Are there good APPs for Executive Function? Parents & Teachers want to know

“Is there a good app for executive function?”

This is a fantastic question.

Arlene asks:

 “Is there an app to help kids keep on track with daily living and school assignments?”

I’ve looked at a lot of different tools and apps designed for kids. I was even talking to my friend Ben—he doesn’t build apps specifically, but he’s built all kinds of tech stuff that I honestly don’t fully understand.

What I do understand is exactly what I would want if I could create the dream app for these kids.

If anybody knows a developer who could build this, I know exactly what I’d want because, as the saying goes:

 “Necessity is the mother of invention.”

What would drive the app I’d create is the necessity—the problems I see over and over and over again with kids who struggle to navigate school and life.

Having said that, I have *not* found one app that does everything I would want it to do in terms of really helping manage all these moving parts.

So instead, my philosophy is something I call “Frankenstudy.”

It’s where we Frankenstein a bunch of different systems together that work for the individual. We personalize, customize, and tailor things specifically to the person.

It’s like an IEP—an Individualized Education Program—or an ALP, an Advanced Learning Plan. The whole point is that these systems are individualized.

That’s also the problem with many apps: they’re not personalized enough.

So let me give you an actionable answer you can actually use.

I have a lot of content on YouTube that goes into detail about this, and I cover it deeply in my UGYG course for students and parents, but here’s the basic idea:

For most kids, I probably wouldn’t even start using apps like this until middle school, high school, or college. Before then, kids usually already have enough to think about.

But the tools I personally like best for managing all of this are:

* Google Calendar
* Google Keep
* Google Tasks (sometimes)
* Google Docs
* The Google Chrome bookmarks bar

The reason I like these tools is because they all connect well together.

You can put extensive notes into them, link things together, and build systems that are flexible.

For example, with college students, we often front-load the entire syllabus for every class into Google Calendar.

Sometimes teachers already have systems where assignments can be imported automatically, but other times we manually enter:

* classes
* assignment due dates
* office hours
* schedules
* important deadlines

Google Calendar makes it easy to repeat and organize events.

With Google Keep, you can:

* add links
* create separate notes for papers
* organize long-term assignments
* separate notes by class

With Google Docs, you can create a “home base” document that contains:

 important links
 passwords
 class resources
 central organization systems

And with the Google Chrome bookmarks bar, we organize:

 school portals
 class links
 frequently used websites
 all the complicated systems students need access to

We try to make everything extremely simple and accessible.

Now, I could literally spend three hours showing you exactly how to set all this up, but I won’t do that right now. Still, this should at least give you a good starting point.

So let me recap:

* Google Calendar
* Google Keep
* Google Tasks
* Google Docs
* Chrome bookmarks bar

Those are the main tools we use together to help kids manage daily living and school assignments.

One more really important thing, Arlene:

When you’re setting these systems up, keep this in mind:

 Visual. Visual. Visual. Visual. Visual.

Color coding is huge.

For example:

 In Google Keep, you can make notes different colors.
 You can use ALL CAPS for important items.
 In Google Calendar, assignments that still need to be done can be marked red.
 Once the assignment is actually submitted—not just finished, but turned in—you can change it to green.

The more visual the system is, the more it helps kids stay on track.

That’s really key for helping children manage daily living and school assignments.

All right, best of luck to you.

Go connect with your kiddo. Register for TEFOS if you haven’t already, and please share TEFOS with a few people today.

Have a fantastic day, and take care.