

When you ask a child which planner they want, they might say:

• “That one looks cool.”

• “I like the color.”

• “It’s small.”

• “My friends won’t make fun of it.”

What they’re usually not thinking is:

“How will this help me manage my responsibilities?”

That’s the conversation parents need to have.

Instead of simply asking:

“Which planner do you like?”

Try asking:

“How would you use this planner?”

Follow up with questions such as:

• How would you track homework with it?

• How would you track tests and quizzes?

• How would you track projects?

• How would you remember deadlines?

The goal is to help students think about functionality rather than appearance.

Don’t Expect Perfection Immediately

Even if you choose a good planner, it may not work perfectly right away.

A student might use it for two weeks and then stop.

That doesn’t necessarily mean the planner is wrong.

It may simply mean the student still needs support developing planning skills.

The first six weeks of school are especially important.

Students who struggle with executive function often need significant guidance during this period.

Teachers may hand out planners and tell students to write assignments in them, but that alone doesn’t teach planning skills.

The students who appear to “pick it up naturally” aren’t necessarily working harder.

They’ve often been developing these skills for years.

Meanwhile, your child may be working extremely hard just to understand how the whole system works.

Final Thoughts

The three biggest planner myths are:

Myth #1

Giving a kid a planner is enough.

Reality: Planning skills must be taught.

Myth #2

One size fits all.

Reality: Different students need different systems.

Myth #3

Planners don’t work for my kid.

Reality: Most students simply haven’t learned how to use planners effectively yet.

Remember: a planner is only a tool. The real goal is helping students develop the executive function skills necessary to use that tool successfully.

Those skills take time, practice, guidance, and patience to develop.