ADHD in the Classroom – Part 2: Meeting the Challenge

Last week, in Part 1 of this series we introduced the topic of students with ADHD, exploring misconceptions, symptoms and causes, as well as the positive traits common in those with the condition. Today we’ll address the specific challenges that ADHD students present to educators, and ways you can provide a positive and productive learning environment for all your students.

Challenges for Educators
As we learned earlier, children with ADHD may be distracted and inattentive, or excessively talkative and energetic – or all of the above. They may be a loud, disruptive influence, or they may be oblivious to the subject at-hand, misdirecting class attention away from the lesson.

Students with ADHD often have trouble:

• Following instructions
• Remembering assignments and homework
• Staying on-task
• Taking notes
• Organizing their work

These kids experience their own set of frustrations. They’re bored, edgy and often uncomfortable in school. They may be teased or laughed at by peers, and scolded by parents, teachers and administrators. They don’t mean to misbehave, but they aren’t capable of controlling their ADHD impulses. Self-esteem issues are common for this group, and punishments or low grades don’t help matters.

As a teacher, you’re caught in the middle, trying to satisfy the needs of both your ADHD and non-ADHD students, and perhaps taking heat from both sets of parents as well. Ultimately, your own self-esteem and sense of accomplishment may falter. 

Teaching Strategies
Obviously you’ll need patience and a positive attitude to successfully educate a student with ADHD. But there are strategies you can employ that will help these children adjust to the classroom environment and maximize their academic potential.

In order to give this weighty topic thorough consideration, we’ll present our ADHD teaching strategies in two separate blogs. Today we’ll address:

• Partnering with students and parents
• Evaluating individual needs
• Creating an effective environment
• Managing disruptive behavior

In the final part of this series, available in early in March, we’ll provide more detailed teaching techniques, including tips on:

• Starting and ending lessons
• Keeping students engaged
• Homework and testing
• Improving memory

Partnering with Students and Parents
Use a partner approach for students with ADHD. Tell them that you want to work as a team to make school an enjoyable, productive experience, and minimize the frustrations for everyone involved.

Since ADHD can share symptoms with learning disabilities or traumatic events, confirm with the child’s parents that a doctor has indeed diagnosed ADHD. Then work with the parents to devise a joint, personalized strategy that meets the child’s specific needs. Your efforts on the student’s behalf should be reinforced at home, and vice versa.

Evaluating Individual Needs
Clearly, no two students are alike, and your role as an educator is to tailor your approach to the individual. Techniques that work with the inattentive type of ADHD student may be ineffective with the hyperactive type. As you continue your partner strategy, you’ll be able to fine-tune your method to fit the child.

Ideas for Attention-Deficit Students
Short attention spans are not exclusive to children with ADHD. Applying strategies for keeping your students engaged will benefit your entire class.

At Envision, we’ve found the experiential, hands-on approach is one of the most effective methods of engaging students, while promoting creativity, critical thinking and retention. Experiential education is highly effective with ADHD students, as their attention improves when they’re personally involved in the task. Assign hands-on projects whenever possible, and work closely with the student to reinforce instructions, objectives and organization.

Other suggestions for inattentive students:

• Make the topic relevant and incorporate the student’s personal interests
• Decrease the length of lectures or assignments
• Ask questions frequently, calling on students randomly; let them know you expect active participation
• Use the student’s name and/or stand close to them; tap their shoulder or book, to draw the attention to the topic

Ideas for Hyperactive Students
Students with this type of ADHD will tend to be impulsive, impatient and fidgety, having difficulty staying seated. Experiential learning is effective in this case as well, since it involves hands-on, physical activity. In fact, ADHD students may be quite successful with experiential projects, since they often pour energy and drive into activities they consider interesting.

Other tips for teaching this type of student:

• Establish and reinforce classroom behavior/social rules
• Provide as much positive attention and recognition as possible
• Incorporate movement and concrete objects in the lessons
• Praise accuracy over speed

Creating an Effective Classroom Environment
You can shape your learning environment to help minimize the distractions of ADHD. Ideas include:

• Seat the ADHD student away from windows and doors; a seat close to your desk may be ideal
• Remove unnecessary visual stimuli, clutter and noise
• Create an organized classroom, with specific areas for supplies, test-taking or reading, colored folders to hold specific types of work, etc.
• Provide written, posted schedules
• Allow gum chewing, changing seats, or any energy-burning activity that isn’t disruptive
• Provide a bouncy seat cushion or something squishy for the student to fiddle with

Managing Disruptive Behavior
You have a responsibility to your entire class, and therefore want to minimize ADHD behavior that takes time and attention away from other students. Talk to your ADHD student about their behavior in private and explain your expectations. When you see the kind of behavior and results that you’re looking for, reinforce them. A point system or some other reward-based structure may be effective.

Strategize with the student on a mutually agreeable approach to warding off negative behavior before it happens. A hand signal or tap on the shoulder may help remind the student to rein in their behavior when it starts to become disruptive.

Other strategies:

• Establish a rapport with the student; response improves with a good emotional connection
• Stay positive and encouraging; focus on progress
• Use social recognition, as well as visual progress charts to reinforce positive behavior
• Ignore mildly inappropriate behavior whenever possible

For more teaching strategies for students with ADHD, watch for the third and final installment in this series, coming in early March.

And if you’d like to know more about the workings of a student’s mind, check out our Science of Learning series:
Part 1: Neuroscience – What’s It Mean to You?
Part 2: How the Brain Learns
Part 3: How Emotion and Mindset Affect Learning
Part 4: Brain Plasticity at Different Ages
Part 5: Do Girls’ Brains Differ from Boys’ Brains?
Part 6: Right Brain vs. Left Brain