Teaching students with ADHD

What is ADHD?

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder also referred to as ADHD, is a neurodevelopmental disorder found commonly in children at an early age. Initially, it can be diagnosed in childhood or later in adulthood. Children with ADHD face difficulty in focusing, have impulsive behaviour, and are hyperactive. Symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) includes daydreaming, making careless mistakes, frequently getting distracted, forgetting about work or other things, frequently losing focus, talking too much, continuously moving, interrupting others, fidgeting and many other similar to that. Some of the symptoms highlighted are common in children. For instance, kids at an early age usually do not follow the instruction, talk a lot, or become overly active, so it does not mean all kids have ADHD. So you have to be very careful in spotting the signs of ADHD.

Teaching students with ADHD

Teaching students with ADHD is also a tricky task and can be a little bit difficult. So here are some easy and practical tips that will help you to teach students with ADHD.

Seating arrangement:

Sitting arrangement plays a very important role in discipline and maintaining the learning environment of the class. Especially when you have kids with ADHD in your class, you have to be very creative about their seating. For students with ADHD, make sure you place them away from the windows and door because they can distract them and divert their attention and focus. If possible, then try to place them on front benches in front of the board and teacher to minimise distractions and make it easy for them to focus on what is taught in the class. Instead of seating students with ADHD around the table, try to place them in rows as this seating arrangement works better than seating around a table.

Rules and regulation of the classroom:

Review and revise the set of expectations and rules every day in the classroom. Post rules and regulations in the class at a place where they are visible to all students and everyone can easily read them. It would be best to start your day by recalling the expectations and rules and making all the students in the class recall them with you. But it is very necessary to explain those expectations and rules to the students because it is also possible that students may misinterpret the words, making them understand what every word and sentence means. Along with that, paste the timetable on every desk so all those students who forget which is the next unit it would work as a reminder for them. And for the students who find it difficult to shift from one unit to another, this would also help them to prepare themselves for the next unit.

Give rewards to the students:

Give rewards to the students for their good behaviour and achievements. Appreciation should always have to be your priority instead of punishment. Rewards not only appreciate students but also motivate them to perform well and keep doing good. Keep changing the reward to maintain the spirit and to keep the students excited about the reward. Do not limit the reward or appreciation in the academic performance only. Give rewards to the kids for different activities. For instance, ADHD students usually perform well in physical activities to motivate them to give rewards to them on physical activities. Rewards not only motivate students to improve performance but also make the classroom and school a happy place for the students, and they like coming to the school instead of looking for the holidays.

Give them small breaks:

Students with ADHD find it difficult to stay in the same position or sit at the same place for hours and hours as they are continuously in motion. So give them small breaks to move. Having the opportunity to move after every short period of time gives them a big relief. Small breaks do not mean always giving them a break from the classroom and allowing them to talk with others or go outside the class. You can ask them to collect the papers or worksheets from all the students of the class, clear the board, go and bring the chalk, allow them to go outside and drink water from the dispenser or watercooler. These small breaks will help them to continue learning in the class without getting irritated or frustrated.

Become a support system for them:

Students having ADHD needs more attention and time than the other students in the class. But usually, rather than understanding them, to become frustrated and scold them with affecting not only their studies but also their mental health, and they do not want to go to school. School become torture for them. If there are students in the class with ADHD, make sure you support them and encourage them. Give them their required attention. Indeed, you cannot ignore other students for them. To deal with the situation, pair them with the students who are good at studies. Make them study partners so that they can learn even when you are busy.

Do not overload them:

Make sure you do not overload them with work. For the students with ADHD, it would be easier and more helpful if they get work in small sections because the bulk of work and home can become problematic for them. As children with ADHD have some sleep problems, that is why they could not pay complete attention in the class, and they also have behavioural issues because of improper sleep. Along with that, try to give the most important piece of work and explain homework when they are fully alert and active. Students can also take help from the assignment writing service, but make sure to make them understand everything and never burden them with work. They perform well when they receive work in small sections.

Flexibility: Usually, every classroom has a strict set of rules in which no one is allowed to leave their seat, have to sit properly, and no one is allowed to talk without permission. Following these rules is not impossible but are very difficult for students with ADHD. Instead of following, breaking some of these rules would benefit them. So the teacher makes a slightly flexible rule for them, for example, allowing them to stand in the class or change their sitting position.