How Speech Therapy Supports Executive Functioning Skills

Executive functioning skills are like the brain’s “air traffic control system.” They help us focus attention, plan and organize, remember information, and regulate our behavior to reach goals. For children, strong executive functioning skills make it easier to follow directions, participate in class, manage daily routines, and communicate effectively.

Many people don’t realize that speech-language therapy can play a powerful role in building these skills. Because language and executive functioning are closely intertwined, improving communication often leads to better attention, self-regulation, and problem-solving (Henry et al., 2012; Kapa & Plante, 2015).

What Are Executive Functioning Skills?

Executive functioning refers to a set of cognitive processes that help individuals manage their thoughts, actions, and emotions. Core skills include:

• Working memory: Holding and using information in the moment.

• Inhibitory control: Resisting impulses and distractions.

• Cognitive flexibility: Adjusting to change, problem-solving, and seeing things from different perspectives.

• Planning and organization: Breaking down tasks into manageable steps.

• Self-monitoring: Recognizing and adjusting one’s own behavior.

These skills are crucial for language comprehension, classroom learning, and social interactions.

How Speech Therapy Strengthens Executive Functioning

Because communication relies on organizing and processing information, speech therapy naturally supports executive functioning growth. Examples include:

• Language Organization: Helping children plan out what they want to say improves sequencing, memory, and organization.

• Storytelling and Narratives: Creating and retelling stories supports working memory and flexible thinking.

• Following Multi-Step Directions: Strengthens attention, inhibitory control, and memory.

• Problem-Solving Exercises: Builds reasoning, flexibility, and self-monitoring.

• Social Communication: Practicing conversation skills encourages emotional regulation and perspective-taking.

Research shows that targeted language interventions can lead to measurable improvements in executive functioning skills, especially in children with language disorders or ADHD (Im-Bolter, Johnson, & Pascual-Leone, 2006; Kapa & Plante, 2015).

The Parent’s Role in Supporting EF Skills

• Create predictable routines: Structure supports executive functioning growth.

• Break down tasks: Help children learn to plan by modeling step-by-step approaches.

• Give language to thinking: Encourage kids to “talk it out” to solve problems.

• Play strategy games: Board games, memory games, and storytelling activities build EF skills in fun ways.

  
  

Why This Matters

When children strengthen executive functioning skills through language-based therapy, they often show gains in attention, school participation, emotional regulation, and peer relationships. At tuLIPS Speech Therapy, we integrate communication goals with executive functioning strategies to help children thrive both inside and outside the classroom.

Works Cited:

• Henry, L. A., Messer, D. J., & Nash, G. (2012). Executive functioning in children with specific language impairment. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 53(1), 37–45.

• Im-Bolter, N., Johnson, J., & Pascual-Leone, J. (2006). Processing limitations in children with specific language impairment: The role of executive function. Child Development, 77(6), 1822–1841.

• Kapa, L. L., & Plante, E. (2015). Executive function in SLI: Recent advances and future directions. Current Developmental Disorders Reports, 2(3), 245–252.