Some primary pupils find it harder to plan a task, check how it is going and change course. Confirm the common classroom target before grouping them. Starting a task, sequencing actions and changing an unsuccessful plan are related but may require different teaching.

Use a real task

Choose a familiar classroom activity that pupils find difficult, such as completing a short project, organising materials or following a multistep investigation. Establish a baseline for:

• identifying the goal;

• selecting the first step;

• ordering and recording actions;

• noticing progress;

• changing the plan when needed;

• completing and checking the task.

Teach a visible routine

Model the routine by thinking aloud:

1. Goal: What needs to be finished?

2. Plan: What are the steps and what is needed?

3. Check: Am I still working towards the goal?

4. Adjust: What should change if the first plan is not working?

5. Review: What helped and what should I use next time?

Record the plan on a simple template, board or mini whiteboard. Use familiar tasks first, then vary the context. Model a deliberate mistake or change so pupils see how a plan can be adjusted rather than abandoned.

Plan the provision

Specify the shared target, individual baselines, delivery pattern, classroom reinforcement, review date and exit criteria. A typical pattern is three to five pupils, two sessions of about 20 minutes a week. How long it runs depends on how much support the pupils need, and the school decides where it fits and when to review progress (many schools review after six to eight weeks). Pupils may share the routine while receiving different levels of modelling and prompting.

Relevant teachers should use the same questions and allow pupils to consult the visible plan. Reduce prompts gradually rather than removing the structure suddenly.

Monitor transfer

Track whether pupils identify a first step, follow the sequence, respond to a checkpoint and adjust with less adult support. Review use in ordinary lessons, not only intervention sessions.

If substantial difficulty persists across contexts, gather wider evidence about language, working memory, attention, task understanding and wellbeing.

Guidance and resources

• EEF: Metacognition and Self-Regulated Learning: free guidance on teaching pupils to plan, monitor and evaluate their work.

• EEF: Special Educational Needs in Mainstream Schools: free guidance on targeted small-group and one-to-one support alongside high-quality teaching.

A branded executive-function programme is not required. Teaching should be embedded in meaningful tasks and evaluated through observable outcomes.