Executive Function Deficit&Game&Autism

EXECUTIVE FUNCTİON DEFICIT&PREMATURE BABIES&GAME&AUTISM

IT IS MAYBE YOU,MAYBE YOUR CHILD

Executive function (EF) is a set of mental processes that helps people to connect past experience with present action. EF allows us to make plans,to keep track on time finish work on time (organizing), strategizing,paying attention to,to remember details,to ask for help or seek for more information when needed,to engage group dynamics,to wait to speak until we are called on etc.

The brain's Executive Functions

The children who are born prematurelly might result in negative outcomes such as motor disabilities,sensory disabilities,celebral palsy,learning difficulties,behavioral and emotional problems and cognitive impairment. Many studies showed that children with very low birth weight (VLBW less than 2500g) are at high risk of executive function deficit and these children (after controlling the IQ factor) remained significantly poorer in performance on math and reading comprehension. These studies suggested that VLBW children are poor readers and they appeared to be at long term pettiness among peers in the areas of cognitive and educational performance.

Researchers found outh that although normal motor development and lack of evidence brain disorders,three to four year old children born with low birth weight had deficits in continious attention,visouspatial processing and spatial working memory. Researchers also reported that extremely preterm children (birth weight less than 1000g) without celebral palsy at the age of 4 years 6 months to 5 years 6 months had degretation in motor,sensorimotor and visuospatial functions including motor persistance inhibition,planning,and self-regulation. These degretations also caused poor classroom performance at 6 years of age. The children who are born with extremely low birth weight at 8 year old showed up global EF deficits ,n reasonability,working memory,planning and organizational ability and strategic desicion making.

The findings supported the presence of EF deficits that may be largely related to defuse white matter of pathology and frontal lobe regions abnormalities causing high risk of EF deficits in very preterm or ELBW children. I have to admit that ''normal development'' can not be defined precisely enough. That's why the mental performances of children at age 6 may still be effected early neurodevelopmental status caused by prematurity.

The studies have provided strong evidence of EF deficits in preterm children and even into young adulthood. Abnormal development in VLBW preterm children whether normal development in early life in VLBW preterm infants have normal EF remains unknown.

 

GAMES: A GREAT WAY TO STRENGTHEN EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING SKILLS AT ANY AGE 

What are the intersections between playing games and the development of EF? 

When it comes to executive function skills we must remember that we are not born with these skills intact and ready to go. Instead, we have the potential to develop these very important biologically based foundational skills for school and life readiness. As a child ages, they gain these very important skills as the pre-frontal cortex of their brain matures and forms/connect neural pathways based upon experiences. As they approach adolesence,these connections are fine tuned and perfected. When scientists and therapists try to relate the research more 'user friendly' ways to improve executive function skills,they continue to come back to area play. Structed and unstructed play continues to one of the best ways to form and strengthen executive function skills.

For children main contributions are to identify within the game contex, what is the problem, how he/she can deal with it, and which are sufficient intervations to help he/she to exceed it. Observing,discussing,interpretting and finding solutions are what one has to go through during match.When child plays he/she lead to find out about the importance of presaging and thinking before acting.He/she learns to continue an improve the performance because there is a wish for self improvement. It is important to note these three structures; practice, symbolic and rule.One includes the other,being successive-inclusive stages.

Scientists made a project in a groups of 12 children from 7 to 11 years old of age.They have senn the children at the laboratory once a week during 3 semesters. Professionals observed them when they were talking,playing and sharing ideas with others,discussing rules and challenging them to explain their actions aiming at finding better strategies. Four important perspectives are taken into account and they are; motor and space organization, emotional reactions,cognitive development and socail relations.The second step of the project conduct to each child to become more conscious of the actions and proceedings that were favorable or not favorable to solve problems and answer questions. The main point of the project is not to bacome a good player but develop gaming skills such as attention,organizationand planning. We can state that the participants who were holded in the project and also the children without serious neurogical damages in brain functioning , really became students with better resources to deal with different challenges and developed more sufficient attitudes.

It's a intention with this blog to demonstrate how three common games can be used to help executive function skills . Let's take a look at three games. (one board,one card,one movement game)

Checkers: EF skills addressed impulse control,cognitive flexibility,emotional requlation,sustained attention,task initation,working memory,planning,self-monitoring.

Example of technique for a parent /teacher: '' If you move your checker there, i can double jump you. A better idea might be to move this piece.''

UNO: EF skills assressed impulse control,cognitive flexibility,emotional requlation,sustained attention,task initation,working memory,planning,self-monitoring.

Red light-green light: impulse control,cognitive flexibility,emotional requlation,sustained attention,task initation,working memory,planning,self-monitoring. (change the rules, use the yellow light for a walking)

Example technique for a parent/teacher: Parent/teacher can physically more with a child who is having difficulty with the rules. Than, physical support may be fdded to only a visual signal to indicate go/stop.

A practical guide to autism: What every parent/family member/teacher needs to know??

I find necessary to add some words about autism too. As far as we know executive function deficit is a hard issue to deal with. Imagine the child with autism.Thus,there is some tricks that we all need to know as a parent,family member or as a teacher.

When the parents learn their child has autism they want to know. They find necessary to learn about the steps which they should take and they turn for guidance in better understanding their child's condition,reducing their symptoms and supporting their child's development.

You can find too many good books about autism as a guide for you but,most books are narrower scope than Volkmar and Wiesner's, A practical guide to autism:What every parent, family member and teacher needs to know. Theirs is the most comprehensive, authoritive book avalible for parents, teachers and the book covers birth to young adulthood.We can basically say that the book is quite heavy like 610 pages but don't worry, read the book in small doses as the doctors says ''take as needed''.

Dr. Volkmar was the primary author of the American PSychiatric Assosiation's PSM-IV autism and pervasive developmental disorders section and he is one of the world's faremost authors on autismi so it is not a suprise the book is highly trustworthy.But when he is together with his co-author Lisa Wiesner, a practicing pediatrician, they created a book very parent-friendly style.

The first 9 chapters talks about the issues such as what is autism,screening and diagnosis,obtaining services,educational interventions and working with young children, school age and young adults with autism. In the chapter on medical issues; how to recognize your child is in pain and gastrointestinal problems are discussed,including unusual food preferences and sensitivities. The issues are presented in all of their complexity but translated into language that is clear, direct and easy to follow. The format also lend it self to understanding the complex issues and their implications through excellent charts, question and answer sections and chapter that vary from describing diognostic issues to stating very specifically how to expand and evaluate the services one is recieving.