Having a child with ADHD can be hard as a parent, especially when it comes to school. Learn 5 simple strategies to help your ADHD child achieve success in school:
- The first step to helping your child achieve success is through making sure their teacher is aware of their ADHD. This information does not always get passed along the chain of teachers. Through informing their teacher, you can work together with them to be on the same page and work on the same goals. Inform their teacher of any medication the child may be on as well as they can watch and let you know how well the medication is doing for your child in during school hours. If there comes a point of the medication not working as well, the teacher can let you know of possible medication changes that may need to happen.
- Find ways to help your child learn to their fullest. Your child may need a few different goals than others, or more goals that are smaller. Making their goals smaller may make it easier for your child to reach their goals. Always make sure as goals are hit, you point them out and celebrate them. Even just a fun sticker or pencil to say GREAT JOB goes a long way. They need that praise. This way they feel like they are accomplishing something! This leads to them strive to reach more goals as children need to feel self-worth!
- When working during class time or at home, ensure to give them time. If something is too hard or they become frustrated, have them move on to the next question or problem. You can always come back to the hard ones later! During test time, if they are having problems concentrating, have them take a short walk to the drinking fountain. This short walk will help them clear their mind and walk off a little energy! This is a great plan to bring up to the teacher. Maybe during conference’s, or call or email. Not all teachers have dealt with the same degree and amount of ADHD children, so do not assume the teacher knows what is best for your child.
- Never do any work for your child. This may be frustrating for both of you, but there will be no success from you doing their work. If you are having a hard time, try stepping back and thinking of clues to help them find the answer. Make the clue’s easy to begin and as you move on give clues that are a little harder and require more thinking. This is a great way to help them catch on and learn how to find the answer on their own!
- Help your child stay organized. Children with ADHD are prone to being messy. Have your child put their work in different colored folders. If there is a project due, begin the work together. Work together to put all your child’s notes together and organized. Have your child work a little every day on their project. Talk everyday about how many days are left before their project is due to limits stress.
The main thing to always remember with ADHD children is to always be patient! Their brains work different than ours and they need to take small breaks to stay focused. Every year, you will learn more and more about what works best for your child. Just always keep teachers and other adults in their life up-to-date with this information so your child can learn to their fullest.
