ADD and school

I don't have any advice relating to dealing with the school, but I can share a bit of experience from having ADD myself. I had a 1st grade teacher who gave us packets of worksheets to do every day, and she threatened to fail me because I wasn't finishing the packets most days. I got everything right on what I did finish, but was easily distracted by other kids/daydreams/whatever. Luckily, she didn't fail me, but my mom wasn't too happy about her even mentioning it as a possibility. (I ended up being labeled as "gifted" a couple years later.) The best advice for any kid with ADD is to try to find something they ARE good at/interested in with regard to school work. Otherwise, they'll grow up thinking of school as a tedious chore. Yes, they still have to learn the "boring" stuff, but if they have at least one thing besides recess and lunch to look forward to, it really helps. For myself, I loved French, which we only did once a week, but I would always look forward to school that day and be out of bed and ready to go as soon as my mom woke me up.

She likely could qualify for an IEP or a 504 if she needs it. Distraction is a big thing. Desk closer to the front to minimize spacing off on things around her. My son went to a larger school where kids switched classes in fifth grade. He was assigned a teacher he met with at the beginning and end of the day who helped make sure he had what he needed for class or for homework. That helped.

If she's 11, I don't know if she is still in elementary school or middle school. My FD has ADHD and anxiety. She used to miss 20 days of school a semester before she came to me because of anxiety at school. She was disorganized and didn't know the homework so I could not help her because she said, "I don't have any." Kids with ADHD are notoriously disorganized so I took over. FD came to me in 8th grade. FD already had an IEP but no support at home, so no homework was done. She was terribly anxious about school because she was so unprepared, so she would get stomach aches because she just didn't want to go. When I got her, this is what I did: 1) Used the school supplied agenda 8 x 11 inches (buy one if they don't) which has a daily calendar, but which has boxes for each subject (English, Math, Social Studies, Science, etc.). 2) Have your daughter write down the homework for each class and have the teacher initial it. If your daughter can't, then have the teacher write it out and sign it. 3) For every class that she got a signature, it was $1 a day ($5 a day total given at the end of the week) - yes $25 a week is high but that's about two movies or what I was spending on her anyway. 4) But if she missed one signature, she owed me $25 (she got nothing). That helped to at least get homework assignments under control so I could help her. 5) Take everything out of the backpack every night and look at it. Put it in the correct binder or section of the notebook with her (not without her being there). Ask her what is this? It's kind of like being a detective but she will get better at it. 6) Do homework when they get home. They're too tired in the evening. Break homework up into 15 minutes at a time (maybe start with 10 minutes) and then a quick break (a couple of minutes to run around or whatever is a "goodie" for your daughter). 7) Be prepared for meltdowns in the beginning. It took us hours to do homework every night but we had to do it before anything else. IT DOES GET BETTER. But there were crying matches, etc. for months, and then it got better. FD is a junior now and still needs monitoring but does the homework. I still do need to help but she's willing to do it. 8) Get the child involved in something she loves. FD loves singing and dancing, and she's good at it, so she's known at school at the singing girl, not the "dumb one" or the "stupid one" (these are the names she was called before, not my words so don't get mad at me). Most ADHD are intelligent but school doesn't usually teach their learning style so they feel unintelligent. Help her build friends outside of school, i.e., at her lessons, classes for something she loves. These kids will get to know her for her strengths, so if something is going on at school, she will have outside friends to hang out with. 9) Hold the boundaries especially in the beginning. It honestly sucks. She would lie on the floor, the chair in every position, tell me she needed a pencil, a glass of water, a pen, a different piece of paper, a _________ (fill in the blank with something to get that she NEEDED or else she didn't do the homework). I would indulge a few but then, let's get going. 10) If homework is simply too stressful with you on a certain subject, then you may need to get a tutor for that subject. I know math but for some reason, FD and I couldn't do math together so I got a really great tutor. It may take a while for you to find the right one for her - so be willing to check out several. 11) FD also has a processing disorder so make sure that your daughter is tested to see if there are other things going on. Your daughter may need accommodations in her homework (less). I don't like to get FD more time because then she's just behind all of the time. I am a high school teacher and will give more time for an assignment if needed but I try to discourage this, because then the child is always behind. They're working on an old project and not the current one. I'd rather cut down on the project to what is reasonable for your child. You can PM me if you'd like.

love the replies! we have just discovered my dd is dealing with this too. my older brother dealt with ADD years ago before most people knew what to do. I agree with finding their talent. self esteem was and still is a huge issue for him. He is a very talented artist but, that was discovered later in high school. He spent most of his life feeling he didn't measure up because he approached life, especially school, with a different set of "glasses". once he got the right tools he had more sucess and school work became less painful. I do remember it being pretty painful most days and like the post above discribed disorganization is a major contributing factor. my SIL my older bro's wife is working one of their daughters learn to have sucess with ADD Tutoring and life-skill coaching programs (they are using kumon-sp?)along with an extracuricular acivity. it is helping a lot. We just found something for our daughter and it is helping her image of herself. It is great for her to be good at something! Now as far as school goes...we are just beginning that stuff and dd is still young, in elementary school...So...I guess I'll be checking back for more info in the future.

My 10 yo has an IEP; he's in a CWC (class within a class). He's in a regular class with an aid. the aid is for all students who need help so no one students sticks out. ITA with the poster who said empty their backpack and folders. My 10 yo has a organizer where he writes down homework; I initial each day. I get to the assignment and if it's done. My son also gets extra Math and reading before school. sometimes I have to explain things to him after it's done in a class or with alot of kids.

You need to ask, in writing, that the school evaluate her for learning disabilities. They will then have so many days (45 in Penna.) to perform the evaluation. That will help determine whether she has any additional disabilities, and whether she qualifies for an IEP. I am not sure if, in CA, ADHD and anxiety alone will qualify for an IEP. You may also want to ask for a sensory profile to see if there are any sensory integration problems. You need to have a complete picture of her to best decide the course of her education. She may need specially modified instruction and/or modifications to testing and/or classroom, depending on her final diagnoses and the procedures in your district. One of the things that our school did that helped her concentrate and stay in her seat was a disc that has nubs on it and she sits on that and helps her be more aware of her movement. She also has a "fidget", a small object that she holds onto to help calm her...could be like a rubbing stone or something similar. Her classroom also has a sensory area...a bean bag chair, a rocking chair, soft rugs, small "water falls" that had a soothing sound...that children could go to if they felt overstimulated or overwhelmed. By the way, we put a 5 gallon goldfish tank in her bedroom. The bubbles help calm her at night and the light substitutes as a nite light. She watches that till she falls asleep. Good Luck