Dr. Peg Dawson and Dr. Richard Guare

If you’re the parent of a “smart but scattered” teen or pre-teen, trying to help him or her grow into a self-sufficient, responsible young adult may feel like a never-ending battle. Now you have an alternative to micromanaging, cajoling, or ineffective punishments. This positive guide provides a science-based program for promoting children’s independence by building their executive skills—the fundamental brain-based abilities needed to get organized, stay focused, and manage impulses and emotions. Executive skills experts Drs. Richard Guare and Peg Dawson will assist with step-by-step strategies to help students live up to their potential now and in the future—while making your relationship stronger.

Richard Guare, PhD, is Director of the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Dr. Guare’s research and publications focus on the understanding and treatment of learning and attention difficulties. He is a neuropsychologist and board-certified behavior analyst who frequently consults to schools and agencies. He is coauthor of bestselling books including “Smart but Scattered,” “Smart but Scattered Teens,” “Smart but Scattered–and Stalled” (with a focus on emerging adults), and “The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success” (with a focus on adults). Dr. Guare is also coauthor of “The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition,” and books for professionals including “Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition.”

Peg Dawson, EdD, is a psychologist on the staff of the Center for Learning and Attention Disorders at Seacoast Mental Health Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She also does professional development training on executive skills for schools and organizations nationally and internationally. Dr. Dawson is a past president of the New Hampshire Association of School Psychologists, the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and the International School Psychology Association, and a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award from NASP. She is coauthor of bestselling books including “Smart but Scattered,” “Smart but Scattered Teens,” “Smart but Scattered–and Stalled” (with a focus on emerging adults), and “The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success” (with a focus on adults). Dr. Dawson is also coauthor of “The Work-Smart Academic Planner, Revised Edition,” and books for professionals including “Executive Skills in Children and Adolescents, Third Edition.”