Does your child have a hard time planning and implementing a project? Sometimes even we, adults, have a hard time knowing how to plan, get started, and execute in an efficient way. From smaller projects, like completing a craft, a school essay, an oral presentation, or even cleaning one’s room — there is so much executive functioning that goes into being able to envision what you want the end result to look like, what the steps are to get there (and predicting how much time each step will take!), and what materials and resources you will need before you even get started!
That is why Sarah Ward, a wonderful speech-language pathologist, based in New Jersey, created a great strategy for planning and executing a project. The idea behind it is simple! (And so is the execution!)
1) “DONE” – You start with “putting on your future glasses” and envisioning what you want your end result to look like when it is done (how will your room look when it’s clean and organized? what do you want your essay to look like when it’s completed?) You can draw out or write out the desired end result on your planner.
2) “DO” – Then, you determine what steps/actions you will need to take to get to the desired end result (this is where you can make a prediction for how long each step might take).
3) “READY” – The final part of the plan is to make a list of materials and resources (objects and people) you will need to have in place in order to complete your actions.
So, you are planning BACKWARDS! But then…. You execute the plan FORWARDS!
1) “READY” – You start by gathering all our resources and materials before you even begin the first step of the action plan.
2) “DO” – You complete the steps/actions (and can even compare how long each step takes to your predictions).
3) “DONE” – You compare your end result to the “DONE” portion of the plan. Does it match? Is it close enough? If so, you are done!
You are now on your way to becoming a master at planning and executing your ideas and projects! To read more about this strategy and see some examples, please visit Sarah Ward’s website at Cognitive Connections.