Page 47 - Improving Control Centre (Executive Function) Skills: A Strength Based Approach

Tips for Helping Thinking Speed:

If you are a slower, stronger thinker, there are lots of things

that can help:

What you can do to help yourself

1. Prepare to be at your best before you start – work out

what you need to feel good. Check the blue physical and

green emotional Needs cards – which might be a problem for

you and stop you from feeling good and focusing well? What

could you do to improve them?

2. Ask people to slow down if the information is

given too fast for you to process it. Say:

“Can you slow down please - I do better when

I’m given more time to process information.”

If you are worried about this, work with adults you trust to

work out ways you can let people know your needs which feel

ok for you.

3. Ask people to repeat what they have said and give it to you

in chunks of 3 or less.

4. Practise working faster – you can improve Thinking Speed

with practice. Time yourself doing tasks then work at reducing

the time by 10 seconds each time. Track your progress over

time.

5. Give yourself time reminders – set alarms.

6. Take regular breaks – processing speed gets slower as our

brain gets tired so work out ways to re-energise regularly.

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