Organisational Skills

When should I choose this Area of Focus for my Gabadoo?

There are several reasons why a parent would choose to focus on developing their child's organisational skills through Gabadoo. However, it's important to remember that children develop at different rates, so some variation in organisational skills is normal and may be age appropriate. However, if you notice persistent difficulties in any of the following areas, support from our team can be very beneficial:

Your child may struggle to manage their time effectively, resulting in challenges with completing tasks or assignments within designated timeframes. They may frequently underestimate or overestimate how long an activity will take, leading to difficulties in allocating time effectively and managing their schedule.
You child may appear disorganised and have a consistently messy and disorganised space, such as their bedroom, desk, or backpack. Their belongings may be scattered, and they may have difficulty finding or retrieving items when needed.
Your child may frequently forget important items or misplace belongings, such as forgetting to bring homework assignments home or misplacing school supplies. They may struggle to keep track of personal belongings like backpacks, jackets, or keys.
Your child may have trouble planning and prioritising tasks effectively. They may struggle to break down larger tasks into smaller, manageable steps or have difficulty deciding which tasks to focus on first. This can result in a lack of direction and difficulty initiating or completing assignments.
Your child may have difficulty juggling multiple tasks or switching between different activities. They may become easily overwhelmed or lose track of their progress when trying to manage several tasks simultaneously.
Your child may struggle to follow multi-step instructions or have difficulty remembering and implementing instructions given to them. They may have difficulty organising the steps required to complete a task and may need repeated reminders or additional guidance.
Your child may have difficulty with their awareness of time and struggle with concepts such as understanding the sequence of events, anticipating how long tasks will take, or keeping track of time during activities.

Our team is experienced with supporting children and teenagers with organisational skills through Gabadoo in order to reduce the impact on their daily life.

What information do I need to include in my Gabadoo?

As our Gabadoo Team have never met your family before and know nothing about your child, they can only provide strategies based on the information you provide so be very detailed!

After you have filled in the relevant information in your Gabadoo, go through this checklist to make sure you have included the following:

Family & Home Life:

Description of your family & the structure of your family including siblings, pets or any extended family who are living in your home.

Include if your child has their own room or if they share a room with a sibling.

Your daily routine including school hours, drop offs, time spent on hobbies and homework and free time in the evening and at the weekends so our team provide activities that are achievable for your routine.

Strengths and Interests:

What does your child or teenager like to do?

What games, toys, T.V. programs do they like?

What type of activities do they seek out?

What are some of their sensory preferences (e.g. music, visual details, movement etc.)?

Include what type of learner they are (if you know) e.g. visual, auditory etc.

What motivates them?

Do they respond to praise from adults?

Additional Information:

What class is your child in at school?

What type of schooling do they receive? i.e. homeschooling, mainstream N.S., gaelscoil, preschool, ASD class, Special School.

Have you seen any professionals in the past in relation to their development? If so, what was the outcome?

Make sure to include:

How is this impacting on your child's life? How is it impacting on family life?

What your child/teenager has tried before in terms of developing their organisational skills? What was effective? What wasn't effective? What were some of the barriers?

Are there specific tasks that your child finds more challenging than others?

When motivated by a task or activity, does their organisational skills improve?

What would you like to gain from this Gabadoo?

Next include images of the relevant home environments (e.g. bedroom, study area) and videos of your child/teen completing tasks if relevant.

Remember: The more information you give our team, the more individualised and relevant your plan will be.

What support will I receive for my child?

Your information will be reviewed by one of our Gabadoo Experts who is experienced in the area of organisational skills. They will detail individualised strategies, activities, next steps and helpful organisations and products that you can use at home to support your child or teenager.