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A professional learning hub for kaiako. Build your understanding of the 9 EF skills and access classroom-ready strategies for supporting all learners.
Executive Functioning (EF) is the brain’s management system. It helps students plan, organise, manage time, and finish tasks. These skills develop slowly and aren’t fully in place until the mid-20s, so every student in your classroom is still learning how to manage themselves. Differences in EF are linked to how the prefrontal cortex and brain chemicals work, can be genetic or acquired, are often connected with ADHD, dyslexia, autism, injury, foetal alcohol exposure, anxiety, or trauma, and are not a sign of low intelligence. Most students with learning and thinking differences have average or above-average IQ.
Why Executive Functioning Matters in Senior Primary and Secondary School
Academic Demands Rise
More subjects, longer assignments, independent research, NCEA stakes.
Strengths-Based Support
Move from frustration to empathy, punishment to practical strategies.
Brain Development
The prefrontal cortex (EF HQ) doesn't fully mature til the
mid-20s.
The 9 Executive Functions
Click any skill to explore what it looks like, real student perspectives, and tier 1 & 2 strategies.
We gratefully acknowledge four Young Neurodiversity Champions — Maia, Niko, Lily, and Daisy — for generously sharing their experiences and strategies for managing executive functioning in the video series.
Kia ora, I'm Emma Matenga, a Resource Teacher: Learning and Behaviour (RTLB) based in Aotearoa New Zealand.
I work alongside teachers, school leaders, whānau, and young people to create learning environments where all students can thrive. Much of my work focuses on neurodiversity, inclusion, and understanding how learning, behaviour, and executive functioning are shaped by the interaction between learners and their environments.
I created this website to help teachers better understand executive functioning and translate research into practical classroom strategies. My goal is to provide clear, strengths-based information that supports teachers to reduce barriers, build student independence, and create classrooms where every learner has the opportunity to succeed.
I believe that executive functioning skills can be developed and that small changes to teaching practice and classroom design can have a significant impact on student outcomes.
Ngā mihi,
Emma Matenga (Cluster 7, Central Auckland)
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