🧠 Help your kid deal with papers! Executive Function Tools

As executive function coaches, whether you’re a parent, teacher, or coach, one of the things we do is help students learn these skills. Listen very carefully. These skills to deal with their mess of papers, their piles of papers, their backpacks, their lockers, this overwhelming amount of paper that kids get from school.

You can also think about what I’m about to share in terms of digital files, because a lot of kids are dealing with things digitally now. But let’s focus on papers.

What I teach is what I call the fine tooth combing method. I’m going to walk you through how I do it and why I do it.

First, we have to understand something. For an adult to assume that a kid knows how to manage papers is not realistic. They’ve never been taught this.

Kids with strong executive function skills often pick it up almost through osmosis. They feel a sense of accomplishment when things are organized, and they feel stressed when things are not.

But listen carefully. Kids with executive function challenges don’t experience disorganization the same way. When they are disorganized, they don’t feel as out of control. They tolerate it more. They’re more relaxed with it.

And when they do get organized, they don’t necessarily feel that big sense of relief. A kid with strong executive function might say, “Oh my gosh, I’m so glad that’s over.” But a kid with executive function challenges might just say, “Okay, it’s done,” and move on to something more interesting.

So when I use the fine tooth combing method, I keep in mind that this is a skill set they have not yet built.

It’s not that they need to try harder. It’s not that they just need to get organized. That’s not reality. That’s not supportive. That’s not compassionate. That’s not understanding how their brain works.

So here’s what we do.

We gather as many papers as we can. Ideally everything from the backpack, the locker, wherever it is.

Then we do what I call a backpack dump. We take everything out and spread it across the floor or a big table so we can see it all.

Then we create three piles.

The first pile is archive. These are papers we want to keep, maybe for a test or because they’re meaningful, but they do not need to be carried around anymore. There is no reason for this student to keep carrying these papers in their backpack.

The second pile is active. These are papers we still need to deal with, organize, or take action on.

The third pile is recycle. Anything we don’t need anymore goes here.

I’m not a fan of keeping papers just for the sake of keeping them. Unless there’s a clear reason, it’s just clutter, especially for kids with executive function challenges.

So now we have three piles.

Then we begin the fine tooth combing process.

We go through the papers one by one.

At first, I let the student do it while I observe. I want to see how they think. I want a baseline.

I might ask, “Do you need this?”

And we keep it simple: yes, no, or maybe.

Then I ask, “Why?”

Why yes? Why no? Why maybe?

If their answer isn’t clear or they’re not really thinking it through, I don’t solve it for them. I say, “Tell me more.”

I want them thinking. I don’t just want them organizing. I want them thinking.

Why am I keeping this? Do I actually need this? What is the purpose of this paper?

Sometimes I’ll push a little more. “Would you still want this next year? Would you still need this in the summer?”

Once they give a solid answer, we move on to the next paper.

One by one.

Now here’s what often happens. At some point, the student will grab a stack of papers and say, “I don’t need these.”

And I’ll stop them.

“How many papers did you just look at?”

They might say, “One,” or “They’re all the same,” or “I just know.”

And I say, “Okay, let’s slow down. One at a time.”

Because this is where mistakes happen. They think they don’t need something, and then we discover later that it was an assignment they never turned in.

“Oh, that was due two weeks ago.”
“I thought I turned that in.”
“I didn’t realize this was important.”

So the fine tooth combing method means we slow down and go through everything carefully, one piece at a time.

Once we’ve sorted into the three main piles, we move to the next step.

Now we organize the active pile into subcategories.

I like to use sticky notes. I’ll label them math, science, social studies, and so on, and place them on the table.

Then we start placing papers onto each category, one by one.

It doesn’t have to be neat at first. Just group them.

After that, we put them into folders.

I prefer simple, color-coded folders. I’m not a fan of three-ring binders for these kids.

As we put papers into folders, I keep asking questions.

“Which side of the folder should this go on?”
“Why?”
“What should be in front?”

Yes, it’s tedious. Yes, it can take 30 minutes to an hour. Yes, the student may get resistant.

That’s where you read their nervous system, stay calm, be empathetic, and give breaks if needed.

But this level of detail is exactly what helps them learn the process.

We’re not just organizing papers. We’re helping them build thinking skills.

We are guiding them, not doing it for them.

When adults do too much, it holds kids back. It prevents them from building independence.

But when we ask the right questions and slow things down, they start learning how to ask themselves those same questions.

And that’s the goal.

Over time, after doing this a few times, you’ll see changes.

Less clutter.
More organization.
Less stress.
They know where things are.
They stop losing important papers.

They start using systems. They start thinking differently.

And this becomes a lifelong skill.

It’s not a hard skill to teach, but it does take some time upfront.

Once they build the habit, they start doing it on their own.

There’s less in the backpack. Less in the locker. Less to manage.

And less clutter means more freedom, more peace, and more capacity to focus on what actually matters.

My name is Seth Perler. You can find me at sethperler.com and executivefunctionsummit.com.

I run a summit every year for parents and teachers. We’ve got some amazing speakers coming up.

I want to wish you peace of mind, joy, and connection with the people you care about, especially the kids in your life.

And good luck with that student mess of papers. Take care.