For people with ADHD - what helped you as a student?

[Kanin]

Hi everyone, I'm putting this here instead of of the Learning Challenges board so more people may chime in. I'm looking for experiences from people who found successful strategies for accommodating ADHD in a middle or high school. What helped you/your student (or didn't help) to manage the workload and get things done? I'm currently implementing several strategies with a student with middling success. The workload is overwhelming! 

 

[prairiewindmomma]

Executive functioning support:

*capturing all of the assignments (do you have homework? Let’s check the online planner)

*going over the scope of the assignment together and talking about how to accomplish the task (Do you have supplies, know how to do bibliography, have a ruler, understand that they want at least five paragraphs with intro and conclusion and not just three sentence answers?…etc.)

*time estimation—e.g. this assignment should take 30-45 minutes, not three hours…I check in 20 minutes in to make sure they are still on track and help problem shoot if need be

*med switch to longer acting meds + afternoon booster dose so there is med coverage for homework time

*realistic school schedule (arranged with a sympathetic school counselor) fluff electives are at the end of the day

(edited out for privacy)

 

——Look, I will be completely blunt and say if good meds aren’t in the mix of all of this, the kid is shooting himself in the foot. The scaffolding AFTER meds works because meds get you to the point of being able to function. This may be a tutoring student for you and not your own kid—but I think if the parent hasn’t heard that feedback, it should be explicitly but gently stated.  Tanking your kid’s self esteem is not cool—it’s like asking a kid who has vision difficulties to work without glasses or having a hearing impaired kid work without a hearing aid. It’s the very, very rare adhd kid who doesn’t know by high school that they are working harder and struggling more than the kid next to them.

 

Edited February 7, 2022 by prairiewindmomma

[hippymamato3]

High IQ

Meds

[Kanin]

46 minutes ago, prairiewindmomma said:

—Look, I will be completely blunt and say if good meds aren’t in the mix of all of this, the kid is shooting himself in the foot. The scaffolding AFTER meds works because meds get you to the point of being able to function. This may be a tutoring student for you and not your own kid—but I think if the parent hasn’t heard that feedback, it should be explicitly but gently stated.  Tanking your kid’s self esteem is not cool—it’s like asking a kid who has vision difficulties to work without glasses or having a hearing impaired kid work without a hearing aid. It’s the very, very rare adhd kid who doesn’t know by high school that they are working harder and struggling more than the kid next to them.

 

Oh yes, meds on board. This is a student of mine. 

[Kanin]

34 minutes ago, hippymamato3 said:

High IQ

Meds

Check and check. Maturity... Not yet ☺️

[Carrie12345]

I didn’t “have” adhd until I was 30 ;-), so I didn’t get help as a student. 
I DID find music (listening and singing or humming) helpful. And sitting “weird”. And fidgeting.  I didn’t do those things IN school, but did to try to get through homework. But my mom always wanted me to stop. Had she just ignored me, I think I would have accomplished more.

[gardenmom5]

I had two diagnosed as adults.  one durning grad school.  both have sung the praises of drugs, and how much better they can now focus.

[gardenmom5]

2 hours ago, prairiewindmomma said:

 . It’s the very, very rare adhd kid who doesn’t know by high school that they are working harder and struggling more than the kid next to them.

 

I think often they don't know they're working harder.  they just think they're dumb because they're not keeping up with kids who aren't working as hard.

I'm likely ADD, and have three kids formally diagnosed.

one high IQ kid, we tried for years to figure out what was wrong because academics were easy BECAUSE of the high IQ.  Who knows what it would have been like if it had been an average IQ.  Absolutely didn't reach academic potential, despite the desire.  With meds - is finally using all of their abilities and flying high.

The other diagnosed during grad school- saw how it was easier for everyone else in high school, so concluded they must just be dumb.   Got scaffolding in place for college, and it helped, but adding meds after a formal diagnosis was still a huge leap forward that professors noticed, and commented.

[Carrie12345]

4 minutes ago, gardenmom5 said:

I think often they don't know they're working harder.  they just think they're dumb because they're not keeping up with kids who aren't working as hard.

I'm likely ADD, and have three kids formally diagnosed.

one high IQ kid, we tried for years to figure out what was wrong because academics were easy BECAUSE of the high IQ.  Who knows what it would have been like if it had been an average IQ.  Absolutely didn't reach academic potential, despite the desire.  With meds - is finally using all of their abilities and flying high.

The other diagnosed during grad school- saw how it was easier for everyone else in high school, so concluded they must just be dumb.   Got scaffolding in place for college, and it helped, but adding meds after a formal diagnosis was still a huge leap forward that professors noticed, and commented.

I didn’t know until I went to college. I mean, I knew I wasn’t valedictorian, but I tested well enough to offset homework and projects and win scholarships. I did not know how to manage my time or how to study. Professors didn’t write all the answers on the board for 45 minutes every day before the weekly test. I immediately flopped while people equally as “smart” managed fine. 
I don’t want to say my high school was easy, but it had a system I was able to work. 
 

[hippymamato3]

3 hours ago, Kanin said:

Check and check. Maturity... Not yet ☺️

I'm still waiting for that....lol

[Kanin]

1 minute ago, hippymamato3 said:

I'm still waiting for that....lol

Me too 🙂 

[ktgrok]

For homeschooling, or public school?

If you have control over assignments, having a routine or pattern to the work helps tremendously. The WORST for me as a person with ADHD is when things are haphazard. Having a pattern of "Monday - Thursday you do one assignment in the textbook and read one chapter, and Friday is Quiz/Test day" or whatever is HUGELy helpful. Versus sometimes quiz being on a tuesday, sometimes a friday, etc. Having all papers due on a particular day of the week, always a friday or always a monday. That kind of thing. 

Having all assignments in the same place - having to check multiple websites/lists/places is HARD. One will always be forgotten. 

Having a simplified system of organization - one notebook with folders in it, or an accordian file, or whatever. Simplify, simplify, simplify. 

Watching The Clutterbug youtube channel can give you some insights for the organization part - she has ADHD as well and a lot of her stuff could be applied across the board. 

Oh, and this is an EASY one - have something with carbs to snack/drink while doing school work!!! One of the big researches on how ADHD effects the brain talks about giving people watered down lemonade or whatever while doing school work helps a TON -they really are using a LOT of glucose in their brain to function and to stay on task. It really truly helps. My ADHD kids know to get a snack to eat before/during assignments that are hard for them. 

[ktgrok]

14 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

I think often they don't know they're working harder.  they just think they're dumb because they're not keeping up with kids who aren't working as hard.

I'm likely ADD, and have three kids formally diagnosed.

one high IQ kid, we tried for years to figure out what was wrong because academics were easy BECAUSE of the high IQ.  Who knows what it would have been like if it had been an average IQ.  Absolutely didn't reach academic potential, despite the desire.  With meds - is finally using all of their abilities and flying high.

The other diagnosed during grad school- saw how it was easier for everyone else in high school, so concluded they must just be dumb.   Got scaffolding in place for college, and it helped, but adding meds after a formal diagnosis was still a huge leap forward that professors noticed, and commented.

Yup. My life might have been totally different with meds...as it is I really relate to this meme. 

[ktgrok]

14 hours ago, gardenmom5 said:

I had two diagnosed as adults.  one durning grad school.  both have sung the praises of drugs, and how much better they can now focus.

Yup. I can't believe how much they help me function. The ability to prioritize, and to control my brain, to think and then act instead of being on to the next "think" before having a chance to act, etc is life changing. 

[ktgrok]

16 hours ago, Kanin said:

Oh yes, meds on board. This is a student of mine. 

Can you talk to the teachers? Is there a better way to get assignments to him vs random websites like most schools do? Can you help him check the websites and figure out a checklist he can have so he makes sure to check each of the places he has assignments? Is he taking on too much and truly needs one or two easier classes to lighten the load? Thank heavens I took at least one "gimme" class with no real homework each semester - things like art and photography, where all work was done in the classroom. Having 7 classes to track assignments for is really asking the impossible for most ADHD kids. 5 is at least maybe doable. It's one reason my ADHD kid did mostly dual enrollment in highschool - fewer classes to track at one time. 

[Toocrazy!!]

I think I’ve said on here at least 100 times:) DS19 was recently diagnosed with ADHD. So he did his entire public schooling without meds. Looking back I can see some of the things we did that did help, knowing now what I didn’t recognize then. 
He’s high IQ with a really high working memory, so he lucked out a lot and just listening to class got him through a lot. But in high school when things got tough we tried a few things that helped. 

We closed ourselves in my office and I sat with him while he worked. Less distractions.  I worked or read, but was available to keep pointing him back in line. He couldn’t stay in his room with his computer and music right there. A couple online classes I actually took at the same time so we could discuss things and work at the same pace. For long writing assignments going nowhere, he would talk out loud and I would type just to get something down on paper and then he would go back and edit. I also regularly cleaned out his planner of excess and old papers, helped him clean his desk, and we had a set of textbooks at home so he didn’t have to worry about forgetting one at school. I quizzed him a lot orally. He definitely focused better to sound than reading. All books that could be found in audio, he read and listened simultaneously. He found some on YouTube where people read and he could read along on the screen. He always had a fidget toy of some kind in his hand if he wasn’t typing or writing. He stood when possible.  

Things I wish I did- advocate for less homework problems. In AP Calc and AP physics, he understood the material for the most part, but could not get through the long problem sets. And then he would give up. He’s also slow processing speed. But this just overwhelmed him. I wish I wouldn’t have made him take so many hard classes in one year. It was too much sitting and focusing. He did ceramics which was great for him with the standing and hands on.  But I wish he’d had it more years, or a gym class, etc. something breaking up the day. 

[ktgrok]

7 minutes ago, Toocrazy!! said:

I think I’ve said on here at least 100 times:) DS19 was recently diagnosed with ADHD. So he did his entire public schooling without meds. Looking back I can see some of the things we did that did help, knowing now what I didn’t recognize then. 
He’s high IQ with a really high working memory, so he lucked out a lot and just listening to class got him through a lot. But in high school when things got tough we tried a few things that helped. 

We closed ourselves in my office and I sat with him while he worked. Less distractions.  I worked or read, but was available to keep pointing him back in line. He couldn’t stay in his room with his computer and music right there. A couple online classes I actually took at the same time so we could discuss things and work at the same pace. For long writing assignments going nowhere, he would talk out loud and I would type just to get something down on paper and then he would go back and edit. I also regularly cleaned out his planner of excess and old papers, helped him clean his desk, and we had a set of textbooks at home so he didn’t have to worry about forgetting one at school. I quizzed him a lot orally. He definitely focused better to sound than reading. All books that could be found in audio, he read and listened simultaneously. He found some on YouTube where people read and he could read along on the screen. He always had a fidget toy of some kind in his hand if he wasn’t typing or writing. He stood when possible.  

Things I wish I did- advocate for less homework problems. In AP Calc and AP physics, he understood the material for the most part, but could not get through the long problem sets. And then he would give up. He’s also slow processing speed. But this just overwhelmed him. I wish I wouldn’t have made him take so many hard classes in one year. It was too much sitting and focusing. He did ceramics which was great for him with the standing and hands on.  But I wish he’d had it more years, or a gym class, etc. something breaking up the day. 

All this. 

Also, my best grades were when I was in a sorority that had mandatory study hours. You had to spend a certain number of hours a week (or day, can't remember) in the dedicated study room. No distractions, and it had both regular desks and comfy papasan chairs, couches, cubicles with enclosed sides, whatever your style. There was a proctor - another sorority sister who would take a few hours "shift". So you couldn't goof off and play solitaire or whatever. You had to be reading something for school, doing an assignment, etc. It forced me to do schoolwork, since I couldn't do anything else anyway. If I didn't have an actual assignment to work on I could read ahead in the textbook, etc. 

I think it worked out to 2 hours a day for your first year. Then you could do half of that in your room, half supervised, on the honor system, unless grades dropped too low and then you went back on mandatory proctored study hours. 

A system like that at home might really work. I kid would hate it, but it would help. And after it helps, they may stop fighting it.