Smart but Scattered Practical Summit
On Demand
Smart but Scattered Practical Summit
A comprehensive, practical approach to assessing and treating executive functioning deficits in the classroom, clinic and home.

About this Course
Course Description
MODULE 1 - Executive Skills: The “Hidden Curriculum” that Is Essential for School Success
Description: Executive skills are task-oriented skills that underlie students’ ability to learn. Although seldom taught explicitly, it has become apparent to professionals and parents alike that students who are strong in these skills are more successful than those who aren't. This webinar will introduce the Smart but Scattered model of executive skills, which consists of 6 foundational skills and 5 advanced skills that students need to be successful learners. These skills will be presented within a developmental context so that participants understand the normal developmental progression of these skills. The webinar will also include a discussion of how these skills look different in children with neurodevelopmental disorders, such as ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, and learning disabilities. Module I will conclude with a description of three intervention strategies for supporting students with executive skill challenges.
MODULE 2 - Assessing Executive Skills in Children and Adults
Description: In this module, Dr. Dawson discusses the purposes for assessing executive skills and describes how executive skills may be evaluated within the context of a comprehensive psycho-educational or neuropsychological evaluation. She outlines five sources of information she relies on in this assessment process and illustrates how she uses informal assessment and behavior observations to augment standardized testing and norm-referenced rating scales. She also discusses how assessing executive skills can inform special education decision-making, how to use assessment to identify targets for executive skills interventions, and strategies for progress-monitoring.
MODULE 3 - Embedding Executive Skills into Classroom Lessons and Daily Routines
Description: This workshop will provide step-by-step instructions for incorporating executive skills into everyday classroom lessons and activities. After an introduction to executive skills that includes definitions and an overview of how brain development impacts executive skills, participants will learn how to: 1) connect classroom behavior to specific executive skills; 2) introduce executive skill concepts and terminology to students; 3) create classroom routines to help students with weak executive skills and to foster executive skill development in all students; 4) embed executive skills into lessons for whatever subject matter they are teaching; and 5) engage students in a problem-solving process to address both class-wide and individual issues associated with executive skill challenges.
MODULE 4 - Skill-by-Skill Strategies for Helping Children and Teens with Executive Skill Challenges
Description: While there are intervention strategies that support executive skill development in general, there are also strategies targeted to specific executive skill deficits. This webinar will take each of the 11 executive skills in the Smart but Scattered model and give participants ways to make appropriate environmental modifications for each executive as well as specific teaching strategies for each of the 11 skills. The webinar will also present a process for designing a personalized intervention that is collaborative and student-centered.
(Note: Although ASHA is not listed in the Educational Credits section below, ASHA credits can be arranged with advance request. If you would like to receive ASHA credits for this course, contact us before course purchase at register@handsonapproaches.com.)
$550
Meet the Presenter

Peg Dawson Ed.D NCSP
In over 40 years of clinical practice, Dr. Peg Dawson has worked with thousands of children who struggle at home and in school. At the center of their struggles are often weak executive skills. Along with her colleague, Dr. Richard Guare, she has written numerous books on this topic for educators, mental health professionals, and parents, among them Smart but Scattered, Smart but Scattered Teens, Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, and Coaching Students with Executive Skills Deficits. Peg is also a past president of the National Association of School Psychologists, and the International School Psychology Association, and is a recipient of NASP’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Disclosure: Peg Dawson receives a speaking fee for her presentation. She has no relevant non-financial relationships to disclose.
Learning Objectives
Educational Credits
Hands on Approaches, Inc. is an AOTA Approved Provider of continuing education. AOTA does not endorse specific course content, products, or clinical procedures.
Approved by AOTA for 1.2 CEUs.
Recognized by NYSED State Board for PT as an approved provider of PT and PTA continuing education. Approved for 12 contact hours.
Approved for 12 CTLE contact hours.