ADHD students and closed schools

Question

how can I help my student focus on school at home where they aren't used to working all the time?

Answer 1

Many students with ADHD can suffer from "time blindness." Students with ADHD may have difficulty with understanding how much time has passed or how much time they have left before they need to take an action. Taking a 30 minute online class, for a student with ADHD, may feel like a 10-hour chore.

Using timers can be very useful for helping a student with ADHD complete tasks, because it gives them a visual representation of an invisible concept. It's important that the timer be visible as the student works, though! There are many free options available online.

Use the timer to make online school a game. If you work on this assignment for so many minutes, you get a reward. This could be 30 minutes of writing an essay, and then you get to grab a snack. You want the rewards to be something your student would want to earn, but not something like video games that could keep their attention for too long. If you want more information on this style of time management, you can search for the Pomodoro Technique.

Happy learning!

Answer 2

This is a great question that is on the minds of many parents, especially as many have unexpectedly found themselves homeschooling due to the COVID-19 crisis. There are a number of ways that you can help your ADHD student stay on top of their game despite this setback. As someone who has ADHD myself, I’ve found that some of these techniques work on me and others work on students I have helped with establishing a study plan for themselves. A few of which include:

1. Make a to-do list. Whether it’s hand-written, or on an app in your student’s phone, having each individual component of a task or assignment laid out can make it much easier to keep track of what exactly needs to be done and their progress. For younger students, it can be helpful to have a book of stickers they can choose from and when they complete each part of the task, place a sticker over it to show that it’s done.
2. Take frequent breaks when working on longer projects. Whether it’s to get snacks, snuggle a pet, or just get up and move around, taking 5-minute breaks can help keep your student from getting burned out or overwhelmed.
3. Try to eliminate distractions as much as possible, like turning off TVs and finding a quiet area for your student to work. Playing some soft classical music in the background can help drown out noises that can’t be controlled like kids playing down the street or loud appliances. This will help your student not have to divide their attention between background noise and their work.

Best of luck,

Bri