De Facto Leaders

Most of us know that it’s important to work on vocabulary in language and literacy intervention? But how do we know what words to pick? Should we be working on specific words, or should we be focusing on strategies? If we DO work on words, how can we possibly keep up with the pace of the curriculum (and should we even try)? I get these questions ALL the time from SLPs and other professionals supporting language and literacy, which is why this is something I help you navigate in both my Vocabulary Foundation and Language Therapy Advance Foundations program. In episode 240 of De Facto Leaders, I share how I answer these questions about prioritization, vocabulary selection, and word-learning strategies. In this episode, I mentioned Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that helps SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ You can check out the Vocabulary Foundation and other programs in my language therapy suite on my products and services page here: https://drkarenspeech.com/products-and-services/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Every time I look into research on the summer slide, I get more confused. It’s no wonder professionals and families are scrambling every May as they think about how kids should be spending their time in the summer. I’ve intended to do a deep dive into the research and gain a better understanding of how significant the “slide” is, for who, and what, exactly, is sliding. At the time I’m writing this, I still don’t feel I’ve done that. What I can do is speak to what I DO understand, which is why I wanted to share my commentary and a clip from my interview with my colleague, David Schipper, as we discuss our conclusions on the “summer slide”. At the end of the interview, I ended up with more questions than answers, but we both came to the conclusion that kids who are already behind will benefit from consistent, explicit intervention, and that we’d both want to take advantage of time available to close gaps in students who are already behind at the end of the school year. David Schipper is the director of Strategic Learning Clinic, a position he has held since 2013. David obtained a B.A. in English Literature from Concordia University in 1998 as well as a B.Ed. in Secondary Education (English and History) from McGill University in 2002. After some work as a local teacher in Montreal, David founded 2Torial Educational Centre in 2007. Aside from his ability to put both parents and students at ease, David is able to help families get to the root of the problem(s) and propose the most suitable programs to resolve these issues. As a father of two children, David knows how to relate to the concerns of parents and as an experienced educator and passionately understands the struggles of students. His passion and dedication to teaching and learning is second to none. Here are some questions and discussion points from this episode: ✅ Why we need to think about the summer in the preceding fall, not in May. ✅ Looking at cumulative gains over the entire year rather than focusing on ONE time period. ✅ Some students are already behind when summer starts. So how much time should we spend debating if a “slide” exists”? In this episode, I mention the School of Clinical Leadership, my program for related service providers who want to take a leadership role in implementing executive functioning support. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership I also mentioned Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that gives SLPs and other service providers a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ You can connect with David on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-schipper-1537972a/ You can learn more about Strategic Learning Clinic on their website here: https://strategiclearning.ca/, on their Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/SLCStrategicLearningClinic, or on Instagram @strategiclearningclinic (https://www.instagram.com/strategiclearningclinic/). We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

The idea that exposing kids to enriching literacy and play-based experiences will effectively teach them to read and write sounds nice on paper. Unfortunately, it’s not in-line with the large and growing body of evidence that suggests that kids need direct, explicit instruction to learn to read, write, and spell. Sure, a select group of fortunate students will learn to read and write implicitly through exposure alone. But curricular decisions shouldn’t be based on what benefits a small percentage of their student population. That’s why in this episode, I share a clip and my commentary on my interview with Dr. Pamela Snow. Pamela Snow is a Professor of Cognitive Psychology in the School of Education at the Bendigo campus of La Trobe University, Australia. She is also Co-Director of the Science of Language and Reading (SOLAR) Lab. Pamela is a registered psychologist, having qualified originally in speech-language pathology and has taught a wide range of undergraduate and postgraduate education and health professionals. Her research has been funded by nationally competitive schemes such as the ARC Discovery Program, ARC Linkage Program, and the Criminology Research Council, and concerns the role of language and literacy skills as academic and mental health protective factors in childhood and adolescence. She has conducted research on the profiles and needs of high-risk groups such as youth offenders, children and adolescents in the state care system and flexible education systems, as well as research advancing evidence in the language-to-literacy transition in the early years of school. In this conversation, we discuss the need for nuance as it pertains to practices such as play-based instruction and project-based learning, and why these methods should be used in conjunction with direct reading instruction, not instead of. Dr. Snow also explains the difference between biologically primary and biologically secondary skills, and why this distinction matters when it comes to literacy instruction. Discussion points from this episode: ✅ Play-based learning vs. early reading instruction: Why they aren’t in opposition. ✅ Using explicit instruction to build skills needed for problem-solving and successful project-based learning. ✅ Whose job is it to work on reading? How much is the responsibility of the schools, and what is the parent’s job? You can listen to my original interview with Dr. Snow on the De Facto Leaders podcast here: EP 158: Literacy and background knowledge: Essential skills for life (with Dr. Pamela Snow) Link here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/ep-158-literacy-and-background-knowledge-essential-skills-for-life-with-dr-pamela-snow/ You can connect with Dr. Snow on X (formerly Twitter) @pamelasnow2 (https://twitter.com/PamelaSnow2) or on her blog at: http://pamelasnow.blogspot.com/ You can also learn more about her work on her La Trobe University page at: https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/pcsnow You can learn more about the Science of Language and Reading (SOLAR) lab at: https://www.latrobe.edu.au/school-education/about/spotlight In this episode, I mention Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that helps SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

When schools respond to “behavior problems” in students, the focus is often on the symptom, not the cause. Failing to look beyond the surface behavior does a disservice to students, which is why in this episode I share commentary and a clip from my conversation with Dr. Shameka Stewart on the school-to-confinement pipeline. Dr. Shameka Stewart is an Associate Professor of Communication Sciences and Disorders and the Juvenile Forensic Speech-Language Pathologist(r). Dr. Stewart is also a special education advocate trained by the Wright’s Law training center. Dr. Stewart’s clinical and scholarly work specializes in Juvenile Forensics, Law Enforcement Interaction with youth with CD, child language disorders, and augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). Her primary research focuses on the Confluence and Impact of cognitive and communication disorders on the school-to-confinement pipeline, status offenses, involvement with the criminal justice system, law enforcement interaction, and criminal recidivism in youth placed at-risk for delinquency and crime (especially Black and Brown youth from under-resourced areas). Dr. Stewart is also a clinically certified and licensed speech-language pathologist and is licensed to practice in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and multiple other states. Through her work, Dr. Stewart has created cutting edge social justice and juvenile justice specialty courses for graduate CSD students, nationally known training programs for law enforcement and legal counsel, and national and international CE workshops and training for licensed SLP clinicians, students, and families of children with special needs. Discussion points from this episode include: ✅The relationship between reading challenges and the school-to-confinement pipeline. ✅Why “behavior problems” could be related to language processing, reading, or writing challenges. ✅“They should know better”: Why we can’t assume kids comprehend language in the school discipline handbook. If you’re working with students in K-12 of any age, this episode is a must-listen. You can listen to the original interview with Dr. Stewart on the De Facto Leaders podcast here: EP 180: The relationship of literacy and language skills and involvement with the justice system (with Dr. Shameka Stewart) Link here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/ep-180-the-relationship-of-literacy-and-language-skills-and-involvement-with-the-justice-system-with-dr-shameka-stewart/ You can connect with Dr. Stewart on her website here: www.juvforensicslp.com Connect with her on Instagram @drjuvenile_forensicslp (link here: http://drjuvenile_forensicslp/) Join her Facebook group SLPs 4 Juvenile Justice here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1226771284165745/members In this episode, I mention Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that helps SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

“We don’t need to work on decoding because students have access to assistive technology and accommodations.” “We don’t work on word-decoding in high school.” “Working on reading in high school is too little too late.” If you’ve ever heard any of these arguments, you’re not alone. Unfortunately, beliefs like these do students a huge disservice. That’s why in this conversation, I share a clip from my interview with Tom Parton, an SLP with a long-career of experience in secondary education, as well as literacy advocacy work. Tom Parton is a private Speech Language Pathologist in Normal, Illinois. He retired after 35 years of public-school practice. Tom is President of Everyone Reading Illinois and is a member of ERI’s Legislative Committee. Tom has presented on autism and language/literacy topics at local, state, and national conferences. Tom participated in the ISBE Reading Instruction Advisory Group and Teachers of Reading Certification task forces. He is currently a member of the ISBE Dyslexia Handbook revision team. He is past-president of the Illinois Speech-Language-Hearing Association and is ISHA Honors Committee co-chair and a member of ISHA’s Leadership Development Committee. Tom is the 2024 chair of the American Speech Language Hearing Association Committee of Ambassadors. In my commentary and the clip from the interview, you’ll hear discussion on: ✅ Why providing access to technology alone won’t solve access issues if kids lack adequate reading and spelling skills. ✅ Why accommodations and modifications aren’t a substitute for reading instruction, even in secondary school. ✅ The impact of word-decoding on activities of daily living. If you’re serving students in secondary school, you won’t want to miss this episode. You can listen to the original interview with Tom on De Facto Leaders here: EP 178: Are we allowed to say “dyslexia” in the schools? (with Tom Parton) Link here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/ep-178-are-we-allowed-to-say-dyslexia-in-the-schools-with-tom-parton/ In this episode, I mention Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that helps SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

In this episode, I reflect on my conversation with my colleague Cassandra Williams as we discuss book and resource deserts, as well as how to engage with school communities. In the interview clip I share, Cassandra shares a story of how one of her colleagues found a surprising way to increase attendance at parent-teacher conferences when he took the time to ask members of the community what their needs were. Additionally, I share my commentary on how technology can both help and hinder literacy skills. Cassandra Williams is a true innovator in the education field, having dedicated over 25 years of her life to revolutionizing existing systems and setting new standards of excellence. With a degree in Elementary Education from Southern Illinois University and a Master’s from California State University, she is also the founder of two successful elementary schools in Indianapolis. Her research has focused on coaching teachers to accelerate student achievement, often utilizing video and other technologies as learning tools. Her most recent passion is the Educational Innovation 360° (Link here: https://www.educationalinnovation360.com/) e-Instructional Coaching System, which she designed and developed in 2018. Topics covered in this episode: ✅ When parents aren’t engaging, are you addressing the issue from a place of curiosity or judgement? ✅ Is technology a solution when schools lack access to books or curriculum materials? ✅ Using technology for professional development and training: Balancing efficiency with connection. You can connect with Cassandra on LinkedIn here (https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassandra-williams-777b7927/), on Twitter here (https://twitter.com/Edinnovation360), and on Facebook here (https://www.facebook.com/Educationalinnovation360/), on Instagram @educationalinnovation360 (https://www.instagram.com/educationalinnovation360/) You can learn more about her coaching and professional development for schools and individuals at Educationalinnovation360.com (https://www.educationalinnovation360.com/). You can listen to the original interview with Cassandra on the De Facto Leaders podcast here: EP 113: Making literacy accessible and equitable (with Cassandra Williams) Link here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/ep-113-making-literacy-accessible-and-equitable-with-cassandra-williams/ You can listen to Cassandra’s interview on SEEing to Lead with Dr. Chris Jones here where they discuss using video as a tool for teacher training and development: Educational Innovation 360 (Link here: https://stl.bepodcast.network/s3/24) In this episode, I mention the School of Clinical Leadership, my program for related service providers who want to take a leadership role in implementing executive functioning support. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership I also mentioned Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that helps SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Ever feel overwhelmed being the only SLP in your district without a network of fellow clinicians for support? You're not alone; many in similar situations face these challenges. In this episode, I’m sharing a case study of an SLP who, despite being the sole clinician in her district, felt the pressure of not having a trusted system she could rely on for language therapy. Searching for a structured, effective approach, she turned to the Language Therapy Advance Foundations program. There, she developed a reliable system she could bring to her team, transforming her therapy sessions and instilling confidence in her practice. I also reflect on ways you can gain a sense of belonging, even if you’re the only one in your discipline. In this episode, I’ll share: ✅ Managing the challenges and isolation of being the only SLP in a district while building a trustworthy framework for therapy. ✅ Developing a system that empowers you to handle your caseload with confidence, even without peer support. ✅ Creating a dependable, efficient approach to language therapy that benefits both the clinician's peace of mind and the students' progress. Join us as we explore how this solo SLP navigated her unique situation and emerged with a structured system she could trust and share with her team. In this episode, I mentioned this previous podcast interview: EP 109: Can my principal evaluate me if they’ve never done my job? (with Eric Makelky) here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/ep-109-can-my-principal-evaluate-me-if-theyve-never-done-my-job-with-eric-makelky/ This case study came from a member of Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that gives SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Ever feel like you should have language therapy figured out by now, but you're still struggling? Even experienced clinicians can feel that way. In this episode, I’m sharing a case study of a seasoned SLP who, despite years of experience, felt like she was missing a key piece of the puzzle when it came to language therapy. Battling decision fatigue and a lack of a reliable system, she joined my Language Therapy Advance Foundations program and created a reliable system that made her feel confident showing up to sessions. In this episode, we’ll discuss: ✅ Overcoming the feeling of inadequacy as a veteran clinician and acknowledging the need for a more structured approach to language therapy. ✅ How streamlining decision-making allowed for more focused therapy sessions. ✅ Strategies for working on language skills that support executive functioning. ✅ Creating a predictable, efficient system for building language skills that support reading and writing. This case study came from a member of Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program that gives SLPs and other service providers create a system for language therapy. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

What if choosing between language and executive functioning for your students wasn't an "either/or" decision? And how can we effectively balance academic content with broader cognitive skills? It's a complex challenge, and the answer isn't always obvious. In this episode, I share commentary and a clip of my conversation with Jill Fahy, where we discuss the impact of executive functioning skills on the college experience. Jill is a licensed speech-language pathologist and professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Eastern Illinois University. She is also the co-director of the Autism Center and Director of the Students with Autism Transitional Education Program, where she develops and delivers transitional programming in social skills and executive functions for college students. In this episode, you’ll discover: ✅ Should we work on language or executive functioning first? The answer isn’t straightforward. ✅ Balancing academic content areas and broader cognitive skills: Why both parents and professionals need to learn about executive functioning as it relates to their context. ✅ Educating the public on cognition and evidence-based practices, and why it’s so easy for vulnerable individuals to grasp on to pseudoscience. ✅ How to use “asset stacking” to address the need to work on multiple interconnected areas at once (e.g., content area skills, language, cognition). You can connect with Jill via email at jkfahy@eiu.edu. You can read her article, Assessment of Executive Functions in School-Aged Children: Challenges and Solutions for the SLP from ASHA Perspectives here: https://pubs.asha.org/doi/10.1044/sbi15.4.151 You can learn more about the Students Transitional Education Program at Eastern Illinois University here: https://www.eiu.edu/step/ and the Autism Center here: https://www.eiu.edu/autismcenter/ In this episode, I mention the School of Clinical Leadership, my program for related service providers who want to take a leadership role in implementing executive functioning support. You can learn more about the program here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Every time I give a session on executive functioning, I have clinicians and teachers ask me the same thing: “How can I motivate students who don’t seem to care or don’t want to try new things?” Or something like “How can I convince students why this (insert task) is going to be important to them in the future?” The short answer is that you don’t “convince” them of anything. At least not in the moment. Instead, you create the experiences and opportunities that are going to help the student acquire the skills, experience the consequences, and develop the confidence to deal with uncertainty/unfamiliar situations. When students appear resistant to try things, or seem to “not learn from past mistakes”, this can often be tied to weak episodic memory. Episodic memory—the ability to see a mental picture of a past event, allows students to think back on past experiences and use them to prepare for the future. When you struggle to do this, it’s difficult to recall past mistakes or feedback in the moment. It’s also difficult to think back on past experiences when you might have done something well, which may make you feel less prepared for tasks that are challenging or less familiar. This may cause nervousness or resistance toward difficult tasks if you can’t “see” back into the past (episode memory) or think into the future to know what you should be doing now (future pacing). Unfortunately, on the surface, this may look like defiance, apathy, or lack of motivation. That’s why in fourth episode in my “Five Skills to Create Your Executive Functioning Intervention Framework”, I discuss the fourth skill: Episodic Memory What I’ll uncover in this episode: ✅ The critical role episodic memory plays in executive functioning: applying prior knowledge, anticipating consequences, and adjusting behavior. ✅ How difficulties with episodic memory impact a student’s confidence and willingness to try new things, or their persistence with challenging tasks. ✅ Why episodic memory interacts with other executive functioning skills, including future pacing, time perception, and self-talk. In this episode, I mentioned my free training for school leaders who want to create a research-based executive functioning implementation plan for their school teams. You can sign up for the training here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Students with executive functioning challenges often intend to complete tasks or meet expectations—but struggle to execute consistently. The reason? They aren’t mentally envisioning future scenarios, predicting the steps needed to reach a goal, and thinking about what they need to be doing NOW in order to meet that goal. This cognitive skill, called future pacing, allows students to visualize the process and outcome of their actions, building a critical link between planning and follow-through. In the third episode in my “Five Skills to Create Your Executive Functioning Intervention Framework”, I break it down in detail. What I’ll uncover in this episode: ✅ What future pacing is—and why it's essential for supporting goal-directed behavior and flexible thinking. ✅ How future pacing interacts with skills like time perception, self-talk, and episodic memory. ✅ Why students with executive functioning deficits often struggle to anticipate obstacles, sequence steps, or understand how present actions impact future outcomes. ✅ Practical ways to teach students how to mentally rehearse tasks—bridging the gap between knowing what to do and actually doing it. ✅ How building future pacing into interventions improves self-regulation, motivation, and task persistence. In this episode, I mentioned my upcoming free live virtual training hosted by Parallel Learning that’s coming up on August 14, 2025 from 6:30-8:00 PM EST. It’s called “Executive Functioning: Beyond Checklists and Planners”. You’ll earn a free CEU, get to learn about a company that offers remote work opportunities, and get to learn some of the concepts I teach in my paid programs. You can sign up for the training here: https://parallellearning-20474008.hs-sites.com/ashakickoffwebinar25?utm_source=partnership&utm_medium=partner_karen_dudek&utm_campaign=webinar_ashadrkaren_8.14.2025&utm_content=blank I also mentioned my free training for school leaders who want to create a research-based executive functioning implementation plan for their school teams. You can sign up for the training here: https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/efleadership We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

I’m often asked if I can create an “executive functioning lesson plan” that a clinician could do within a 20-minute therapy session with a student or group of students. I understand why people ask me for things like this. This traditional “pull-out” model of therapy is what many clinicians have been taught in our preservice training, and it’s often what’s focused on in professional development for clinicians. This model works well for many skills. It also plays a part in executive functioning intervention. But it’s not enough. Doing “executive functioning” lesson plans without some type of support plan in place for other settings would be like a soccer player doing drills and conditioning without ever playing soccer. Does the right isolated work provide support and a foundation? Yes. Is it necessary? Also yes. But is it enough on its own, without direct application in the situation when those skills will be needed? Absolutely not. I know school teams are overwhelmed, and embedding support across a students’ day requires systems and collaboration that aren’t often in place in many schools (yet). It’s a lot to ask, but it’s what needs to happen. And with the right plan, it’s possible-which is what I show school leaders how to do in the School of Clinical Leadership. That’s why in this second episode in my series on “Five Skills to Create Your Executive Functioning Implementation Framework”, I cover the second skill: Self Talk What I cover in this episode: ✅ The two distinct types of self-talk: Strategy self-talk and Self-belief self-talk ✅ How self-talk integrates with other executive functions like time perception, future pacing, and episodic memory ✅ The connection between self-talk and principles of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)—and how to embed those principles into daily routines, not just therapy rooms ✅ Why explicit instruction and modeling of self-talk helps students shift from reactive to proactive problem-solving ✅ How deficits in self-talk can derail time management, task initiation, and flexible thinking—despite external supports ✅ How to start working on self-talk with your students right away-even if you haven’t built strong team collaboration systems yet. In this episode, I mentioned my upcoming free live virtual training hosted by Parallel Learning that’s coming up on August 14, 2025 from 6:30-8:00 PM EST. It’s called “Executive Functioning: Beyond Checklists and Planners”. You’ll earn a free CEU, get to learn about a company that offers remote work opportunities, and get to learn some of the concepts I teach in my paid programs. You can sign up for the training here. I also mentioned my free training for school leaders who want to create a research-based executive functioning implementation plan for their school teams. You can sign up for the training here. We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Executive function is often defined as “having good time management skills”. While this isn’t completely off-base, it’s a vast oversimplification. The REASON people are good at time management is because they have the ability to estimate and sense the passage of time. Most “textbook” definitions of executive functioning don’t fully call this out, and as a result many educators and clinicians have a difficult time figuring out how to design instruction and intervention that supports executive functioning. Instead of embedding support across the day, interventions get siloed in special education, or lumped into long lists of cookie cutter classroom accommodations that overwhelm general education teachers. Kids don’t generalize skills from one setting to another, even though people think they’re working on “time management”, and well-meaning adults find themselves giving constant “five minute warnings” as they try to help their students keep up with the pace of classroom activities or even basic functional tasks (e.g., getting things together, making transitions). Let’s be honest: If “five minute warnings” were an effective method of teaching executive functioning and “time management”, we wouldn’t have to be doing them constantly. What if there was a way to help kids develop these skills, so we could fade all the prompting? The good news is, there is. The first step is recognizing that the core skill we’re teaching is TIME PERCEPTION. When you google a definition of executive functioning, you’ll likely get a list of 8 or 9 skills. Things like attention, working memory, shifting, ideational fluency, and self-regulation. It’s important for educators, clinicians, and school leaders to understand these terms and what they are, but then they need to organize these abstract cognitive skills into concrete skills that can be both taught explicitly and layered across a students’ day. That’s why the framework I teach organizes executive functioning into 5 areas: 1. Time perception 2. Self-talk 3. Future pacing 4. Episodic memory 5. Encoding. In this first episode of a 5-part podcast series, I discuss the first one: Time perception. In this episode, I’ll reveal: ✅ What “time perception” means in the context of executive functioning (beyond simply knowing how to tell time). ✅ How time perception deficits interfere with task initiation, sustained attention, and task completion. ✅ Why students may appear "defiant" or "unmotivated" when the real issue is inaccurate time estimation/perception. ✅ How poor time perception creates barriers for following schedules, meeting deadlines, or pacing tasks appropriately. ✅ Intervention principles to help build a student’s internal sense of time as part of a larger EF support plan. In this episode, I mentioned my upcoming free live virtual training hosted by Parallel Learning that’s coming up on August 14, 2025 from 6:30-8:00 PM EST. It’s called “Executive Functioning: Beyond Checklists and Planners”. You’ll earn a free CEU, get to learn about a company that offers remote work opportunities, and get to learn some of the concepts I teach in my paid programs. You can sign up for the training here. I also mentioned my free training for school leaders who want to create a research-based executive functioning implementation plan for their school teams. You can sign up for the training here. We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

In this episode, I sit down with Jessica Lane, founder of Data-Informed Impact, to unpack the critical role of data in K-12 education—and how to use it responsibly, effectively, and equitably. Jessica shares her expertise on building a strong data culture in schools, improving data literacy, and creating clear, ethical data visualizations that empower—not overwhelm—educators and leaders. We explore the often-overlooked human side of data: how to build trust around data use, avoid duplicative processes that drain educators’ time, and leverage data to evaluate systems. Jessica also offers insights into how different stakeholders—teachers, administrators, district leaders—use data from both micro and macro lenses, and how EdTech plays a role in the broader data landscape. Whether you're a classroom teacher, building leader, or part of a district team, this conversation will help you think critically about using data as a tool for improvement—not just compliance. Key Topics Covered: ✔️ Building a positive and ethical data culture in schools ✔️ Improving data literacy for educators and leaders ✔️ How to design accessible, meaningful data visualizations ✔️ Strategies to streamline administrative processes and reduce redundancy ✔️ Student data use and privacy ✔️ Understanding the micro vs. macro data needs across K-12 stakeholders About Our Guest: As the founder of Data-Informed Impact, Jessica Lane is known for turning webs of data into easy-to-leverage visual dashboards, systems, and training for K-12 schools – fully equipping leaders and teachers to close the student success gap together. Having created custom solutions for 160 schools across the United States and Canada since 2020, she’s an educational data expert. With 10+ years of experience from all angles of the classroom, Jessica’s a former data coach, instructional coach, certified math teacher, and holds a Master of Education in learning and technology. Proudly data-informed and people-driven, she believes that data can tell great student success stories, if we let it guide, not decide, how to lead education forward. Jessica currently lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she can often be found excitedly exploring spreadsheets, brain studies, Brené Brown books, and puzzles. And when she’s not partnering with schools, she’s caring for her darling daughter, Emmy, or one of her 50 houseplants. You can connect with Jessican on her website at: https://www.data-informedimpact.com/ Learn about her Data Culture Framework here: https://www.data-informedimpact.com/3-domains-of-dii Learn about her Re-Teaching Cycle Template and other Templates here: https://www.data-informedimpact.com/templates Connect with Jessica on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/informedimpact/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

In this episode, we’re joined by literacy expert Dr. Molly Ness, author of Making Words Stick, to unpack the science behind orthographic mapping and what truly effective spelling instruction looks like. If you've ever found yourself wondering whether “irregular” words really exist—or how to teach spelling in a way that actually transfers to reading and writing—this episode is for you. Dr. Molly Ness is a former classroom teacher, a reading researcher, and a teacher educator. She earned a doctorate in reading education at the University of Virginia, and spent 16 years as an associate professor at Fordham University in New York City. The author of five books, Molly served on the Board of Directors for the International Literacy Association and is a New York state chapter founder of the Reading League. Dr. Ness has extensive experience in reading clinics, consulting with school districts, leading professional development, and advising school systems on research-based reading instruction. She is also the host of the End Book Deserts podcast. In 2024, she founded Dirigo Literacy, a literacy consulting firm supporting schools, districts, and states align with and implement the science of reading. 🔑 Key Topics We Cover: ✅ Why Overusing the Term “Irregular” Leads to Ineffective Practices Labeling too many words as irregular encourages rote memorization and bypasses opportunities to build deep, transferable decoding skills. ✅ The Least to Most Reliable Ways to Decode Words Dr. Ness explains the hierarchy of decoding approaches, from unreliable guessing strategies to the most effective use of grapheme–phoneme correspondences and morphemic analysis. ✅ Phonological Representations & Print: Why We Need Both Orthographic mapping depends on students having clear, accurate phonological representations of words. Dr. Ness emphasizes why instruction should always integrate print with sound-based practice. ✅ Embedding Vocabulary Without Derailing Encoding Work Learn how to layer vocabulary instruction into decoding and spelling lessons without losing focus—or getting lost in semantic tangents. ✅ Dr. Ness’s 4-Step Process for Teaching Spelling (from Making Words Stick). Get Dr. Ness’s book “Making Words Stick” here. Connect with Dr. Ness on Instagram @a_reading_mother Learn more about Dr. Ness’ other books and advocacy work on her website here. In this episode, I mention Language Therapy Advance Foundations, my program for SLPs that helps clinicians create a research-based framework for language therapy that supports phonology, morphology, semantics, syntax, and orthographic knowledge. You can learn more about the program here. We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

Ever feel like your school is trying all the “right” strategies—social skills groups, planners, behavior charts—but students still struggle with time management, motivation, and peer relationships? You’re not alone—and there’s a reason why. This episode is a clip from my free training, “Create a Research-Based Implementation Plan for your School Team.” It’s designed for school leaders who want to guide their teams in embedding executive functioning support across both general and special education settings—without burning out staff. This episode is for you if you’re ready to: ✔️ Help students truly benefit from academic instruction ✔️ Support social-emotional growth alongside learning ✔️ Avoid overwhelming your team with another “initiative” In the training, I'll reveal: ✅Why social skills groups fall flat—and how to really boost students’ emotional regulation and peer connections. ✅The truth about planners, lists, and behavior charts—and why they’re not improving student’s time management or motivation. ✅The 3 key elements school teams need to support executive functioning across gen ed and special ed—without burning out your staff (in this episode, I share element #1). This episode is the first half of the training in audio format, but to view the whole training with the video, you can go to drkarendudekbrannan.com/efteams. We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

In this eye-opening episode, I sit down with Dr. A. Jordan Wright, psychologist who brings both professional insight and lived experience to the conversation—having been diagnosed with ADHD in college. Together, we explore the often-overlooked stories of kids who manage to compensate for ADHD symptoms well into adolescence or adulthood, only to receive a diagnosis later in life. We also dive into why early educational settings are crucial for embedding executive functioning supports and how these skills can be proactively taught rather than reactively addressed. Our guest offers a compelling argument for why executive functioning should be considered the new social-emotional learning—essential, foundational, and deeply tied to lifelong success. We also spend a good portion of the episode discussing best practices for assessing executive functioning in a way that is robust and sensitive to diverse learning needs—moving to deeper understanding. Topics Covered: ✅ Being diagnosed with ADHD in college and why high-performing kids with ADHD are often missed ✅ The case for embedding executive functioning support into early education ✅ Executive functioning as the new SEL: What educators need to know ✅ Best practices for executive functioning assessment, including surveys, non-standardized methods, and optimal functioning measures. Dr. A. Jordan Wright is the Chief Clinical Officer at Parallel Learning and leading clinical psychologist who specializes in psychological assessment (including learning disabilities and ADHD) and therapy. Dr. Jordan received his Ph.D. from Columbia University. He is on faculty at New York University, where he leads the Clinical/Counseling Psychology PhD program, training doctoral students in psychological assessment and counseling, and he founded and runs the Center for Counseling and Community Wellbeing, the low-fee community mental health training clinic at NYU. Dr. Jordan has authored multiple widely-used books on psychological assessment, including Conducting Psychological Assessment: A Guide for Practitioners (2nd ed.; Wiley, 2020); Essentials of Psychological Tele-Assessment (with Susie Raiford; Wiley, 2021); Essentials of Psychological Assessment Supervision (Wiley, 2019); and, with Gary Groth-Marnat, the sixth edition of the Handbook of Psychological Assessment (Wiley, 2016), the most widely used text in graduate training on assessment. His most recent book is Essentials of Culture in Psychological Assessment (Wiley, 2024), which focuses on areas of diversity, culture, privilege, and oppression in how we evaluate and understand individuals. You can learn more about Parallel Learning’s comprehensive services for providers on their website here: https://www.parallellearning.com/ You can find Dr. Jordan’s free White Papers from Parallel Learning on executive functioning assessment, self-care for clinicians, telehealth best practices, plus much more here: https://www.parallellearning.com/white-papers If you’re a clinician looking for new career opportunities, you can take a look at Parallel Learning’s “Careers” page here: https://www.parallellearning.com/careers In this episode, I mentioned “The School Leader’s Guide to Executive Functioning Support”, a 7-day course to help school leaders launch their executive functioning implementation plan. You can learn more about the course here : https://drkarenspeech.lpages.co/school-leaders-guide-to-executive-functioning-support/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.

In this episode, I interview Connie, a student from the Language Therapy Advance Foundations program. She shares her practical experiences and results achieved with her students. Key highlights include: ✅ Engaging a Disengaged Student: Connie discusses her strategies for working with a high school student who was bored with therapy, emphasizing the use of engaging books to enhance vocabulary learning. ✅ Time Efficiency: Learn how Connie cut her preparation time in half by implementing the frameworks taught in our program, allowing for more focused and effective sessions. ✅ Achieving Generalization: Connie reports significant progress in several of her students who had previously plateaued, particularly in their ability to generalize syntax skills. This episode offers actionable insights for language therapists looking to improve engagement and outcomes in their practice. Ready to elevate your language therapy skills? Join Language Therapy Advance Foundations and start transforming your therapy approach today. Learn more about Language Therapy Advance Foundations here: https://drkarenspeech.com/languagetherapy/ We’re thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more: 🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.