ADHD

1. ADHD Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder By: Kirk Allen EDR 343 University of Michigan – Flint S. Knezek

2. Topic of Inquiry • I am focusing on investigating how to help early readers with ADHD to become enthusiastic readers.  To that end, I will research ways to actively engage them in reading activities or giving them chances to read with prompting and support.

3. Common Core Standards • Kindergarten -- 10. Actively engage in group reading activities with purpose and understanding. • First Grade -- 10. With prompting and support, read prose and poetry of appropriate complexity for grade 1.

4. ADHD By Definition • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is defined by Medline Plus as a problem of a person’s inability to focus, control behavior, overactive or a quantity of these situations. In order to be diagnosed with ADHD, someone must be acting outside the norms of a general person of their particular age range and behavior development.

5. What Causes ADHD? • ADHD is typically found in childhood years. In some cases it may develop in adult years. • Most common diagnosis behavioral disorder in children. • More common in Boys than Girls. • Causes are not accurately depicted. • Typically hereditary genes and/or environmental factors are commonly listed as factors that contribute to a person’s condition. • Scientists believe brains of children with ADHD are different than student’s without ADHD Source: Khalifa

6. Symptoms 101 • People with ADHD commonly experience difficulty with • Inattentiveness • Hyperactivity • Impulsivity • People that struggle only with Inattentiveness are typically diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).

7. Inattentive Symptoms • Lacks precise actions of detail and effectiveness • Does not listen properly • Difficulty organizing tasks & schoolwork • Often loses classroom materials • Easily distracted • Frequently forgetful

8. Hyperactivity Symptoms • Fidgety in a chair • Often leaves his/her seat when told not to • Moves around classroom when told not to • Difficulty being a silent when told to • Excessive energy spurts

9. Impulsivity Symptoms • Doesn’t do well when asked to wait • Interruptive during games and classroom discussions • Spits out answers before the question has been fully read

10. Testing Procedures • Testing procedures are not always definitive in nature, but are instead based upon the careful observation and teachers, parents, health care professionals and/or school administrators. • In most cases one will see that children diagnosed with ADHD are also noted having anxiety, learning or mood disorder. In these cases a doctor might help with the determination process based on the conditions. Source: Walker

11. Treatment • Typically treatment will involve the patient, parents and sometimes teacher. • Goal Setting • Medicine • Therapy • Follow up meetings

12. Medicine • Often works in combination with Behavioral Treatment • Psychostimulants: Medicine used to “calm” the patient • Doctors give proper instruction on taking medicine • In some cases these medicines can cause side effects

13. Therapy • Therapy aids those involved with a situation of ADHD gain knowledge and understanding of the situations that come with ADHD. • Behavioral Therapy develops procedures of counteracting disruptive behaviors a patient might have. • Support Groups offer the family connections with families who have experienced or are experiencing similar situations.

14. Helpful Hints • Keep open communication lines between the student, family and teacher. • Schedule time regularity • Avoid distractions if possible • Ample sleep and food nutrition • Reward good behavior • Provide clear instructions/rules for the child

15. If Avoided… • Avoiding ADHD could lead the patient to having • Drug & Alcohol Abuse • Below Average Grades In School • Difficulty Keeping Jobs • Infringements With The Law • On average 1/3 of children with ADHD are likely to have symptoms as adults

16. Teacher Resources • www.chadd.org • www.additudemag.com • www.teachervision.com • www.ncld.org

17. UDL & DI • A student must be ENGAGED in order to learn. • Allows students to explore their own interests in order to gain engaged and motivated students with ADHD. • Have students demonstrate what they’ve learned in a variety of ways. • Allow students to choose from a menu of activities, allowing their preferences to work in sync with their abilities.

18. Reading Practice 1 • The first thing that I would implement for early readers with ADHD is to find text that they can easily relate to. This would excite them because it establishes a real world connection to the text that would deter them from being distracted. • Example: A boy that likes cars could begin with “Mater Takes Off.” A book based on the Disney film “Cars” Source: Miller

19. Reading Practice 2 • The second practice I would use for a student with ADHD is to offer any difficult books to them on audio. • A great technology resource that I discovered was • http://www.meegenius.com/store/books/free/ • The audiobook can be listened to while the child reads so that the student develops relationships with pronunciation and fluency.

20. Reading Practice 3 • It is important to remember that early readers with ADHD have excessive energy. A good time to practice reading would be during their “down time.” During school after play or recess would be ideal for the child to wind down. • This hits two points because it also gives the early reader a scheduled time for reading. Consistent schedules are crucial to keeping a child with ADHD from being distracted. Routines have commonly been known to help keep students focused because they become more acquainted with focusing on the task at hand.

21. Practice Theory • As I reflect on these practices I think what is consistent among all ideas is the importance of implementing an understanding in the student of the benefits of good reading and communication abilities. It is too much to think that an early reader could understand the full effect of proficient reading will hold in their future so it becomes our role to be a model and make as many ties to their everyday environment with literacy as possible.

22. Transition to Strategies • Next I will discuss five arrangements that a teacher could utilize during reading time for a student with ADHD. • These strategies are suggestions that could work depending on the case by case situation. • It is important too that the general education early readers in the classroom understand that these strategies help their special needs classmate focus.

23. Strategy 1 • Allow the student to stand rather than sit at their seat by marking off a square around their desk and allow it to be “their space.” The student is allowed to stand, sit, neal etc. by their desk as long as they are completing their work. • Some students are not able to control their bodies and sit at a desk all day long. Having a taped off area allows them to have their own “wiggle room” area without becoming a distraction to the rest of the class.

24. Strategy 2 • Put a bungee chord on the bottom of the students desk so they can bounce their feet. The student is allowed to rest and bounce their feet while working or listening to instruction. • A bungee chord is put at the bottom of the desk to allow the student to move a bit without distracting those around them. This is a strategy for learners that need to do something to keep them busy while they are focusing on the teacher or schoolwork.

25. Strategy 3 • Putting velcro underneath the student’s desk is another way to allow the student to move without distracting others around them. A strip of velcro is perfect to pick at and feel around when at their desk. • This is another strategy for ADHD. It allows the student to listen while having something to pick and keep their hands busy.

26. Strategy 4 • Allowing a student to have a medicine ball to sit on rather than a desk chair is another way to get the student moving. The student can have the choice of sitting on the ball or sitting in a regular seat. • A medicine ball allows the student to wiggle and bounce. Taping off the area like in strategy one might help for the student to know their boundaries when using the medicine ball.

27. Strategy 5 • Having an individual schedule chart on the student’s desk lets the student know what they are supposed to be doing and what is coming next without having to be reminded. • Keeping the chart at the desk allows for the teacher to teach without having to answer the question of what is coming next or what is expected of the students. The student can simply look at their schedule and know. It also helps off task students to have a visual reminder of what they are supposed to be doing.

28. Citations Khalifah, M. (2004). Behavior problems in kindergarten children: Early identification of ADHD symptoms in the state of kuwait. (Order No. 3138982, University of Denver). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, , 108-108 p. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/305205369?accountid=14584. (305205369). Walker, A. (2013). Classroom support strategies for students with ADHD: Frequency of use, level of effectiveness and roadblocks to implementation. (Order No. 3605622, The University of Alabama at Birmingham). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, , 110. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1491380990?accountid=14584. (1491380990). Miller, A. C., Keenan, J. M., Betjemann, R. S., Willcutt, E. G., Pennington, B. F., & Olson, R. K. (2013). Reading comprehension in children with ADHD: Cognitive underpinnings of the centrality deficit. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 41(3), 473-83. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10802-012-9686-8

29. Works Cited • http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001551.htm • http://www.wrightslaw.com/blog/?p=8453 • http://www.howtolearn.com/2011/08/how-do-i-get-my-adhd-kid-to-read/