If you’re a teacher, or a parent, or work with kids in any capacity, you may recognize this child: The one who stares out the window during whole-group instruction. The one who answers the question, “What does that word say?” with “Ms. Divya, why does your hair look different today?”
Their hallmark symptoms of inattention and impulsivity can be frustrating. Their behaviors take time away from instruction and disrupt the entire class. And, what is most frustrating about it all is that you know they have the brainpower, but they are unable to focus for long enough to retain the information.
Learning can be challenging for children with ADHD. Here's how we can support. Share on XHowever, with patience and appropriate strategies, these kids ARE able to thrive in the classroom. Here are some suggestions.
1) Repeat yourself.
Do you, as an adult, ask someone to repeat themselves if they are talking too quietly? Or if you happened to be lost in thought? This. Is. Normal. Children need to be taught that it’s OK to ask people to repeat themselves. They don’t need to be reprimanded because they didn’t hear it the first time. They are not robots.
Sure, it can be frustrating. So use some visual cues (a hand gesture, a bright-colored paper, etc.) before you present important information. Make sure you’ve captured their attention before you speak. And, yes, if necessary, repeat yourself.
You are not giving in to poor learning behaviors. You are being helpful to students who need some extra reminders.
2) Be engaging.
Nobody is asking you to tap dance on top of your desk. But, speaking AT children for an excessive amount of time is going to be challenging for any student. Not just the students with ADHD.
Allow students to productively struggle. This will increase investment & curiosity. Share on XWorksheets don’t teach kids how to critically think. Allowing them to explore and productively struggle? That is how you build investment and curiosity. Hook them in. With emotional content or a costume. With a short movie clip or a story. Be engaging. Your students need to enjoy learning if you want them to be successful.
3) Occupy the right side of the brain. This will allow the left brain to concentrate on work.
Let your students fidget. Or play with cubes and stress balls while they listen to you lecture. Let them sit on yoga balls or spinning chairs. Or stand up and pace while instruction is happening.
Sidetracking a person’s subconscious mind allows their conscious mind to focus. Share on X
Distract them. When an ADHD student’s creative brain, or body, is occupied, their logical brain can concentrate.
4) Shift your mindset and thinking.
Your goal is not to change the way the child’s brain operates. In fact, a brain with ADHD will never change the way it operates. Students should learn strategies to help them work around their disability. And who better to model this than their teachers and/or parents? Accept that their disorder is a huge part of what makes them unique.
Instead of viewing them as a distraction in the classroom, focus on the advantages. They are teaching other students about the variety of learning styles. They are teaching the other kids about what it means to be tolerant, loving, and supportive.
More than anything, be patient. They are just as frustrated that they can’t pay attention. They want to learn and play and be like everyone else.
Love them.
Respect them.
Appreciate them.
Whether you know it or not, they’re teaching you lessons, too.
Questions of the Day:
- Do you know a child who struggles with inattention or impulsivity?
- How do you support the students or kids you work with?
Great info for not just teachers but anyone dealing with child with ADHD
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This is a beautiful post….amazing advice. I wish more teachers were as patient as you.
Thank you for the wonderful insight into teaching children with ADHD. I find it useful for teaching little children with short attention span too.
My son is a special education teacher. He has shared some teaching skills he has learned. Key is to remember every child is different and will respond different.
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SO much truth to that! If I could go back and do it all over again and choose between a regular classroom teacher or a special education teacher, I would choose SpED Teacher again and again and again. I’ve picked up on so many learning strategies and I feel like I’ve developed more patience over time!
Thankful teachers like you. I could imagine it’s frustrated for the student’s who wants to pay attention, however, have a hard time doing so.
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I think kids with ADHD are more fun 🙂 But yes needs a lot of patience for them.
Great suggestions. I particularly like the idea of letting them fidget. One less thing for them to worry about (sitting still) as they work to focus.
Shari recently posted…With Hearing Loss, The First Step Is Acceptance
Seriously! If someone told me I had to sit “criss-cross-apple-sauce” for 30 minutes on the rug, I’d probably consider it a failure right then and there. There’s no way I could do that so why would we expect kids to do that?
I was definitely THAT kid… ADHD all the way here! I went to a LD school and everything!
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WHOAAAAAA. That’s crazy! I would love to pick your brain over e-mail if possible?! I know you’ve got a million things going on now as a new Mrs. but it’s always interesting to me to talk to an adult who had attention difficulties or a learning disability and see their trajectory over time with the right supports. <3
Email away! I make time for everyone! 🙂 gigieatscelebrities at gmail !!
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I guess your in on the debate over medication. When my kids were in school they were overdiagnosing kids with add and attempted to suggest my son had it. We, of course, had him tested and he didn’t have it rather it caused a debate between the teachers and special ed professionals. Ultimately, they came to realize that the amount of kids were just too distracting to him and he spent a year in Contained Classroom and did very well. I imagine it is very difficult.
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Ugh. Yes. There’s always the “in” disability. The cool disability that everyone thinks they have. A few years ago, it was autism. Currently, all the parents want their kids tested for dyslexia.
I’m already being told that my son will have some form of ADD or ADHD. I hate the stigma with it. But I always try to have him involved in family things the ways that he learns the best. Now I have some new ideas to teach him as a mom, thanks!
This could help a lot of parents and teachers! There are a lot of children who aren’t being taught effectively.
I do love this post and especially the message it conveys. Nobody learns at the same speed or in the same way–it is about time we all realized this and act accordingly!
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I am so glad that schools/educators realize now that there isn’t a “perfect” plan that fits every student. Each child is an individual and learns at a different pace. Great job on the post!!
I love your summary at the end of your post… so true!!!
This is wonderful advice! My son does have ADHD but thankfully he has understanding teachers so he’s doing great in school.
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From reading your blog, it sounds like you’re super involved too! Which makes it all the more powerful. When parents and teachers unite, so much more growth can be made <3
I couldn’t agree more with what you wrote. I feel these steps are important for every kid! I’m a teacher of kids with visual impairments and I find that you have to be incredibly engaging and repetitive for them to pick up the concept. You need to activate that right side of the brain to get it working and make it memorable!
Nice tips. I can’t even imagine a teacher in that environment working. Parenting is enough of a struggle. I have a child with ADHD. She does fine in school but, I will remember these tips and apply them in other areas of her life.
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Awesome post Ms. Divya. Lot to learn from it.
Blessed are those kids and parents who have teachers like you in school.
Thanks for being a special needs teacher with so much patience and love for the all the kids.
God Bless!!
Great tips! I like to spend some 1:1 time with students who have difficulties after whole class instruction to confirm that they understand what the task is. Sometimes it only takes a minute or so to re-cap, and they are a lot more open to saying when they haven’t understood the instructions when they are used to this kind of follow-up.
When I taught 2nd grade I dealt with this a lot. I felt really unprepared but I learned so much. Great post!
Lovely post and what a wonderful teacher you are for educating us with this post. Learning is so important, I wish I had you as a teacher when I was at school.
Lennae xxx
http://www.lennaesworld.com
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This is great advice. I wish more adults could be patient and realize it’s not the child’s fault.
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My eldest son struggles with focus daily and being able to accomplish small tasks. I had him see a speech therapy (due to other reasons) and she did diagnose him with mild ADHD however, mainly receptive and expressive language disorder. He takes in information and the output after he processes it is normally 180° out.
Thank you as this is what ADHD is like with my son. I have spoken to his teachers each year. Some do not understand even after getting a professional development training.
Having ADHD/ADD can be a challenge for those who truly experience it. For example my husband is one of those people. However with some old school techniques we have been able to manage it without medication.
If we were in the United States I would be so worried that our son would be diagnosed with it and he probably already would have been. However here is Norway at such a young age they do not expect kids to sit in a classroom all day and focus. There are no pre-k programs here (maybe down in the south) just regular Barnehagen (similar to daycare). On a bad day at barnehagen my kids spend 3 hours outside… on a good day they are outside all day. No matter the weather.
I think it is hard to have kids focus for such long periods of time when that is not what their body or minds should be doing. Even at an older age. The classes here are 45 minutes with 15 minute breaks in between. The kids have 3 recess periods throughout the day which is only a 6 hour day (8:15-2:15). On Wednesdays and Fridays they get off earlier around noon.
I applaud you for teaching kids and you are definitely right that patience is the key.
Sounds like I need to move to Norway! I imagine kids who get that kind of freedom turn out to be more creative and more stress-free as an adult. I would love to work in that kind of environment!
We home educate our ASD son, there isno way he would handle what the schools expect in the UK. We get to teach him how he learns best and he loves beunf outaide and muisc is how he is learning to speak! patience is definitely needed sometimes like with all kids 🙂
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*being outside, sorry outcorrect seems to correct to words that don’t exist! 🙂
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Thanks for sharing this. I have not had the opportunity to teach ADHD kids yet but I will be sure to be mindful and keep these tips in mind. Thank you
I have never taught anyone with ADHD. The suggestions seem sound and like they could be used with most children.
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We think that all these tips are great for dealing with adults as well as children. So many of us are overworked, distracted, and don’t get enough sleep. You gave great communication advice in general too for today’s world.
This is such a wonderful post! Thank you! My son has ADD and it is quite a struggle at times. Thankfully he has wonderful teachers at his school who are very caring and do follow many, if not all of these, suggestions. I think my favorite, though, is “Children need to be taught that it’s OK to ask people to repeat themselves. ” My son has not been one to always do that, although he is getting better at it as he grows older, which is a blessing.
Children – and adults – are not robots and it is so important for all people to realize this. That will create much more tolerance and harmony in the world. Thank you for your part in helping to create that harmony! <3
Yes! I actually have a student who just transferred to our school that had requested to take a break “per his IEP.” The teachers were a bit intimidated that he was able to know what was written into his IEP. But I, on the other hand, took that as a sign of FABULOUS TEACHING AND PARENTING! He knew how to advocate for what he needed. If only we could support all kids to do this!
What great suggestions you have. I love stress balls! They help adults too! 🙂
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A lot of these help for just the average little boy as well! My son may not have ADHD, but he DOES need help focusing just because he is a little ball of energy. 😉
Thank you for writing this. I’ve known and cared for so many over the years and our education system needs to change to accommodate them.
It’s so important to have a lot of patience with kids who have different learning needs. This is such a great post.
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Wonderful post and much needed information. I taught preschool for a few years and saw several highly distractable children. We often let them hold something heavy or play with a stress ball during circle time. It worked really well.
This sounds like a helpful post for teachers and homeschooling parents with ADHD children.
It’s so important to remember to work with a child’s needs rather than always against them. Nice work!
this is such a very informative post.. This will be really helpful for parents who have kids with ADHD. specially moms.
Love this post especially the message delivered through this post! This is wonderful advice!
It does take a lot of patience and understanding to work with kids who have special issues. Teachers need to be flexible and collaborate with parents to reach each child’s goals.
I can only imagine how frustrating it must be for you and the student themselves but with a little patience as you said then you can help them and your sanity too
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It would be so frustrating to teach children with ADHA, I think that the conventional way of teaching just doesn’t work for these kids. They really do have the brain power and can be very intelligent.
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Thank you for this post. My kiddo is undiagnosed but I see lots of ADHD traits in him. I’m a former classroom teacher and so very much appreciate your positive and supportive tips. Well done.