What ADHD Students Wish Their Teachers Knew - Part 2

We shared some insight yesterday in what it feels like to be a student with ADHD in the classroom, and what one student wishes her teachers knew about her.  Here are the rest of those points.


What ADHD Students Wish Their Teachers Knew - Part 2
Written by Lisa Gridley
From CADDAC.ca


Continued from part 1, which we shared yesterday.

I'll need your help to learn and practice: organization skills (things like writing assignments in my agenda, planning them out, completing them, and getting them back to you when they're due), note taking, study skills and test taking strategies. When you mark my work, please look for areas that I am struggling with and show me how I can do better.

It's really hard for me to remember lots of instructions when you give them all at once. Please give me one instruction at a time. For assignments, it really helps if I have written instructions so I don't have to try and remember everything.

The medication that I am taking helps me to focus and calms my hyperactivity. But as I grow, my medication may need to be adjusted. You can really help by letting my parents know if you notice that my medication is not working as well as it did.

Even with the help of medication, I still feel the need to move. Movement helps me to learn. Sometimes it helps if I can stand while you're teaching. Sometimes I really need to work off the energy because it feels like I've got high voltage electrical currents running up and down my arms and legs. Let's develop a private signal that lets you know that I'm really needing a break from sitting still - I could run something to the office for you, hand out or collect papers or wipe off the board. Or you could involve the whole class in a stretch break and no one would know that it's really just to help me.

Do not take away recess or gym as punishments. I desperately need physical activity several times a day to work off the excess energy that I have and relieve the stress of having to sit still for so long. Without this time to 'blow off steam', I am more likely to have increased hyperactivity and impulsive behaviour.

The other thing that helps is if I have something to do with my hands. Clay, a stress ball or even an elastic helps my body to get rid of the extra energy.

Finding a good seat in your classroom is important. I may need to sit at the front of the room so that I'm not distracted by what all the other students are doing and so that I'm closer to you when I need help. Or I may do better at the back of the room so that I'm not always turning around to see what's going on behind me. Being at the back also takes away my 'audience' and allows me to stand up if I need to without distracting the other students. I also need to sit somewhere away from other distractions like windows and pencil sharpeners and other students who are struggling. And it helps if I can sit beside a student who can help me when you're too busy because when I need help, it's hard for me to wait.

If you see that I've lost my focus, please give me a private signal to get me back or walk by my desk and touch my shoulder. Or say something like, 'Now this is very important, so please pay attention.' Please don't ever humiliate me by using sarcasm or sayings like 'Earth to _______'.

I can be very sensitive to small noises and sensations like the hum of fluorescent lights, the temperature of the room, the tags inside my clothes or the sound of the kid behind me as he writes. Sometimes, I just can't concentrate because these small things are so distracting. It helps if I have a quiet place to go to if I feel the need or if you see that I'm having trouble concentrating but please give me the choice to go there. Do not force me to go there because it will only humiliate me in front of my friends. If you offer this 'quiet place' to the whole class, it helps me to accept the option without feeling centered out.

I have trouble making transitions from one task to another especially if I'm doing something that I enjoy. Sometimes I can hyper focus and it's hard for me to stop and change tasks. You can help me by giving me advance notice that we will be starting something new in a few minutes. It gives me the time that I need to work on putting the brakes on in my mind. Changing from doing something active to doing seatwork (coming in from recess or gym) is especially hard for me. Help me by slowing me down gradually and rewarding me when I settle quickly.

Handwriting is difficult for me. Please let me print if I want to. Using a computer is even better because I can think faster than I can write and a computer will help me to get my thoughts down without having to worry about mistakes and organization which can be corrected later.