ADHD in the School
In today's day and age, it seems like everyone is diagnosed with something. The most frequent of these diagnostics, especially among kids and teens, seems to be Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, ADHD for short. There are three major symptoms: Inattention, Hyperactivity, and Impulsivity. Each of these symptoms are challenges in and of itself while in the classroom, however, when rolled up together they can quickly become a nightmare. Not only is it not beneficial for the ADHD student but other students, and often times the teacher, can suffer from the distractions that hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity can bring. It is important to note that, even though many kids and teens show signs of ADHD, many don't actually have it. "...most developing children tend to show disinterest in subjects that they aren't particularly fond of, and most are excited to get up and explore the world." (Rowan). Let's say that a particular kid does have ADHD; how does that affect his educational experience and what can be done to help?
People with ADHD tend to have a harder time with school since there minds jump around so much. Jumping mentally from one thing to the next makes organization nearly impossible while the hyperactivity causes the 8 hour school day feel like an eternity. Some parents will want to jump straight to drugs, such as Adderall, to help their kids pay attention during the school day but there are other ways to help kids focus and learn. Making school work interesting, such as in the form of a game, helps draw kid's attention away from outside distractions. Letting kids fidget with a fidget tool helps as long as the tool doesn't take the focus away from class. These techniques work well if they are done in a way that doesn't distract the rest of the class. Another big challenge that ADHD students face is organization. Often times such students think they will remember things but never do because their minds jump around so much. Writing down the information helps tremendously. Whether that is writing it in the form of a checklist or planning it all out in a planner, the hardest part is remembering to update and finish what is written down. This is where teachers or parents can help. Gentle reminders every now and again can be a tremendous help.
Speaking from personal experience from dealing with ADHD, both in my personal life and from the lives of the people closest to me (shout out to my dad Tony, Nate, Tianna, and anyone's name I forgot to mention because of...Look Squirrel!), it can be a struggle in the classroom. The forgetfulness, easily being distracted, and lack of organization skills makes school even harder. While we may get by just fine, it is largely due to the people in our lives who help keep us on track. It's important to remember to not use something such as ADHD as a crutch. Everyone has something that makes things harder. While some are legitimate such as a back injury or a disability of some kind, it is very easy to talk a personal struggle up into something it is not just so that we have an excuse to get out of something. These struggles should be something we all put 120% effort in over coming so that we can become a better person. During the past couple weeks of English class, we have been talking about empathy which is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. It's important to understand what the people in your life are going through or struggle with, whether that be ADHD, drugs, cancer, so on and so forth. Knowing the things those closest to you are dealing with allows you to help push them. Push them to over come the hurdles in their life and become a better person because of it.
They Come To America. Perf. Undocumented Illegal Immigrants. Youtube. N.p., 29 July 2012. Web. 27 Apr. 2017. .
Work Cited
Rowan, Kiri. "ADHD and Autism: Is It One, the Other, or Both?" https://blog.udemy.com/adhd-and-autism/ Udemy Blog, 26 May. 2014
"Symptoms of ADHD" WebMD, 17 June. 2015. http://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/adhd-symptoms#1
Morin, Amanda. "At a Glance: Classroom Accommodations for ADHD" http://www.webmd.com/add-adhd/guide/adhd-symptoms#1
ADHD Classroom Strategies. YouTube, uploaded by insideadhd, 9 September 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dd62-eL0JYI
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