Profiles of everyday executive functioning in young children with down syndrome.

The team asked parents and teachers to fill out the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function.

They compared the preschoolers with Down syndrome to 30 mental-age-matched kids without disabilities.

All children were three to five years old and lived in the same Midwest city.

Parents and teachers both rated the Down syndrome group much lower on working memory and planning.

Parents also saw weaker impulse control, but teachers did not report that difference.

The gap stayed large even when mental age was the same, so the lag is real, not just delayed.

Meneghetti et al. (2018) later showed the same Down syndrome sample struggles with mental rotation tasks.

Together the papers map a wider cognitive profile: weak working memory, planning, and spatial skills.

Matson et al. (2009) looked at the same age group and found early persistence predicts later school success.

That finding pairs well with ours: boosting executive skills now may protect future motivation and learning.

Davison et al. (1995) tracked adults and saw steeper memory decline in Down syndrome.

Our preschool data hint these problems start early and continue across the lifespan.

You now have clear evidence that three- to five-year-olds with Down syndrome need help holding rules in mind and planning next steps.

Add brief working-memory games, visual schedules, and stop-and-think practice to your sessions.

Starting early may slow the downhill slide seen in adult studies and lift the persistence that feeds later academics.