Executive Function & ADHD Glossary
Clear, plain-English definitions of the terms parents and students hear most often — from teachers, assessments, and each other — explained the way we actually use them in coaching.
Each term below has a short definition. Where we've written a full guide on the topic, you'll find a link to go deeper.
Executive Function Basics
Executive Function
The set of mental skills that let someone plan, start, organise, and follow through on a task — separate from intelligence or subject knowledge.
A student can understand the material and still struggle to apply it consistently. That gap is what executive function coaching addresses.
Task Initiation
The ability to start a task without delay, once you've decided to do it.
This is one of the most commonly affected skills in the students we coach — not unwillingness, but difficulty crossing the gap between “I should” and “I am.”
Working Memory
The ability to hold information in mind while using it — following multi-step instructions, keeping track of an idea while writing it down.
Emotional Regulation
The ability to manage frustration, anxiety, or disappointment without it derailing the task at hand.
Self-Monitoring
Noticing when you've gone off track and adjusting — without someone else pointing it out first.
Organisation & Time Management
Building reliable systems for tracking work and estimating, realistically, how long things take.
ADHD-Specific Terms
ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder)
A neurodevelopmental condition affecting the brain's ability to regulate attention, impulse control, and activity level. Formally diagnosed by a licensed clinician, not a coach.
Hyperfocus
The ability to lock onto a high-stimulation activity with intense, sustained concentration — often the flip side of struggling to start low-stimulation tasks like homework.
Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD)
An intense emotional reaction to perceived criticism, failure, or rejection, common in ADHD — often disproportionate to the situation itself.
Time Blindness
Difficulty sensing how much time has passed, or how long a task will actually take — distinct from simply losing track of the clock.
Body Doubling
Working alongside another person, in person or online, to make starting and sustaining a task easier — the presence itself provides structure.
School-Context Terms
IB Extended Essay
An independent 4,000-word research essay required for the IB Diploma, run over several months with minimal built-in structure — a common point where executive function gaps become visible.
IB Internal Assessment (IA)
Coursework completed across the IB Diploma's two years, assessed by the school rather than a final exam — another long-timeline, low-structure task type.
Twice-Exceptional (2e)
A student who is both gifted in one or more areas and has a learning difference or executive function difficulty — often masked because the strength compensates for the struggle, at least for a while.
Masking
Consciously or unconsciously hiding signs of a struggle to appear more capable or “fine” than the underlying experience — common in high-achieving students, and in girls specifically.
School Refusal / School Avoidance
Persistent difficulty attending school, often driven by anxiety, overwhelm, or an accumulation of unmanageable demands rather than defiance.
Recognise your child in more than one of these? A conversation is the quickest way to work out what would actually help.
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