Smart but Scattered Teens The "Executive Skills" Program for Helping Teens Reach Their Potential

"I told you, I'll do it later." "I forgot to turn in the stupid application." "Could you drive me to school? I missed the bus again." "I can't walk the dog--I have too much homework!"If you're the parent of a "smart but scattered" teen, trying to help him or her grow into a self-sufficient, responsible adult may feel like a never-ending battle. Now you have an alternative to micromanaging, cajoling, or ineffective punishments. This positive guide provides a science-based program for promoting teens' independence by building their executive skills--the fundamental brain-based abilities needed to get organized, stay focused, and control impulses and emotions. Executive skills experts Drs. Richard Guare and Peg Dawson are joined by Colin Guare, a young adult who has successfully faced these issues himself. Learn step-by-step strategies to help your teen live up to his or her potential now and in the future--while making your relationship stronger. Helpful worksheets and forms can be downloaded and printed in a convenient 8 1/2" x 11" size. See also the authors' Smart but Scattered (with a focus on 4- to 13-year-olds) and their self-help guide for adults. Plus, Work-Smart Academic Planner: Write It Down, Get It Done, designed for middle and high school students to use in conjunction with coaching, and related titles for professionals. Winner (Third Place)--American Journal of Nursing Book of the Year Award, Consumer Health Category

Authors' NoteIntroductionI. What Makes Your Teen Smart but Scattered1. Executive Skills and the Teen Brain 2. Identifying Your Teen's Executive Skills Strengths and Weaknesses 3. Assessing Your Own Executive Skills and Parenting Style II. Laying a Foundation That Can Help 4. Ten Principles for Improving Your Teen's Executive Skills5. Motivating Your Teen to Use Executive Skills 6. Modifying the Environment 7. Teaching Executive SkillsIII. Putting It All Together 8. Advance Organizer9. Enhancing Response Inhibition10. Strengthening Working Memory11. Increasing Emotional Control12. Boosting Flexibility13. Building Sustained Attention14. Teaching Task Initiation15. Promoting Planning and Prioritizing16. Fostering Organization17. Improving Time Management18. Encouraging Goal-Directed Persistence19. Cultivating Metacognition20. Coaching21. TransitionsResources

Richard Guare, PhD, is Director of the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Dr. Guare's research and publications focus on the understanding and treatment of learning and attention difficulties. He is a neuropsychologist and board-certified behavior analyst who frequently consults to schools and agencies. He is coauthor of bestselling books for general readers, including Smart but Scattered, Smart but Scattered Teens, Smart but Scattered--and Stalled (with a focus on emerging adults), and The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success (with a focus on adults). Dr. Guare is also coauthor of The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition, and books for professionals including Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition. Peg Dawson, EdD, is a psychologist on the staff of the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She also does professional development training on executive skills for schools and organizations nationally and internationally. Dr. Dawson is a past president of the New Hampshire Association of School Psychologists, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and the International School Psychology Association, and a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from NASP. She is coauthor of bestselling books for general readers, including Smart but Scattered, Smart but Scattered Teens, Smart but Scattered--and Stalled (with a focus on emerging adults), and The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success (with a focus on adults). Dr. Dawson is also coauthor of The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition, and books for professionals including Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition. Colin Guare, MS, is a registered behavior technician and writer who works with children and adolescents on the autism spectrum and is currently pursuing his board certification in applied behavior analysis (BCBA). Mr. Guare brings a unique perspective to his work, having grown up with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and managed executive skill challenges throughout his life. With Peg Dawson and Richard Guare, he is coauthor of Smart but Scattered Teens and Smart but Scattered--and Stalled.