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Dandelion Hub Helping neurodiverse children and teens across Australia build executive function skills through practical strategies.

EF therapy available in Melbourne and online, supporting organisation, planning, and self-management for daily life

People are often surprised to learn that executive function skills aren't something children are born with. Instead, the...
09/10/2026

People are often surprised to learn that executive function skills aren't something children are born with.

Instead, they develop over time through experiences, opportunities, practice, support, and relationships.

I’ve noticed that when coming up with ideas, my brain often works better when I use pen and paper versus typing into a w...
07/10/2026

I’ve noticed that when coming up with ideas, my brain often works better when I use pen and paper versus typing into a word document. There is just something about being able to write anywhere on the page, and to have circles and lines and annotations everywhere, that works for me.

I also know that my brain prefers to take a list of items to the store (even if it’s just a couple of things), otherwise I forget! And that if I don’t stop for a lunch break, my brain is a ride-off for the rest of the afternoon. And that multiplication tables just don’t work for my brain, so I use a calculator. And that sometimes I work better with background music, and sometimes not.

What’s interesting about these strategies, is that I did not start my life using them. I’ve learnt them throughout my life. Some from trial and error. Some from watching other people. Some from advice of others. Some from ideas in books (because YouTube and TikTok didn’t exist when I was young!). And from all these places, I’ve kept what works for me, and I’ve let go of what does not.

When I’m working with young people, I often share some of the strategies that I’ve learnt work for me. And I often ask their parents to share what strategies they use. This question can surprise parents. I think as adults we often don’t consider these as “strategies”, they are just how we work. But they are strategies that we use to maximise our strengths, and to create workarounds for hard things.

And that’s the point I make with young people - everybody’s brain works differently. Everybody collects different strategies so they can work smarter instead of harder. Normalising noticing how your brain works, and what helps it work best (aka “strategies”) can be powerful, especially with teens. Normalisation can bring relief (“it’s not just me!”), and an acceptance to try new things.

Try it. Share something you find tricky and the strategies you use to work around it. Ask parents to do the same. Sometimes the most powerful message a young person can hear is “Everyone uses strategies. Our goal isn't to change or fix your brain, it’s for you to understand your own brain well enough to work with it”.

When we replace telling with asking, the goal is not to put the child on the spot, or make them do all the thinking alon...
05/10/2026

When we replace telling with asking, the goal is not to put the child on the spot, or make them do all the thinking alone.

The goal is to create opportunities for them to practise executive function skills, while we still providing scaffolding and support when needed.

For example, by asking them what they have on today offers an opportunity to engage the skills of inhibition, initiation, organisation, and planning, while we still providing scaffolding and support when needed. And if they don't know the answer to any questions, that's okay. You can gently guide them to how to find out the answer: "Not sure what subjects you have on today? Lets look at your timetable together"

Executive function skills develop through practice. Sometimes the smallest shift is allowing space for this practice, by moving from telling to asking.

The PINCH acronym is one of my go-to tools when a child or young person is feeling stuck in starting or remaining focuse...
02/10/2026

The PINCH acronym is one of my go-to tools when a child or young person is feeling stuck in starting or remaining focused on a task.

It's a simple way to help them brainstorm ways to make tasks feel more appealing, engaging, and doable. In other words, to make tasks easier to start by reducing barriers or increasing engagement.


Download this new free resource from the Dandelion Hub resource library: https://www.dandelionhub.com.au/resources

Earlier this week I completely missed an evening meeting.Not "running late" missed. Not "forgot until an hour beforehand...
30/09/2026

Earlier this week I completely missed an evening meeting.
Not "running late" missed.

Not "forgot until an hour beforehand" missed. Completely forgot it existed until I received a text saying, "Ummm... are we still meeting today?"

Thankfully, the person I was meeting with was a friend.
The funny thing is that nothing about my executive functions of planning or organisation changed that day.

What had changed was the environment and the rhythm of my day. It was school holidays and I'd taken the day off. My usual work rhythm wasn't happening. My mind wasn't in work mode. I was checking my phone less.

And without all those usual cues, the meeting simply never made its way into my awareness. The routines, prompts and cues that usually support me weren't there, and suddenly something important became much easier to miss.

That's something I often think about when supporting young people with executive function differences. We can spend a lot of time focusing on skills and strategies, but supports don't exist within a person alone. The environment matters too.

Sometimes the difference between success and difficulty often isn't just about skills. It's whether the right supports, routines and cues are available when they're needed.

For many neurodivergent students, starting tasks (often called “task initiation”) can be really effortful. There can be...
28/09/2026

For many neurodivergent students, starting tasks (often called “task initiation”) can be really effortful. There can be numerous reasons for this:
- The task might feel too big
- The task might feel like it would take to long
- They may be unsure where to start or what to do
- There may be other, more attractive things, fighting for attention

If the reason for your young person is that the task feels too big, or feels like it would take too long (or even for-evv-errr), a simple timer can help. A timer provides a clear end point, turning a seemingly never ending task, into something with a clear end.

Consider these options:

"I need to do all my homework"

or

"I only need to focus for the next 15 minutes."

Which sounds more achievable? If you said the second one, you are not alone! Breaking large pieces of work into timed sessions with a clear end point can help make tasks feel more manageable, making it easier to get started and stay focused.

What other strategies do you use?

If you've ever wondered why a child can use an executive function skill one day and seem unable to access it the next, y...
23/09/2026

If you've ever wondered why a child can use an executive function skill one day and seem unable to access it the next, you're not alone.

In fact, one of the most common things I hear from parents, educators, and clinicians is: "But they did it yesterday! Why can’t they do it today?"

In my latest blog, I explore why executive function abilities can appear so inconsistent, and how understanding the difference between ability and capacity can change the way we provide support.

Read the blog here: https://www.dandelionhub.com.au/blog/ability-vs-capacity

Let's be honest. Most young people have never heard of a neuropsychologist. I hadn’t heard of one until I was at univers...
22/09/2026

Let's be honest. Most young people have never heard of a neuropsychologist. I hadn’t heard of one until I was at university. So when I meet with a young person for the first time, I don't assume they know what I do or why they're there.

Instead of jumping straight into an explanation, I usually start by asking what they already know. And it typically goes something like this:

Me: Do you know why we're meeting today?

Young person: Mum/Dad told me to come.

Me: So true! And what have they told you about why we're meeting, if anything?

Young person: Not much really.

Parent: Yes I did! I told them you're a neuropsychologist and you're going to help with getting to school on time.

Me: Do you know what a neuropsychologist is?

Young person: Ummm…something to do with the brain?

Me: Exactly! I'm interested in how brains help us think and do things. My job is to help people understand how their brain works, so we can make life work a little better.

So for you, your Mum said I was here to help with getting to school on time. But to start with, I’m more interested in your experience of mornings. What do you think about mornings?

***

This approach does three things:

First, it puts the child into the conversation immediately. Rather than asking the parent to explain why they're there, I’m asking the young person what they know. Even if they don't know much, they've been invited into the discussion from the beginning.

Second, it makes the conversation collaborative from the outset. I don't launch into a description of what a neuropsychologist does. I first explore what the young person might know. (And sometimes they know exactly what a neuropsychologist does!) Making the conversation collaborative from the start sets a tone. It tells them we will figure things out together.

Third, it shifts the focus from the parent's goal to the child's experience. And it tells them I'm interested in understanding their perspective, not just solving a problem that adults have identified.

Engagement, collaboration, and rapport. These start from the very first sentence!

Lately, I've found myself giving the same piece of advice to parents, teachers, and therapists: Instead of asking "why",...
18/09/2026

Lately, I've found myself giving the same piece of advice to parents, teachers, and therapists:

Instead of asking "why", try asking "what" first.

At first glance, the difference can seem small.

"Why were you asked to leave class?"

versus

"What happened that led to you being asked to leave class?"

But for many young people, particularly neurodivergent young people, these questions can feel very different.

When we ask “why”, we're often asking a young person to do a lot of thinking on the spot. We are asking them to reflect on their behaviour, understand what influenced it, make sense of it, and then explain it clearly to someone else.

And as these conversations can often happen at a time when a young person already feels stressed, embarrassed, frustrated, or worried they are in trouble, they may struggle to access the skills needed to think on the spot in that moment.

When we instead ask “what”, we're giving them a more accessible starting point. It also tends to feel less accusatory than “why”.

Instead of needing to immediately explain themselves, the young person can begin by describing what happened from their perspective. We can then work together to make sense of the situation.

Compare:

"Why did you throw the ball?"

with

"What happened that the ball ended up here?"

The first question assumes there is a reason the young person can readily explain. The second creates space for curiosity (in them and us!). Rather than asking them to justify themselves, it invites us to explore the situation together.

Asking “what” allows us to gather information together rather than expecting a young person to carry the burden of immediately analysing and explaining their own behaviour. It can be through understanding what happened, what the young person noticed, what they were responding to, and what was difficult in that moment, we often begin to understand the "how" of their brain. Giving us better insights than if we had started with “why”

A small tweak in our language, a large difference in our conversations.

In my time as a neuropsychologist, I've noticed something interesting: the more rapid-fire questions I ask early in a se...
15/09/2026

In my time as a neuropsychologist, I've noticed something interesting: the more rapid-fire questions I ask early in a session, the less I tend to learn.

Many children and young people become quieter when we ask lots of rapid-fire questions, or when most of the conversation is directed towards their parents. So how do we balance our need to understand the child, without overwhelming them with questions?

What I find can work better, is to use a more conversational approach, with your initial questions directed at something the child can answer better than their parents.

Questions such as these below examples can help build rapport while also providing valuable insights into how their brain works:

*Tell me what makes a good teacher?
*And a not so great teacher?
*What is your favourite part of school?
*What's the most frustrating thing about school?

I've found that through using a conversational approach, where the young person can share their insights and their opinions, often helps us start to unpack together how their brain works.

The questions above can uncover a lot, such as:
*What captures their interest
*How they prefer information to be presented
*What helps them engage
*What situations they find challenging
*The environments in which they do their best thinking

And by writing down our learnings as we go, the young person learns we are here to collaborate with them. Knowledge building, rapport building, and collaboration - a great outcome for an initial session.

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