Instructional Modifications for ADD / ADHD students

for ADD/ADHD students. For the most part, their symptoms are outside both conscious and unconscious control. This makes behavior modification a form of torture, adding stress to kids who are already highly stressed, making their learning environment more hostile, simultaneously failing to meet any of their learning needs.

Kids vary so much it’s impossible to give specifics for reading, writing, and math. However, in general, ADD/ADHD kids respond well to short lessons. Maintaining attention is a lot of work for them. If you can get their full attention for 5 minutes, you will find retention is much better than if you have only half their attention for 30 minutes. This means making lessons short and to-the-point, eliminating fluff and busywork.

Mary

Do you really mean behavior modifications or just modifications?

Assuming you mean how can you modify curriculum for ADD/ADHD kids, that depends. Some ADD/ADHD kids read well, write well and do math well.

If though their ADD/ADHD makes it hard for them to stay on task and complete work, I’d shorten the work expected of them. I’d pare it down to the minimum that was necessary to develop their skills but no extra. I’d also allow them to listen to books on tape if that worked for them, use a word processor or dictate to a willing typist if necessary.

I do allow my ADD/ADHD to get up and leave the class for drinks. It helps them get through 35 minute classes if they can get a little stretch. I do plan classes that are very inviting of student participation so the ADD/ADHD are held more on task by the lesson itself.

Another good idea for ADD students is to help them develop a strategy to keep themselves on task. They may want a buddy who could check on them and remind them. Some kids do well with a timer. They set it for 5 minutes and work till it beeps and then set it again. If they have worked continuously maybe they could get up or give themselves a check mark or a star on a card as a reward.