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Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, often shortened to just ADHD, is one of the most common learning difficulties that teachers have to help students to manage, but that doesn’t mean it is easy. Teaching students with ADHD can be tiring, but their energy can inspire great things. The research based interventions suggested in this guide will help teachers to guide students with ADHD to use their unique approaches in a controlled and organized way to achieve success in school and beyond.
Students with learning difficulties are all different, but the strategies here are based on the concepts of Universal Design, which suggests that lessons can be planned in a way that works for the brains of all students.
What is ADHD?
The National Institute of Mental Health defines ADHD as a learning disability “marked by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development.” (“NIMH » Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder”) People diagnosed with ADHD often report racing or impulsive thoughts, difficulty sitting still or performing tasks while still and stress or anxiety due to trying to manage energy levels and impulse control. ADHD also does not preclude a person from having other diagnoses.
ADHD is diagnosed by a psychiatrist through a series of interviews and specially designed questionnaires designed to identify behaviors that interfere with the person’s ability to live their lives. The questions revolve around impulse control, intrusive thoughts, and energy levels. Generally, no brain scans or medical testing is done in the process of diagnosis of ADHD. However there is clear evidence that ADHD and its various sub-types are identifiable with MRI through the distinct patterns of brain activity and the shape of the various brain regions responsible for attention and impulse control. (Sun et al.)
It is important to note that ADHD is a description of a set of behaviors of a person and of their brain activity and it is not a disease or result of brain damage in a person. While the behaviors, feelings, and activity generally found in people with ADHD render many tasks more difficult due to how modern society is organized, there is also significant evidence that ADHD is beneficial for many things as well like creativity, social skills and paradoxically the ability to hyperfocus.
While individuals with ADHD often have difficulty controlling their attentional resources, this doesn’t only cause them to be easily distracted, but sometimes shifts their attentional resources into overdrive, creating a beneficial flow state and long term focus that often can go unnoticed by the individual while it is happening. (Ashinoff, and Abu-Akel) (Boot et al.) (Sedgwick et al.)
Identifying ADHD in the Classroom
Students who are diagnosed with ADHD are often described by their teachers as:
- Unable to sit still for extended periods of time.
- Easily distracted by noises, sights, and other students.
- Disorganized in their work as well as when giving explanations.
- Impulsive, often being unable to wait to give answers and often speaking out of turn or at inappropriate times.
5 Targeted Interventions for Teaching Students with ADHD
1: Let the student stand up behind their chair.
Students with ADHD often feel the need to move significantly more than a chair permits in order to function at their best. Allowing students to stand up behind their chair will let the student feel they have power to make choices to help themselves stay focused rather than feeling trapped with pent up energy.
While the swaying and bouncing a person with ADHD often does might seem like it is them distracting themselves, in reality the physical stimulation frees their minds from the compulsion to move and helps stimulate thought.
2: Ensure instructions are always written on handouts or on the board.
Any student can get distracted when instructions are being given or forget even if they were listening intently. This is a task that is harder for students with ADHD due to their more easily distracted nature and lowered attention span.
When teaching students with ADHD, teachers should remember to write out instructions clearly on handouts given to students or on the board. Then when a student needs a reminder of what task they need to work on or what the next step is will be easily visible.
Students don’t always want to admit they weren’t listening or forgot something and so won’t speak up or raise their hand to get back on track. Often teachers accidentally create this guilt by getting upset when a student says they forgot something or admits they weren’t paying attention. Ensure that students are praised when they admit they are off track as this shows that they clearly want to be on track, but just wanted help.
All students occasionally forget what they were doing or forget a teacher already handed them an instruction sheet sometimes. By associating their attempt to get back on track with praise and good emotions rather than anger or even punishment, it creates an environment where students feel supported. This method allows all students a guilt free way to jump back into learning and not miss important steps in their assignments.
3: Seat the student away from distractions.
Most young students are easily distracted by their friends, things going on outside or in the halls, and students with ADHD will struggle with this the most. Teachers can help students with ADHD focused by seating them away from windows with lots of movement and activity.
Seating them closer to the front will also help the student focus more as their field of vision will be mostly filled by the teacher and the board rather than other students who may be off task or behaving in a distracting manner.
4: Let students fidget and fiddle.
While for some students playing with a toy or fiddling with an eraser or pen might be a distraction from learning, for many students with ADHD, having a mindless fidget tool can actually be the physical stimulation their mind needs to settle down and get to work.
Teaching students with ADHD while they are constantly messing with something can be quite distracting for the teacher, other students, and even the student themselves if used to excess, but sometimes the physical stimulation just allows them to focus on listening to the teacher instead of their constantly buzzing thoughts.
5: Don’t over-support when teaching students with ADHD.
While students with ADHD may require additional support to do their best in school, teachers should be wary of over-supporting them or not challenging them enough due to preconceived notions or lowered expectations. While giving opportunities for students with ADHD to move when possible may be very beneficial, there will be times when all students, regardless of their diagnoses, must sit and remain focused for a long period of time such as during a test or while listening to other student’s presentations.
After schooling, people with ADHD will also still need to function in the real world and not every job or lifestyle is going to fully accommodate to whatever needs they might have. Truly teaching students with ADHD means teaching students with ADHD how to be themselves, but also work in a collaborative world where they need to be considerate of others.
People with ADHD, like anyone else, need to work to improve their weaknesses and do things that are hard for them to become more flexible and capable individuals. Teachers should challenge and scaffold supports for all students.
While some students with ADHD might not reach certain prescribed standards for impulse control and attention span, that does not mean that they can not improve in these areas and it is a teacher’s job to help students overcome challenges in their lives and reach appropriate developmental goals. With a teachers guidance, students can learn to manage their lives and feelings in a healthy way when necessary and utilize what makes them special to thrive in school and beyond.
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References
Ashinoff, Brandon K., and Ahmad Abu-Akel. “Hyperfocus: The Forgotten Frontier Of Attention”. Psychological Research, vol 85, no. 1, 2019, pp. 1-19. Springer Science And Business Media LLC, doi:10.1007/s00426-019-01245-8.
Boot, Nathalie et al. “Creativity In ADHD: Goal-Directed Motivation And Domain Specificity”. Journal Of Attention Disorders, vol 24, no. 13, 2017, pp. 1857-1866. SAGE Publications, doi:10.1177/1087054717727352.
“NIMH » Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder”. Nimh.Nih.Gov, 2021, https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd.
Sedgwick, Jane Ann et al. “The Positive Aspects Of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Qualitative Investigation Of Successful Adults With ADHD”. ADHD Attention Deficit And Hyperactivity Disorders, vol 11, no. 3, 2018, pp. 241-253. Springer Science And Business Media LLC, doi:10.1007/s12402-018-0277-6.
Sun, Huaiqiang et al. “Psychoradiologic Utility Of MR Imaging For Diagnosis Of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Radiomics Analysis”. Radiology, vol 287, no. 2, 2018, pp. 620-630. Radiological Society Of North America (RSNA), doi:10.1148/radiol.2017170226.
