Sustainable Improvement

Building Executive Function and Motivation in the Middle Grades: A Universal Design for Learning Approach

"So much of what middle grade students need to do each day depends on their executive function, or the ability to self-monitor and carry out the steps of a plan effectively," writes Susanne Croasdaile in her first book, Building Executive Function and Motivation in the Middle Grades: A Universal Design for Learning Approach.

Using real-life examples, Croasdaile shows educators how to integrate Universal Design for Learning (UDL) to transform the learning experience for their students. She provides a roadmap for anyone who seeks practical, research-based strategies to help their students survive and thrive to become expert learners in the middle grades.

In an easy-to-follow, 8-step process, Croasdaile offers numerous strategies that will enhance instruction and support student social and emotional competency. By highlighting practices related to students' executive function and sustained effort, this book is a useful addition to the toolkit of every classroom teacher, coach, and administrator.

Learn more by downloading a PDF of the Introduction from the book. 

Building Executive Function and Motivation in the Middle Grades is available in print (144 pages, ISBN: 9781943085002) and accessible EPUB (ISBN: 9781943085019) wherever books are sold!

3 Barriers of 2023

Engage and motivate middle and high school students

As you prepare for the school year to start, join the National Writing Project's Write Now Teacher Studio to discuss how planning the First 20 Days of classroom instruction scaffolds working memory, read half of the book Building Executive Function and Motivation in the Middle Grades: A Universal Design for Learning Approach to dig into the UDL framework as teachers and coaches experience it, and plan the First 20 Days for our middle and high school classrooms in time for the start of school. This is a game changer for starting the year strong and building adolescent student toolkits. Begins August 8 and continues asynchronously! https://tinyurl.com/NWPUDL