It's Hail Mary Time!

Recently, I found myself listening to an excellent video by Seth Perler, a popular executive function coach, on the time of year he calls "Hail Mary" time : (https://sethperler.com/students-hail-mary-end-semester-strategies/). He uses the metaphor of a sports team making a last ditch effort to win the game as a metaphor to express the type of attitude needed at the end of a semester. Hearing his advice has inspired me to make my own list of ideas for dealing with this challenging time of year:

Things to Do:

• Set aside some time to go to your student's online portal and make a master list of everything missing from each class. (NOTE: If you student is in college and you don't have access to their online portal, schedule a Zoom meeting and have them share their screen with you. You can go over everything they need to do this way.)

• Take a moment to notice point values of all items AND to notice percentages of various categories. For example, if your student has 20 homework assignments missing and you see that homework overall is worth 10% of the final grade, whereas the final project is worth 50% of the final grade, you know where to focus your efforts.

• Consider emailing your student's teachers and asking them which assignments they consider most critical to make up. Ask them what they feel your student needs to do to pull up their grade.

• Look ahead and note any upcoming tests, papers, and projects in the next few weeks. Map out a plan to complete or prepare for these items.

• Consider having your student move out of their room to do homework. Bring them to the kitchen table, the dining room table, or a desk in your study.

• Consider body doubling. Body doubling is a technique that works well for students with ADHD, in particular. It involves sitting next to your student while they work and doing some work of your own. I have found it best to engage in a task that is not deeply absorbing, ie, checking my emails, so that I maintain an air of attentiveness and availability.

• Sweeten the DEAL! Be as encouraging as possible. Ply your students with drinks, pizza, treats - whatever it takes.

• Encourage activity breaks between subjects or parts of subjects - jumping jacks, thumb wrestling, dancing to a favorite song, shooting hoops, . . .

• Reassure your student that grades are not everything. If they can pull them up, great! If not, it's not the end of the world.

• Remain calm - no matter how horrendous things look!

Things NOT to do:

• Do not attempt to train your student in using a new planner or a planning system. This in not the time. (Now, if your student already has a system they like, go with it.)

• Do not ask your student how they got so far behind.

• Do not ask your student to reflect on what they should have done differently.

• Do not make statements such as: "How do you expect to succeed in life?" or "How do you every expect to go to college or get a job?"

  
  

RESIST. RESIST. RESIST all urges to be punitive or start a fight. Focus only on the task at hand.

If you find this situation overwhelming yourself and/or experience too much resistance from your student, consider reaching out. Check out my "End of Semester Executive Function Special" on the Current Specials page of my website.

Hang in there, parents. Summer is almost here!!