Difficulties with Executive Function in Childhood Development
A while back, we presented a blog called What is Executive Function? Montessori Perspectives . In that article, we discussed that executive function involves working memory, inhibitory control, and mental flexibility. Executive function is important for cognitive, social, emotional, and moral development. It helps us understand, internalize, and fulfill the steps required to solve a problem: Recognize a problem. Make a plan to solve the problem. Execute the plan. Evaluate effectiveness. Executive Function and Childhood Development Executive functions are controlled by the frontal cortex, one of the last regions of the brain to mature. We reach developmental milestones related to executive function by the time we are 1 year old, during early childhood, and during puberty. Some development in the brain continues well into the 20s and even 30s when myelination occurs, which is the process of forming electrical sheathes around the axons of the neurons. With all this continuous, long-range ...