Working memory
Working memory is like mental juggling.
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Working memory is the ability to keep information the focus of conscious attention, despite distractions. Working memory plays an important role in everything from reading ability and problem-solving to reasoning and learning new skills.
Having a poor working memory means the inability to control one's train of thought.
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Addressing difficulties in the area of working memory
If your memory processes don't function properly, holding information in your mind long enough to act on it is difficult. You might forget the steps of the math problem you are working on. You have trouble following a story because you can't remember the sequence of events that have happened. You forget to bring in assigned work, or even forget to do that work. Multi-step directions, particularly those given verbally, are going to cause trouble for you. Remembering all the details as you tell a story can also be problematic.
While there are different types of memory, students with ADHD struggle most with working memory troubles. This makes mental tasks like comparing, sequencing, summarizing, filtering out irrelevant information, reading and solving problems difficult. Switching focus from, say, doing math problems to copying down the homework assignment can really cause the working memory system to falter. Using working memory over and over can really fatigue the student so over the course of the day, performance declines.
There is a key idea as you begin to address weakness in working memory:
Place important information in physical form at the point
where the work has to be done.
The more you make that important information available in a visual format so the student doesn't have to rely on his memory at the point of performance, the more likely the student will use that information to guide his actions. Additionally, his use of the information over time may help him to internalize that information leading to his not needing to use working memory to retrieve that information as it has become automatic.
To see some specific ideas to address working memory difficulties, see the document below.
While there are different types of memory, students with ADHD struggle most with working memory troubles. This makes mental tasks like comparing, sequencing, summarizing, filtering out irrelevant information, reading and solving problems difficult. Switching focus from, say, doing math problems to copying down the homework assignment can really cause the working memory system to falter. Using working memory over and over can really fatigue the student so over the course of the day, performance declines.
There is a key idea as you begin to address weakness in working memory:
Place important information in physical form at the point
where the work has to be done.
The more you make that important information available in a visual format so the student doesn't have to rely on his memory at the point of performance, the more likely the student will use that information to guide his actions. Additionally, his use of the information over time may help him to internalize that information leading to his not needing to use working memory to retrieve that information as it has become automatic.
To see some specific ideas to address working memory difficulties, see the document below.
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Maybe you've seen some of the advertisements for the use of computer-based learning to improve executive functions, particularly working memory. The good news is that research is being done to determine whether these programs actually do what they say they do. I think the answer is "we just aren't sure yet"but, to the right, are two links to articles that may help you think about this question.
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Click here to go back to the main page that lists all the executive functions so that you can choose which one to look at next.
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Go forward to the next area of executive functioning difficulties. Onward!
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