SLP Summit registration is now open! We can't wait to see you there!

Register Here

Executive Functioning: Beyond Checklists and Social Skills Groups

This session will begin with a discussion about external signs and internal mental processes associated with executive functioning, followed by a presentation on the relationship of anxiety, executive functioning, and behavior. The session will conclude with a discussion of how clinicians can utilize effective interventions and models for executive functioning support.

Explore Course

Executive Functioning: Beyond Checklists and Social Skills Groups

This course will be live on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, at 5 pm Eastern Time. Replays will follow immediately and will be available through Aug. 15, 2026.

Many clinicians and educators are aware that executive functioning is about “being organized” or having good time management.

At the same time, they’re working with students who struggle to sustain effort, transition, read the room, complete multi-step tasks, and consistently don’t generalize skills. Students are referred to social skills groups because of group work issues, peer conflict, or behavior in class. Parents can’t get them out the door in the morning.

There are extreme emotional reactions, anxiety, resistance to anything new, and it often gets labeled as a lack of motivation or not caring. As a clinician, you’re expected to address this in therapy, even though it’s showing up across the entire day.

In this session, we’ll define the external patterns you’re seeing and connect them to the internal processes driving academic, social, and emotional functioning, so you can identify where breakdowns are happening.

We’ll also identify five core areas teams can use to prioritize interventions.

Finally, we’ll look at why typical service delivery models and strategies are insufficient and how to layer in additional support so it works across the day, not just during isolated sessions.

SLP Summit Event Page

Presenters

  • Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan

    EdD, MS, CCC-SLP

    Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan is the founder of Dr. Karen, LLC and host of the De Facto Leaders Podcast. She helps therapists and educators build structured, scalable systems for language, literacy, and executive functioning. She spent 14 years in schools in clinical, leadership, and teaching roles, and she holds a management role with the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services.

Learning Objectives

Define external and internal mental processes associated with executive functioning and their impact on students’ academic, social, and emotional functioning.
Identify five skill areas multidisciplinary teams can focus to inform interventions and strategies that support executive functioning. 
Describe barriers that can occur when utilizing common service delivery models to address executive functioning challenges and how to address them.

Agenda

Agenda

10 minutesIntro and Common Executive Functioning Misconceptions
10 minutesExternal Symptoms and Internal Mental Processes of Executive Functioning
10 minutesCommonly Utilized Interventions and Service Models and Their Limitations
10 minutesIntervention: What are we actually teaching students to build EF?
10 minutesWhat service delivery models and intervention frameworks should we use?
10 minutesSummary, Wrap-up and Q & A

Disclosures

Disclosures

Financial: Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan owns a company called Dr. Karen, LLC. She also offers paid training and resources for clinicians,educators, and caregivers from which she earns income on her website drkarenspeech.com and drkarendudekbrannan.com.
Non-Financial:The views Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan is sharing in this presentation are her own and are not a reflection of the views of any of her current or past employers.
Content:This presentation does not focus specifically on a product or service, but throughout the presentation Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan may reference resources or services she offers that would help clinicians design interventions. She also has resources linked in her slides that link to free materials available to the public, but within those resources she mentions her paid products and services.

ASHA

ASHA

This course is offered for .1 ASHA CEUs, Introductory Level, Professional Area

To earn ASHA CEUs you must complete the courses by viewing them, provide course feedback, pass the exams with a score of 80 or more, provide your ASHA credentials, and confirm submission.

ASHA badge

Customer Reviews

SLP Summit Registration - July '26
FREE!
Get access to all 6 live courses (July 27-29, 2026) and their replays. You'll also get two on-demand courses available upon registration (1 hr & 1.5 hr courses). All courses will be available through Aug. 15, 2026.

Add-ons

Summit ASHA Opt In - July '26
$29.99
This add on includes submittal of your participation to the ASHA registry for the 6 live and 2 on demand SLP Summit courses. You must opt-in and add your ASHA credentials after completing all course steps for EACH course by the end of the day Eastern Time 8/15/26.
The Interconnection Between Feeding and Language Development Active - SLP Summit Deal!
$9.00
Get this course for $9 for our 9th year of SLP Summit when you register for the event! This course examines the interconnection between feeding and language development, highlighting how early sensory, motor, and social experiences during feeding lay the groundwork for communication. Includes access to the recorded course and optional ASHA reporting.
Strengths-Based Approach to Intervention Bundle - SLP Summit Deal!
$9.00
Get this mini-series for $9 for our 9th year of SLP Summit when you register for the event! Includes three 30-minute courses. Discover how a strengths-based, child-led approach can shape assessment, intervention, and carryover in speech therapy. This three-part mini series includes practical strategies that help clinicians build on what students already do well while supporting meaningful communication growth. Includes access to 3 recorded courses and optional ASHA reporting for each.

Join Our Email List

Sign up to be the first to know about new events, course launches, exclusive discounts, and practical insights to support your professional growth.