Executive Functions
Executive Functions
At Brooklands, we believe that learning is about much more than academic outcomes alone. Central to our curriculum and ethos is the deliberate development of executive function skills – the cognitive and emotional skills that enable children to manage themselves, their learning and their behaviour successfully, both in school and beyond.
Executive functions underpin how children learn, not just what they learn. They support children to plan, focus, remember instructions, regulate emotions, persevere through challenge and adapt when things change. These skills are explicitly taught, modelled and practised every day through our creative, holistic approach to learning.
What Are Executive Functions?
Executive functions are a set of interrelated skills that help children to become independent, resilient and reflective learners. At Brooklands, we define executive functions as including:
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Planning and organisation
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Time management
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Task initiation and goal setting
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Working memory and activating prior knowledge
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Attention and focus
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Self-regulation and emotional literacy
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Metacognition (learning how to learn)
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Perseverance and resilience
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Flexibility and adaptability
These skills are displayed and shared across the school through a common Executive Functions poster and language, ensuring a consistent understanding for children, staff and families.
executive function skills 1 .pdf
Developing Executive Functions Through Our Creative Curriculum
Our creative curriculum is designed to provide meaningful, real-life contexts in which executive function skills can be practised and strengthened. Learning is carefully sequenced and revisited so that children build secure knowledge while also developing the habits and behaviours needed for learning.
Across the curriculum, children are supported to:
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Recall and apply prior learning
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Plan and organise resources and ideas
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Manage their time and stay focused
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Set goals and reflect on progress
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Persevere when learning feels challenging
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Adapt their thinking when new information is introduced
These skills are explicitly taught through modelling, shared language and reflection, and are embedded within everyday classroom practice.
Building Executive Functions from the Early Years
The development of executive functions begins in our Early Years and is closely aligned with the Characteristics of Effective Learning outlined in the Development Matters statutory guidance. Through high-quality play-based learning, children learn how to:
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Play and explore with curiosity and confidence
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Actively engage and persist with tasks
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Think creatively and make links between ideas
Adults carefully model language, routines and strategies that help children to regulate emotions, plan play, solve problems and reflect on their learning. Children are supported to talk about what they are doing, what they might do next and how they feel, laying the foundations for strong executive functioning as they move through the school.
Executive Functions in Key Stage 1
In Key Stage 1, executive function development is strengthened further through our Developmentally Appropriate Approach, which builds on the principles of Early Years practice while preparing children for increasing independence.
Through carefully planned continuous provision, adult-led focus groups, challenges and enhancements, children are given daily opportunities to practise executive function skills in purposeful ways. For example:
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Choosing and planning activities independently
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Managing time across challenges
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Organising resources and recording learning
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Sustaining attention within play and tasks
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Regulating emotions and behaviour during learning
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Reflecting on what has worked well and what could be improved
Adults play a key role in modelling thinking aloud, guiding reflection and supporting children to develop strategies they can use independently over time.
Executive Functions in Key Stage 2
In Key Stage 2 (Years 3–6), executive function skills continue to develop through increasingly complex learning and greater expectations for independence. Children are supported to plan and manage longer tasks, organise their learning effectively, sustain focus and persevere through challenge.
These skills are closely linked to our Big Outcomes, which encourage children to apply their learning purposefully, think deeply and work independently across the curriculum. Through clear modelling, shared language and regular opportunities for reflection, children learn to take ownership of their learning, preparing them confidently for the demands of secondary school and beyond.
A Shared Language for Learning
A consistent whole-school approach ensures that executive function skills are not left to chance. From Nursery to Year 6, children encounter the same language, visuals and expectations, allowing skills to develop progressively and securely.
By explicitly teaching children how to learn, alongside what to learn, we empower them to become confident, self-aware learners who are well prepared for the next stage of their education and for life beyond the classroom.
At Brooklands, executive functions are not an add-on – they are at the heart of everything we do.