In this episode, I reflect on my conversation with my colleague Cassandra Williams as we discuss book and resource deserts , as well as how to engage with school communities. In the interview clip I share, Cassandra shares a story of how one of her colleagues found a surprising way to increase attendance at parent-teacher conferences when he took the time to ask members of the community what their needs were. Additionally, I share my commentary on how technology can both help and hinder literacy...
Oct 01, 2025•32 min•Ep. 235
Ever feel overwhelmed being the only SLP in your district without a network of fellow clinicians for support? You're not alone; many in similar situations face these challenges. In this episode, I’m sharing a case study of an SLP who, despite being the sole clinician in her district, felt the pressure of not having a trusted system she could rely on for language therapy. Searching for a structured, effective approach, she turned to the Language Therapy Advance Foundations program. There, she dev...
Sep 24, 2025•25 min•Ep. 234
Ever feel like you should have language therapy figured out by now, but you're still struggling? Even experienced clinicians can feel that way. In this episode, I’m sharing a case study of a seasoned SLP who, despite years of experience, felt like she was missing a key piece of the puzzle when it came to language therapy. Battling decision fatigue and a lack of a reliable system , she joined my Language Therapy Advance Foundations program and created a reliable system that made her feel confiden...
Sep 17, 2025•25 min•Ep. 233
What if choosing between language and executive functioning for your students wasn't an "either/or" decision? And how can we effectively balance academic content with broader cognitive skills? It's a complex challenge, and the answer isn't always obvious. In this episode, I share commentary and a clip of my conversation with Jill Fahy, where we discuss the impact of executive functioning skills on the college experience. Jill is a licensed speech-language pathologist and professor in the Departm...
Sep 10, 2025•43 min•Ep. 232
In this episode of De Facto Leaders , I’m joined by speech-language therapist Natalie Yona from Cognishine to explore one of the most nuanced conversations happening in today: Where does AI actually belong in therapy? Cognishine is a multilingual, multidisciplinary digital intervention platform designed for therapists, educators, and care professionals—offering a rich library of evidence-based , culturally tailored activities and tools that streamline workflows, boost engagement, and support bot...
Sep 03, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 231
One of my favorite “hooks” or titles to use when I’m talking about executive functioning centers around the idea that executive functioning intervention is about “more than just checklists”. I like this title so much because one of the go-to interventions or accommodations for students with executive functioning difficulties includes some type of visual strategy or “checklist” to help them remember steps to important tasks. Yet many teams are finding that students don’t use the visuals or suppor...
Aug 27, 2025•13 min•Ep. 230
Every time I give a session on executive functioning, I have clinicians and teachers ask me the same thing: “How can I motivate students who don’t seem to care or don’t want to try new things?” Or something like “How can I convince students why this (insert task) is going to be important to them in the future?” The short answer is that you don’t “convince” them of anything. At least not in the moment. Instead, you create the experiences and opportunities that are going to help the student acquir...
Aug 20, 2025•14 min•Ep. 229
Students with executive functioning challenges often intend to complete tasks or meet expectations —but struggle to execute consistently. The reason? They aren’t mentally envisioning future scenarios, predicting the steps needed to reach a goal, and thinking about what they need to be doing NOW in order to meet that goal. This cognitive skill, called future pacing, allows students to visualize the process and outcome of their actions, building a critical link between planning and follow-through....
Aug 13, 2025•21 min•Ep. 228
I’m often asked if I can create an “executive functioning lesson plan” that a clinician could do within a 20-minute therapy session with a student or group of students. I understand why people ask me for things like this. This traditional “pull-out” model of therapy is what many clinicians have been taught in our preservice training , and it’s often what’s focused on in professional development for clinicians. This model works well for many skills. It also plays a part in executive functioning i...
Aug 06, 2025•18 min•Ep. 227
Executive function is often defined as “having good time management skills”. While this isn’t completely off-base, it’s a vast oversimplification. The REASON people are good at time management is because they have the ability to estimate and sense the passage of time. Most “textbook” definitions of executive functioning don’t fully call this out, and as a result many educators and clinicians have a difficult time figuring out how to design instruction and intervention that supports executive fun...
Jul 30, 2025•20 min•Ep. 226
In this episode, I sit down with Jessica Lane, founder of Data-Informed Impact, to unpack the critical role of data in K-12 education—and how to use it responsibly, effectively, and equitably. Jessica shares her expertise on building a strong data culture in schools, improving data literacy, and creating clear, ethical data visualizations that empower—not overwhelm—educators and leaders. We explore the often-overlooked human side of data: how to build trust around data use, avoid duplicative pro...
Jul 23, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 225
In this episode, we’re joined by literacy expert Dr. Molly Ness , author of Making Words Stick , to unpack the science behind orthographic mapping and what truly effective spelling instruction looks like. If you've ever found yourself wondering whether “irregular” words really exist—or how to teach spelling in a way that actually transfers to reading and writing—this episode is for you. Dr. Molly Ness is a former classroom teacher, a reading researcher, and a teacher educator. She earned a docto...
Jul 16, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 224
Ever feel like your school is trying all the “right” strategies—social skills groups, planners, behavior charts—but students still struggle with time management, motivation, and peer relationships? You’re not alone—and there’s a reason why. This episode is a clip from my free training, “Create a Research-Based Implementation Plan for your School Team.” It’s designed for school leaders who want to guide their teams in embedding executive functioning support across both general and special educati...
Jul 09, 2025•42 min•Ep. 223
In this eye-opening episode, I sit down with Dr. A. Jordan Wright, psychologist who brings both professional insight and lived experience to the conversation—having been diagnosed with ADHD in college. Together, we explore the often-overlooked stories of kids who manage to compensate for ADHD symptoms well into adolescence or adulthood, only to receive a diagnosis later in life. We also dive into why early educational settings are crucial for embedding executive functioning supports and how thes...
Jul 02, 2025•57 min•Ep. 222
In this episode, I interview Connie, a student from the Language Therapy Advance Foundations program. She shares her practical experiences and results achieved with her students. Key highlights include: ✅ Engaging a Disengaged Student: Connie discusses her strategies for working with a high school student who was bored with therapy, emphasizing the use of engaging books to enhance vocabulary learning. ✅ Time Efficiency: Learn how Connie cut her preparation time in half by implementing the framew...
Jun 25, 2025•38 min•Ep. 221
Many clinicians , educators, and school leaders know they should be working collaboratively, but don’t know how to find time to do it. If you have a friend or colleague who seems to have magical productivity powers , I promise there’s a method to the madness. Most likely, they’ve just gotten really good at a concept I call “asset stacking”. It starts with asking yourself the question, “What can I create now that can save me time or effort later?” In this third episode in the 3-part clinical lead...
Jun 18, 2025•27 min•Ep. 220
In this second episode in the 3-part clinical leadership series , I explore the 'lesson planning trap'—a common situation where clinicians focus so much on perfecting individual sessions and miss broader opportunities for impact. I experienced this myself, spending years creating detailed therapy plans while seeing little change at the systems level . Then I realized the importance of distinguishing between planning for individual therapy and planning for effective service delivery. This insight...
Jun 11, 2025•22 min•Ep. 219
In this episode, we address the common experience of being overlooked in crucial conversations about the students we serve. Whether you're a clinician or educator who feels unheard while trying to contribute, aspiring to be in a leadership role , or currently in leadership and experiencing impostor syndrome , this discussion challenges you to embrace your role as a leader— regardless of your job title. We'll start this 3-part clinical leadership series by clarifying some misconceptions about lea...
Jun 04, 2025•32 min•Ep. 218
In this episode, we dive deep with educational consultant and innovator Dr. Kate Anderson Foley, who challenges conventional wisdom about student support systems and offers a fresh perspective on educational leadership. Dr. Anderson Foley's shares revolutionary ideas about restructuring intervention frameworks and explains why some traditional approaches may be limiting student potential. Episode Highlights: ✅ The Double Helix Model - Dr. Anderson Foley introduces her groundbreaking concept comp...
May 28, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 217
In this episode, I’m excited to announce the release of my new compression course, “The School Leader’s Guide to Executive Functioning Support.” You can learn more about the course here: https://drkarenspeech.lpages.co/school-leaders-guide-to-executive-functioning-support/ In this session, I’ll be sharing why I created this program, what parents and professionals have shared with me when I talk about executive functioning, and how I approach educating professionals about this important and relev...
May 21, 2025•35 min•Ep. 216
In this episode, I sit down with Eric Smith from GrowNOW ADHD, to explore innovative approaches to social skills and executive functioning through the lens of a community-based program: Executive Functioning Summer Camp. Eric shares his insights on challenging existing service delivery models and discusses the importance of practical, real-world applications for clients. Eric is a Speech-Language Pathologist, ADHD/Executive Functioning Specialist, and Director GrowNOW ADHD's EF Camp with over 7 ...
May 14, 2025•56 min•Ep. 215
In this powerful episode, I sit down with Ana Hernandez, a speech pathologist who found herself on the other side of the therapy room after undergoing brain surgery. Ana shares her deeply personal journey through the road of recovery. As someone who has spent her career helping others communicate, Ana opens up about what it was like to struggle with communication herself. She discusses the emotional and physical challenges she faced, the strategies that aided her recovery, and how her experience...
May 07, 2025•59 min•Ep. 214
This week, I’m sharing an interview I did with another host on the BE podcast network because I think it’s something you’ll really enjoy. The episode is going live in the De Facto Leaders podcast feed. Dr. Chris Jones has been an educator in Massachusetts for 22 years. His experience in the classroom ranged from 8th – 11th grade working in an urban setting. A portion of this was spent opening a high school division for an expanding charter school. He has just finished his 14th year as a building...
Apr 30, 2025•43 min•Ep. 213
In light of the mass amount of misinformation about ADHD, particularly regarding medication, I thought it was time to do a re-release of this past episode. *Disclaimer, although I have “Dr.” in front of my name, I’m not an MD and do not have the credentials to prescribe medication. This episode is meant for general information only and is not intended to be medical advice. As a licensed speech pathologist, I bring the perspective of someone who has supported clients through behavioral change and...
Apr 23, 2025•43 min•Ep. 212
I remember the first time I “Marie Kondoed” my therapy room and got rid of materials that were published before I was born. There were shelves of things I never used, and having so many options created unnecessary decision fatigue every time I sat down to plan my week ahead. Over time, I started investing in knowledge instead of flashcards and games. I found my students did better when I kept it simple. I thought my students would be bored, but they actually became more engaged and independent. ...
Apr 16, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 211
In this episode, we dive into the often-overlooked art of writing clear, measurable goals for executive functioning. Unlike other academic or functional goals, executive functioning focuses on internal processes—making it harder to quantify and observe. Whether you're a teacher, therapist, or part of a school team, this episode will give you actionable tools to create meaningful IEP and therapy plan goals that truly support student growth. What You’ll Learn in This Episode: ✔️ Why executive func...
Apr 09, 2025•36 min•Ep. 210
This session is a Q & A I did in the Language Therapy Advance Foundations member’s group relating to how to support students through semantic study and working on complex syntax. I addressed the following FAQs: “How do I help students who struggle to define and describe words without making them prompt-dependent?” “How do I make semantic study more contextualized?” “What’s the difference between a “task-based” goal and a “strategy-based” goal, and which type of goal should I be using for lan...
Apr 02, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 209
Having someone observe your therapy room or classroom can feel awkward; whether it’s your boss doing your evaluation, or whether it’s a special service provider who’s supporting students in your class. When I’ve talked with administrators and service providers about classroom observations, they say it can be a learning curve for the person coming into the classroom as well. Yet having another set of eyes on your students can often be a valuable learning experience for both the person observing a...
Mar 26, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 208
Many young adults enter their post-high school years without the executive functioning skills needed to thrive. This is often because the people supporting them underestimate the amount of support they’re getting, and there’s no plan in place to fade that prompting. When young adults enter college, they have to manage sleep hygiene, long-term projects, and manage screen time. This is why I talk so much about using multiple service delivery models when supporting executive functioning; whether it...
Mar 19, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 207
For episode 206 of De Facto Leaders, I share a Q & A session where I discuss Reading Recovery and cueing strategies for decoding , and I make some recommendations for additional information that will give you more information on this topic. I also share what you can do if you're in a district that uses Fountas and Pinnell reading levels, which often don't give detailed or consistent information about a kid's language skills. You’ll also hear commentary on the Matthew Effect and vocabulary de...
Mar 12, 2025•41 min•Ep. 206
