It's so hard to have ADHD. I believe that kids come to school wanting to learn and do their best. When ADHD is at it's worst, sometimes it feels like the thing you know you HAVE to do and is good for you is the last thing in the world you want to do. There are so many other things to think about-explore-do...so that reading worksheet can just sit there because now is a good time to dissect your eraser! That's what it's like. There isn't this willful voice inside these kids' heads saying, "BE BAD. GO OFF TASK. DON'T LISTEN." They want to cooperate and sometimes I think we make it nearly impossible. (Note to self...as a teacher...play more games. Do cooperative learning. AVOID WORKSHEETS.)
I made the meme above today because I couldn't get this quote out of my head. I wish I could remember who said it! It's a guy who has books and videos about teaching students in special education. The thing he hammered home is that he often hears parents and teachers complain about the child with ADHD. They will say, "He just won't focus." That isn't really what's going on. The ADHD child is focusing on EVERYTHING. He is giving his teacher an equal chunk of his multi-tasking mind...but he's also giving time to about 10 other things that he can't let go of. It may be the need to sharpen his pencil, destroy an eraser, pick the mud off his shoes, put her hair in a ponytail for the 50th time today, etc. These things seem to be important too. And if the student isn't at the academic level where they are ready for the lesson you're teaching...forget it! And ADHD goes hand in hand with other issues...depression, anxiety, panic, and obsessive compulsive disorder. That's a lot of baggage for a kid to carry around.
A few things I've discovered that help are things that were easy to implement and are suggested by the leaders in ADHD research and advocacy.
1) Checklists. Make the student their own personal checklist for the day's major activities and assignments. I created a file in Google Docs and updated it each morning. I made copies for my students with ADHD and they checked items off as we went through out day. This kept them on track and prepared.
2) Provide accomodations for organization. If the desk is overflowing, provide the student with an extra bucket or tray to place papers and books in. Every few weeks, ask the student to hang back and spend some time organizing. The truth is, organization will probably always be a struggle. These kiddos will greatly benefit from 1-to-1 technology! But in the meantime, have patience, model good organization habits, and coach the child through their organization struggles.
3) If homework is chronically getting lost, consider talking to parents about sending homework via email. If the child has a tablet or iPad at home they could do their home work using a file sharing app. Just take a picture of the worksheet and send it the child. Then they email/send you back the file. Voila! Search the iPad app for "paperless teaching" and you will see there are lots of options.
4) Frequent brain breaks and movement. I like to provide the students with ADHD a brain break at least every 60-75 minutes of academic instruction. I insert a brain break for the whole class in our afternoon block but I didn't need to do that for the morning block. So the students with ADHD would take brain breaks at times designated on their schedules. This was my cooperating teacher's idea and I loved it. She supplied the students with some activities to do and a timer. They got 2 minutes. This GREATLY helped their focus. Other things that I've done are having the students help pass out papers, allowing the student to stand at his desk instead of sit, using cooperative learning structures that include movement, moving whole group lessons from the carpet to the desks and back again. A change of setting can do wonders!
5) There's never too much positive behavior reinforcement. Whatever your system is - don't be greedy! I learned this from my old school's counselor. Hand out the positive behavior currency like it's going out of style and for the littlest positive things. It puts you in a great mood - because who doesn't LOVE to heap praise on kids - and it reminds students that the little things we do all day are the things that add up to our success. If a student with ADHD raises his hand and doesn't blurt out - I'm all over giving out the PBI.
6) I've also discovered how critical it is to build a relationship with parents. Call them to celebrate successes - no matter how small. When concerns arise, call them for advice. And listen. You see their child for a small fraction of their life but the parents are dealing with these struggles everyday. This can be really hard on them. I remember my mom asking me quite often to PLEASE STOP TALKING. I think I drove her nuts as I wanted to talk to her about anything and everything - from politics and movies to the injustices of human suffering. My brain just was going 24/7 (and still is!). And I can see how it is hard for my husband to try to have a conversation with me when I will suddenly "go someplace else" in my mind and change the subject. These kids' parents deal with these behaviors all the time and you are now someone who can listen, relate and understand. You've - by default as their child's teacher- become a part of their support network. I want to take that role seriously and will do everything I can to protect that relationship, and provide them with support.
Student teaching was an incredible experience for me and I learned so much. More than anything, I saw how special each and every child is and that real care and concern for the students coupled with professional training will steer you where you need to go to meet their needs. I studied at Fort Hays State University. I highly recommend their elementary education program. Find out more at www.fhsu.edu.
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