Two weeks ago, Marie Franc took her youngest son, Islam, to an amusement park for some fun. “Thank God I wore sneakers so I could chase him,” she groans, recalling a day full of between-ride sprints. “I came home and felt like I needed a vacation.”
But that’s not likely. Franc says that even a night out with her husband seems like an impossible and overly indulgent escape. That’s because two years ago, a neurologist diagnosed Islam with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (or ADHD). Today, doctors are still tinkering with the 6-year-old’s medications, and Islam has spent his summer wading between temper tantrums and the world’s greatest sugar-high—with no “off” button.
“You have to keep your eye on him constantly,” says Franc, 41, who works 50-hour weeks as a customer service manager for a limousine service. “I feel like my mind is on 24/7, and sometimes I just want to cry.”
In the United States, ADHD is one of the most common mental disorders affecting children today. More than 4 million school-aged youths—or one to two kids in every 25-student classroom—have ADHD, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Once referred to as ADD (attention deficit disorder), health professionals renamed the disorder in 1987, splicing the word “hyperactivity” into its title. Individuals with ADHD can fall anywhere inside a wide spectrum of chronic behaviors, but oftentimes they struggle with organization and transitions. They can also lose interest quickly, act rashly and fidget constantly.
Consequently, a child with ADHD often tests their parents’ thresholds for patience and vigilance—especially in the summer months, when the rigid structure of the school day is gone.
Marsha Greenberg, 52, has a 9-year-old son with ADHD. “You want to jump out a window,” she says of the long summer break. “You have to watch over your kid all the time. It’s relentless. I’ve changed from being a very committed, aggressive person who could do everything in life to someone who is just constantly worrying about my kid.”
Lisa Kaplan’s 12-year-old daughter Hayley was diagnosed with ADHD in fourth grade. Kaplan, 48, and a freelance producer who works from a home office, says productivity levels drop the moment Hayley starts her summer break.
“If Hayley gets bored, she needs me to be her source of entertainment,” says Kaplan. “If I want her to do anything, I have to constantly harass her. It’s exhausting.”
Summer camp is one respite for both parents and kids. Children with ADHD respond well to camps because they tend to have structure and foster physical activity. Greenberg’s son is now attending an eight-week day camp at Manhattan’s New York University. The camp’s activities are planned by the minute and intended only for children with ADHD. “It has literally saved our lives,” says Greenberg, who notes a dramatic improvement in her son’s behavior.
Kaplan also feels strongly about the benefits of summer camps. For four years, she has sent Hayley to month-long sleep-away camps to meet new people and make new friends.
“Camp is going to prepare her for what it’s like out there in the real world. It’s going to show her what it’s like to live in a dorm and to be in a group setting where people are different and hold different opinions.” And though Kaplan admits she still worries about Hayley’s social skills, even when she’s away, “I also look forward spending time with my husband. It’s my own quiet time,” she says.
According to Mary Fowler, author of four books about raising children with ADHD, “quiet time” is an excellent remedy for worried and exhausted parents. “You will be a better parent if you take steps to deal with your stress,” says Fowler. “Not just your physical feelings of stress but also the mental garbage.”
And Fowler can speak from experience. Her son, now an adult, was diagnosed with ADHD at age 6. “I didn’t like being called an anxious parent,” she says. “But I can look back at that time now, and I can say that I was a nervous, paranoid wreck.”
Fowler fretted about her young son’s academic performance and his future employment prospects. She also worried that she was a terrible mother and that her son could end up in jail, on drugs... “all sorts of ruminations,” she says. To date, none of her fears have come true, and Fowler works as a life coach and a stress-management expert. She also conducts workshops for educators and parents of children with ADHD.
As for Marie Franc, her biggest fear is not summer, it’s September, when Islam’s school year starts up again. “Last year, every time my cell phone rang I was afraid to look at it because I knew it was the school. They called me every single day to come and pick up my son,” she says. “He was acting very wild and had constant mood swings, and the teachers there had no training whatsoever to deal with him.”
It turns out that September may also be Islam’s biggest fear. One morning last year, the boy turned to his mother and told her he didn’t want to go to school anymore. “I asked him, ‘Why not?’ and he said, ‘Because, Mommy, I don’t know how to be good.’ ”
Here Franc pauses in her storytelling. “Now, remember. I have to constantly correct him,” she says. “And to a 6-year-old—in his mind—he’s just being himself. As a parent, I know that his behavioral habits are not correct. But I also know that he is a good kid. He’s a very bright kid with a great heart, and that’s what I told him.”
And as the second half of summer unfolds, Franc will continue to hope that come the new school year, Islam will behave, the school’s calls will wane and everyone else will appreciate her son’s full potential, too.
Freelance writer Bethany Lye specializes in health topics and has written for Health, People, The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune.
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Being a parent doesn't have day off because we always make sure that our family is on the right track though we wanted to have off our mind is still running through things about them. It's nice to have a "Me Time" once in a while. Remember, never forget yourselves. Enjoy and pamper your selves after a very tiring week.
Source
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Summertime Strategies for Your ADHD Child
Set One Behavior Change Goal for the Summer
Now is the time to assess your child's strengths and needs. What positive steps has your child taken during the school year? Make a list and share it with your child. Now, think about what areas she needs to make progress in - chores? relationships with peers? self-confidence? anger control? completing tasks? politeness? Discuss the needed changes with your child in the context of the positive progress she has made. Decide together on one specific goal she would like to focus on this summer. Help her see the benefits of learning a new coping skill and reassure her that you will be there to encourage and support her.
Explore Your Options
Look into what is available for your child in your community this summer. Does the local university provide summer enrichment programs for children? What is offered by the community center, churches, Boys and Girls Club? Investigate private lessons in dance, martial arts, art, gymnastics, computers. Many studios offer short summer programs that are perfect for the ADHD child to get a chance to try a new activity without making a major commitment. Make phone calls or visits, pick up brochures to show your child to get him excited about trying something new and fun.
Plan, Plan, Plan
Get out your calendar and mark off all the activities that are already scheduled - family vacations, camp, swimming lessons, baseball games, holidays. Sit down with your spouse first and brainstorm what special activities you want to plan, what you can afford to spend on lessons, camp, vacations, babysitters, etc. Together think of a few special things to do and go ahead and put them on the calendar. Now, get the calendar and brochures and sit down with your child to plan your summer. Let him make some choices about what he will do during the summer, but make sure he chooses something. If you would like for him to take a class, for example, offer him a choice of classes that fit into the family's schedule with the understanding that he must choose at least one.
Structure Your Days and Weeks
This is the key to managing the ADHD child and helping her develop self-discipline. Decide what your family's general daily routine will be with set bedtimes, TV times, outdoor times, mealtimes, quiet times, whatever works for you. If set routines are not your style, I urge you to give them a try. Maintaining structure and routines during the summer can make a big difference in your child's behavior and your sanity.
Build Friendships
Use the summer months as an opportunity to help your child build friendships. Having just one good friend helps her feel more confident and connected. Let her have a friend over several times a week if possible. Offer to pick up the friend, help her plan something to do with the friend - bicycle riding, skating, movie, malling, eating out, cooking in, whatever they like. It's a good idea for parents to supervise the ADD child and her friends closely to head off impulsiveness and arguments. Talk with your child before the friend comes over about specific ways she can be a good hostess. She will really appreciate your guidance in developing her social skills.
Make Time for Yourself
You must take care of yourself and your marriage if you are to have the resources for coping with the constant demands and stress of parenting your ADHD child. Make it a family rule that when Mom or Dad comes home from work they get at least 30 minutes to unwind. Let the children play outside for an hour. Require that chores be completed before 5:00 p.m. or implement consequences (after your quiet time!). Each parent take the children out one evening every week giving the other parent a chance to relax with the house all to themselves. Be sure to set aside one evening each week for you and your spouse to go out together without the children or for the children to go elsewhere while you two stay at home alone.
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Help your children with ADHD develop his learning skills especially his communication skills with other kids. Taking them to summer camps can help them build friendship with other kids and he will learn a lot of things and enjoy summer.
Source
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Educational Rights for Children with Attention Deficit Disorder/ADHD
Because many children with ADHD/ADD experience significant academic difficulties, it is very important for parents to be aware of the special educational services that public schools are required to provide. Unfortunately, many children with ADHD/ADD do not receive the services they are entitled to, and parents are often unaware of the assistance their child should be receiving.
Prior to 1991, children with ADHD/ADD were not eligible to receive special educational services unless they were determined to have some other disability (e.g. a specific learning disability). Lobbying efforts to rectify this situation were successful, however, and children with ADHD/ADD who require special assistance must now receive access to special education and/or related services according to two federal laws.
Children with ADHD/ADD may be eligible for special services under Part B of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This would apply when a child's ADHD/ADD is determined to be a "chronic or acute health problem which adversely affects educational performance." When this condition is true - as it will be for many children with ADHD/ADD - the child can be classified as "Other Health Impaired" (OHI), and the school must develop an Individual Education Plan (IEP) that is designed to meet the child's unique educational needs.
An IEP is a plan to educate your child based on your child's individual needs. Ideally, the IEP should take into account a childish unique abilities and disabilities, and identify specific educational goals for the child, procedures for attaining those goals, and methods to evaluate whether the goals are being met. The IEP is developed after a child has been evaluated and found to require special educational services. In the best circumstances, the plan is developed in a collaborative meeting involving parents, teachers, and other school personnel (e.g. guidance counselor, school psychologist, etc.) Parents are also free to bring along anyone (e.g. child psychologist) that they feel would be helpful to have at the meeting.
Special services for children with ADHD/ADD may also be obtain under Section 504, a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. Like IDEA, Section 504 requires schools to provide children who have disabilities with a free and appropriate public education. Unlike IDEA, however, which stipulates that a child has disabilities that require special education services, Section 504 identifies a qualified person as anyone with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as learning. This means that children who do not require special education are still guaranteed access to related services under Section 504 if the child is deemed to have an impairment that "substantially limits one or more major life activities" such as learning, and the school must try to adapt instructional methods to the needs of children with ADHD/ADD.
As learning is considered a major life activity, children diagnosed with AD/HD are entitled to the protections of Section 504 if the disability is substantially limiting their ability to learn. It is up to the local school district to make the determination of whether this condition is met and children who are not eligible for special education may still be guaranteed access to related services if they meet the Section 504 eligibility criteria.
If the child is eligible under Section 504, the school district must develop a Section 504 plan. This plan would include accommodations/adaptations that are designed to meet the child's educational needs and may include things such as the following:
- reducing the length of homework assignments;
- allowing the child extra time on tests;
- simplifying instructions about assignments;
- providing specific assistance with planning and organizational skills;
- or using behavioral management techniques in the classroom;
- use of tape recorders
- computer-aided instructions
In general, Section 504 provides a faster and more flexible procedure for obtaining some accommodations and services for children with disabilities and some children may receive protection who are not eligible for services or protection under IDEA. Thus, Section 504 can provide an efficient way to obtain limited assistance without the stigma and bureaucratic procedures attached to IDEA.
The advantage of obtaining services under IDEA, however, is that it offers a wider range of service options, the procedures for parent participation and procedural safeguards are far more extensive, and the degree of regulation is far more specific than that found in Section 504.
For additional information on IDEA Section 504 visit the CHADD web site.
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Every person has their own rights even those who have special needs. Children with ADHD has the right to live like normal kids do. Parents should make sure that they never feel left out with other kids.
Source
Prior to 1991, children with ADHD/ADD were not eligible to receive special educational services unless they were determined to have some other disability (e.g. a specific learning disability). Lobbying efforts to rectify this situation were successful, however, and children with ADHD/ADD who require special assistance must now receive access to special education and/or related services according to two federal laws.
Children with ADHD/ADD may be eligible for special services under Part B of the Individual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This would apply when a child's ADHD/ADD is determined to be a "chronic or acute health problem which adversely affects educational performance." When this condition is true - as it will be for many children with ADHD/ADD - the child can be classified as "Other Health Impaired" (OHI), and the school must develop an Individual Education Plan (IEP) that is designed to meet the child's unique educational needs.
An IEP is a plan to educate your child based on your child's individual needs. Ideally, the IEP should take into account a childish unique abilities and disabilities, and identify specific educational goals for the child, procedures for attaining those goals, and methods to evaluate whether the goals are being met. The IEP is developed after a child has been evaluated and found to require special educational services. In the best circumstances, the plan is developed in a collaborative meeting involving parents, teachers, and other school personnel (e.g. guidance counselor, school psychologist, etc.) Parents are also free to bring along anyone (e.g. child psychologist) that they feel would be helpful to have at the meeting.
Special services for children with ADHD/ADD may also be obtain under Section 504, a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. Like IDEA, Section 504 requires schools to provide children who have disabilities with a free and appropriate public education. Unlike IDEA, however, which stipulates that a child has disabilities that require special education services, Section 504 identifies a qualified person as anyone with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as learning. This means that children who do not require special education are still guaranteed access to related services under Section 504 if the child is deemed to have an impairment that "substantially limits one or more major life activities" such as learning, and the school must try to adapt instructional methods to the needs of children with ADHD/ADD.
As learning is considered a major life activity, children diagnosed with AD/HD are entitled to the protections of Section 504 if the disability is substantially limiting their ability to learn. It is up to the local school district to make the determination of whether this condition is met and children who are not eligible for special education may still be guaranteed access to related services if they meet the Section 504 eligibility criteria.
If the child is eligible under Section 504, the school district must develop a Section 504 plan. This plan would include accommodations/adaptations that are designed to meet the child's educational needs and may include things such as the following:
- reducing the length of homework assignments;
- allowing the child extra time on tests;
- simplifying instructions about assignments;
- providing specific assistance with planning and organizational skills;
- or using behavioral management techniques in the classroom;
- use of tape recorders
- computer-aided instructions
In general, Section 504 provides a faster and more flexible procedure for obtaining some accommodations and services for children with disabilities and some children may receive protection who are not eligible for services or protection under IDEA. Thus, Section 504 can provide an efficient way to obtain limited assistance without the stigma and bureaucratic procedures attached to IDEA.
The advantage of obtaining services under IDEA, however, is that it offers a wider range of service options, the procedures for parent participation and procedural safeguards are far more extensive, and the degree of regulation is far more specific than that found in Section 504.
For additional information on IDEA Section 504 visit the CHADD web site.
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Every person has their own rights even those who have special needs. Children with ADHD has the right to live like normal kids do. Parents should make sure that they never feel left out with other kids.
Source
Saturday, March 13, 2010
ADHD and Depression
What is Depression?
Just because one is feeling down does not mean that the individual is suffering from major or clinical depression. Based on DSM-IV- TR, 2000, the manual used by mental health professionals to diagnose mental disorders, at least five or more of the following symptoms listed below must have persisted for at least two weeks:
• Depressed mood most of the day or nearly every day (in children and teens this can be irritable mood rather than depressed);
• Loss of interest or pleasure in all, or almost all, activities;
• Significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain; or a decrease or increase in appetite
• Insomnia or hypersomnia (i.e., sleeping too much) nearly every day;
• Extreme restlessness or lethargy (e.g., very slow moving) ;
• Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day;
• Feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt;
• Diminished ability to think or concentrate nearly every day;
• Recurrent thoughts of death and/or suicidal thoughts;
It should also be determined if the symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment; are not side effects of a medication or general medical condition; and are not better accounted for by bereavement (i.e., loss of a loved one). The important point here is that true clinical depression is indicated by symptoms that are persistent for a sustained time period, and it is clearly more than feeling “sad” or “blue” by itself.
The Relationship Between ADHD and Depression
In my last column, I mentioned that children with ADHD are more likely to suffer from low self-esteem as a result of the child’s personal perception of being a failure at home and in school. They are more often at the receiving end of harsh criticisms and punishments for being extremely active, talkative and restless; or for their difficulty to pay attention, forgetting important things, and for interrupting others. They may also be labelled “not normal,” “weird,” or are “incapable of behaving” or worse, their peers avoid them altogether.
As all these build up over time, these children feel frustrated and demoralized. At times, they are overwhelmed with the things that happen around them and become discouraged as they face repeated failures in school, at home, and in other settings. When these negative experiences accumulate, the child with ADHD may begin to feel depressed.
In addition to being distressed or demoralized as a result of ADHD, children may also experience a true depressive illness. Unfortunately, symptoms of ADHD and depression may at times overlap thus making it more difficult for the doctor to diagnose a mood disorder like major depression.
A clear example: hyperactivity or physical agitation and poor concentration are symptoms of both ADHD and depression. If a child exhibits these symptoms and also appears to be sad, hopeless, or suicidal, the doctor may consider a diagnosis of major depression. In difficult situations such as this, it is important to see a psychologist or psychiatrist to diagnose and manage the conditions.
The prevalence of depression in children with ADHD can also be affected by the presence of other coexisting conditions. Research shows that rates of depression are substantially higher in children with ADHD and oppositional defiant disorder or conduct disorder (ODD/CD).
Significantly, nearly two thirds of children with ADHD may suffer from another condition such as depression or anxiety disorders in addition to their ADHD. Any co-morbidity can coexist with ADHD, but certain disorders like depression seem to occur more commonly.
Depression in Children
The core symptoms for depression in children and adolescents are the same as for adults. But some symptoms appear to be more prominent at different ages, such as extreme irritability, somatic complaints, social withdrawal, hypersomnia, psychomotor retardation (being extremely slow moving) are especially common in children.
So how does a “typical” depressed child look like?
Of course, symptoms would be variant from child to child, but a “depressed child” would seem to be extremely irritable, a notably distinct change from his usual or typical nature. The child may display a distinct change in their eating pattern and may stop participating or getting excited about things they used to enjoy. He may also become less energetic and may complain about being unable to sleep well. Alarmingly, the child may start referring to himself in critical and disparaging ways. As the child finds it more difficult to concentrate and there is less energy given to tasks, it becomes quite common for his school grades to suffer too. Again, it is important to note, that this pattern of behavior should persist for at least several weeks, and should appear as a real change in how the child typically is.
ADHD and Depression: Treatment
The treatment of children with ADHD and depression entails treating the symptoms of ADHD and minimizing environmental traumas that take a heavy toll on self-esteem. It usually includes:
• Individual psychotherapy — helps the child articulate and deal with his/her feelings and teaches him/her appropriate coping skills;
• Cognitive therapy assists the child in reframing negative thoughts which will hopefully result in a more positive outlook and reaction to situations;
• Family counseling sessions often results with the family members having a better understanding of the child’s ADHD symptoms and resulting behaviors. It also provides an opportunity to address parenting or marital concerns.
• Behavioral intervention programs works towards the positive reinforcement of appropriate behaviors which may also influence the child’s feelings of self-worth.
• Medication may be necessary to reduce symptoms of either ADHD or depression or, at times, to treat both disorders. However, it should always be part of a total treatment plan and in conjunction with therapy. The doctor must first determine which symptoms are more prominent (ADHD or depression) and have more impact before prescribing medication. Therefore, if symptoms of ADHD are more impairing, treatment guidelines recommend that medication for this disorder be prescribed first, and vice-versa. In some cases, antidepressants and ADHD medication may be prescribed simultaneously. The antidepressants should, however, be used with caution and strict monitoring and follow-up should be done during the first few months, especially in children and adolescents.
Early Intervention
Since symptoms of ADHD and depression may overlap at times, parents, teachers and other caregivers of a child with ADHD may all the more feel bothered and confused. Thus, it is important to keep open communication lines with the child and at the same time be more observant of the child’s behaviors so that depression can be identified early on.
The process of identification and treatment of children with coexisting depression and ADHD can be difficult and complicated. It is very important for parents, teachers and other caregivers to work together; educate themselves ADHD and depression; and be fully aware that depression includes suicidal thoughts or plans which should be taken very seriously. Better yet, they should involve medical experts and other knowledgeable professionals who can guide and assist them along the way.
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Children with ADHD needs special attention from their parents. They should support and help them utilize the talents they have. It's not a burden, it's a gift from God that parents should accept whole heartedly.
Source
Monday, March 1, 2010
ADHD Behavior Modification Technique
What is ADHD Behavior Modification?
ADHD Behavior modification is rewarding desired behavior with privileges or rewards while discouraging bad behavior with removal of privileges or adding appropriate punishment.
Most behavior modification systems or ADHD Incentive Charts use a computerized scoring program where the parent inputs desired behavior and undesired behavior. On a weekly basis or at the parents discretion recorded behaviors are reviewed with the child.
The desired behavior may include performing chores, completing homework on time and behaving at school. Undesirable behaviors may include not completing their chores, not doing homework, loud and disturbing behavior.
adhd child behavior problems
The parent will also input what the rewards are for good behavior. These may be video console time, allowance bonus, TV time or other reward the parent deems appropriate.
At the end of a week or month the child will be given a score that will determine what reward or punishment they will receive. The advantage of systems such as the Total Transformation System to discipline children with ADHD is they teach limits, proper communication and ultimately build the child's self esteem and accountability.
Some adhd behavior modification systems use flash cards, video tapes to coach parents using the system. In addition, there are homework improvement techniques available on most systems.
To find out if a ADHD Behavior Modification treatment may work for your child take a look at the The Total Transformation System.
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Parents can try this ADHD Behavior Modification Technique, it may really hel your children to be treated.
Source
ADHD Behavior modification is rewarding desired behavior with privileges or rewards while discouraging bad behavior with removal of privileges or adding appropriate punishment.
Most behavior modification systems or ADHD Incentive Charts use a computerized scoring program where the parent inputs desired behavior and undesired behavior. On a weekly basis or at the parents discretion recorded behaviors are reviewed with the child.
The desired behavior may include performing chores, completing homework on time and behaving at school. Undesirable behaviors may include not completing their chores, not doing homework, loud and disturbing behavior.
adhd child behavior problems
The parent will also input what the rewards are for good behavior. These may be video console time, allowance bonus, TV time or other reward the parent deems appropriate.
At the end of a week or month the child will be given a score that will determine what reward or punishment they will receive. The advantage of systems such as the Total Transformation System to discipline children with ADHD is they teach limits, proper communication and ultimately build the child's self esteem and accountability.
Some adhd behavior modification systems use flash cards, video tapes to coach parents using the system. In addition, there are homework improvement techniques available on most systems.
To find out if a ADHD Behavior Modification treatment may work for your child take a look at the The Total Transformation System.
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Parents can try this ADHD Behavior Modification Technique, it may really hel your children to be treated.
Source
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Advantages and Disadvantages of Homeschooling a Child with ADHD
Advantages and Disadvantages of Homeschooling a Child with ADHD
Children with ADHD often have problems in public schools. Homeschooling could be the answer you have been looking for. Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of homeschooling a child with ADHD, so you can make an informed decision.
The Advantages of Homeschooling a Child with ADHD
* You have control over your child's learning environment. This allows you to remove things that may be a distraction to your child.
* You will be able to spend the one on one time with your child that a teacher can not provide.
* You will have the time needed to work on preventing behavioral problems. Teachers have too many students to be able to accomplish this in a classroom environment.
* You can choose a curriculum that is tailored to your child's educational needs.
* Your child is not under the time constraints that they would face in a classroom environment.
* Time can be used more wisely, because there are not as many transitions, like going to and from school.
The Disadvantages of Homeschooling a Child with ADHD
* You will need an adequate learning space for your child and all the school supplies that will be needed.
* Homeschooling is not always cheap. You will need school supplies, books, workbooks, and a curriculum unless you prepare one yourself.
* You will be responsible for understanding and teaching many different subjects.
* You will be spending a lot of time with your child. If your child has behavioral problems, this can sometimes be stressful on both of you.
* Homeschooling a child with ADHD can be time consuming, and may not be feasible for single parents who have to work full time.
* You will be responsible for making sure that your child has social interaction with their peers.
Homeschooling a child with ADHD is not for everyone. Trust your instincts and do what you believe is best for you and your child.
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Maybe parents' support and love for their children is the best aid for ADHD. They need more attention and time so give it to them without hesitations.
Source
Friday, January 29, 2010
Kids with ADHD may be more likely to bully
And those pushed around tend to exhibit attention problems, study finds
When her 5-year-old son showed up at the door with a black eye and a bloody cut on his head, Brooke Fike knew it was time to take on the bullies. For weeks, several boys at school had been swinging their backpacks into her son's head. One day they dumped a carton of milk over him during lunch.
As Fike tried to remedy the problem, she realized that the bullies seemed to be the kids in class who couldn’t sit still and listen. They didn’t do their homework. They were almost constantly in motion.
Turns out, those behaviors could have been the first clue to parents and school officials that these boys might be the ones who were going to turn into bullies.
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A new study shows that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are almost four times as likely as others to be bullies. And, in an intriguing corollary, the children with ADHD symptoms were almost 10 times as likely as others to have been regular targets of bullies prior to the onset of those symptoms, according to the report in the February issue of the journal Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology.
The study followed 577 children — the entire population of fourth graders from a municipality near Stockholm — for a year. The researchers interviewed parents, teachers and children to determine which kids were likely to have ADHD. Children showing signs of the disorder were then seen by a child neurologist for diagnosis. The researchers also asked the kids about bullying.
The results underscore the importance of observing how kids with ADHD symptoms interact with their peers, says study co-author Dr. Anders Hjern, a professor in pediatric epidemiology at the University of Uppsala in Stockholm. These kids might be making life miserable for their fellow students. Or it might turn out that the attention problems they’re exhibiting could be related to the stress of being bullied.
"You can't learn if you're being bullied, if every day you're frightened of how you're going to be treated," says William Pollack, an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
As for the bullies, they often need help with other issues, Pollack says. It’s not uncommon, for instance, to find that the aggressor is acting out because he’s depressed. And often, the kids who are doing the bullying have been bullied themselves, he adds.
Alan Kazdin, a specialist in child development, says the new results may help sensitize parents and teachers to the possibility that some kids with ADHD might have issues that go beyond antsy behaviors and attention problems. Estimates of how many kids have ADHD range from 4 percent to 12 percent.
Unfortunately though, treating ADHD won't remedy the bullying because drugs for the condition impact a child's ability to focus in school but not the aggression that could lead to bullying, says Kazdin, a professor of psychology and child psychiatry and director of the Parenting Center and Child Conduct Clinic at Yale University, and president of the American Psychological Association.
Battling bullying
Still, the new study could help teachers and parents identify who's at potential risk of bullying and being bullied.
“This is a huge problem in the schools,” says Dr. Joyce Nolan Harrison, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and director of Preschool Clinical Programs at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. Studies show it's particularly common in grades 6 through 10, when as many as 30 percent of students report they've had moderate or frequent involvement in bullying, she says.
Share your strategies for dealing with bullies. Join the chat.
From the thread:
... I have a son that is ADHD and he has never bullied other kids. He has been bullied by others. So I am not to sure if that is totally correct. I am not saying that it isn't some but I feel you should not label kids. It has a lot to do in how they are raised. I have always taught my kids to treat others as to how they want to be treated. He has also been made fun of. We just talk about things.
—busybee mom
The best solution for bullying is for schools to develop programs that help both the bullies and the bullied, experts say.
“Bullies are like the lion looking for a deer that’s left the herd,” says Patrick Tolan, director of the Institute for Juvenile Research at the University of Illinois. “They try to single out the weakest kid. The best way to stop this is to work on increasing inclusion by helping the bullied kids with social skills.”
Another strategy that can work: Help the bullied kids find each other. “If there are a bunch of them together, they can stand the bully down,” Pollack says. “They don’t have to beat the bully up. They just have to say, ‘Why are you treating my friend this way?’ The bully will often move on.”
Parental role
In the end, though, schools might not have the inclination or resources to deal with bullying. In that case, parents need to take matters into their own hands. To do this, you’ll need to enlist the help of all the other parents of bullied children, says Pollack. “Parents have to work as a group,” he explains. “One parent is a pain in the [butt]. A group of parents can be an educational experience for school authorities.”
One thing you shouldn’t do, Pollack says, is call up the bully’s parents. “You have no idea of what is going on in that kid’s home,” he says. “He may get hell for bullying your kid — or he may be told to keep it up.”
Ultimately, you may not be able to stop the bullying. “If schools are not prepared to take action, which is sometimes the unfortunate case, I believe parents should consider changing schools,” Hjern says.
That’s what Fike chose to do a few years ago. “I moved him to a different school where there’s a lot more parent participation,” she says. “It had gotten so he didn’t want to go to school and would cry in the morning. Now he can’t wait to go.”
-----------
Parent's guidance to their children with ADHD is really needed. It's important that they understand that they should listen to whatever you say. Training them is the best way to maintain a good character to your children.
Source
When her 5-year-old son showed up at the door with a black eye and a bloody cut on his head, Brooke Fike knew it was time to take on the bullies. For weeks, several boys at school had been swinging their backpacks into her son's head. One day they dumped a carton of milk over him during lunch.
As Fike tried to remedy the problem, she realized that the bullies seemed to be the kids in class who couldn’t sit still and listen. They didn’t do their homework. They were almost constantly in motion.
Turns out, those behaviors could have been the first clue to parents and school officials that these boys might be the ones who were going to turn into bullies.
Story continues below ↓advertisement | your ad here
A new study shows that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder are almost four times as likely as others to be bullies. And, in an intriguing corollary, the children with ADHD symptoms were almost 10 times as likely as others to have been regular targets of bullies prior to the onset of those symptoms, according to the report in the February issue of the journal Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology.
The study followed 577 children — the entire population of fourth graders from a municipality near Stockholm — for a year. The researchers interviewed parents, teachers and children to determine which kids were likely to have ADHD. Children showing signs of the disorder were then seen by a child neurologist for diagnosis. The researchers also asked the kids about bullying.
The results underscore the importance of observing how kids with ADHD symptoms interact with their peers, says study co-author Dr. Anders Hjern, a professor in pediatric epidemiology at the University of Uppsala in Stockholm. These kids might be making life miserable for their fellow students. Or it might turn out that the attention problems they’re exhibiting could be related to the stress of being bullied.
"You can't learn if you're being bullied, if every day you're frightened of how you're going to be treated," says William Pollack, an assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
As for the bullies, they often need help with other issues, Pollack says. It’s not uncommon, for instance, to find that the aggressor is acting out because he’s depressed. And often, the kids who are doing the bullying have been bullied themselves, he adds.
Alan Kazdin, a specialist in child development, says the new results may help sensitize parents and teachers to the possibility that some kids with ADHD might have issues that go beyond antsy behaviors and attention problems. Estimates of how many kids have ADHD range from 4 percent to 12 percent.
Unfortunately though, treating ADHD won't remedy the bullying because drugs for the condition impact a child's ability to focus in school but not the aggression that could lead to bullying, says Kazdin, a professor of psychology and child psychiatry and director of the Parenting Center and Child Conduct Clinic at Yale University, and president of the American Psychological Association.
Battling bullying
Still, the new study could help teachers and parents identify who's at potential risk of bullying and being bullied.
“This is a huge problem in the schools,” says Dr. Joyce Nolan Harrison, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and director of Preschool Clinical Programs at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. Studies show it's particularly common in grades 6 through 10, when as many as 30 percent of students report they've had moderate or frequent involvement in bullying, she says.
Share your strategies for dealing with bullies. Join the chat.
From the thread:
... I have a son that is ADHD and he has never bullied other kids. He has been bullied by others. So I am not to sure if that is totally correct. I am not saying that it isn't some but I feel you should not label kids. It has a lot to do in how they are raised. I have always taught my kids to treat others as to how they want to be treated. He has also been made fun of. We just talk about things.
—busybee mom
The best solution for bullying is for schools to develop programs that help both the bullies and the bullied, experts say.
“Bullies are like the lion looking for a deer that’s left the herd,” says Patrick Tolan, director of the Institute for Juvenile Research at the University of Illinois. “They try to single out the weakest kid. The best way to stop this is to work on increasing inclusion by helping the bullied kids with social skills.”
Another strategy that can work: Help the bullied kids find each other. “If there are a bunch of them together, they can stand the bully down,” Pollack says. “They don’t have to beat the bully up. They just have to say, ‘Why are you treating my friend this way?’ The bully will often move on.”
Parental role
In the end, though, schools might not have the inclination or resources to deal with bullying. In that case, parents need to take matters into their own hands. To do this, you’ll need to enlist the help of all the other parents of bullied children, says Pollack. “Parents have to work as a group,” he explains. “One parent is a pain in the [butt]. A group of parents can be an educational experience for school authorities.”
One thing you shouldn’t do, Pollack says, is call up the bully’s parents. “You have no idea of what is going on in that kid’s home,” he says. “He may get hell for bullying your kid — or he may be told to keep it up.”
Ultimately, you may not be able to stop the bullying. “If schools are not prepared to take action, which is sometimes the unfortunate case, I believe parents should consider changing schools,” Hjern says.
That’s what Fike chose to do a few years ago. “I moved him to a different school where there’s a lot more parent participation,” she says. “It had gotten so he didn’t want to go to school and would cry in the morning. Now he can’t wait to go.”
-----------
Parent's guidance to their children with ADHD is really needed. It's important that they understand that they should listen to whatever you say. Training them is the best way to maintain a good character to your children.
Source
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Gifted Children with ADHD
Terms of Use: This educational material is made available courtesy of the author and Attention Deficit Disorder Resources. You may reprint this article for personal use only.
There are a number of reasons for considering gifted children with AD/HD. The dual exceptionality of being both gifted, and AD/HD, often means that such children are not recognized as having either exceptionality, and thus, their needs for an appropriate education are not met. AD/HD, in this paper, refers to the mixed type, those children with symptoms of both inattention, and hyperactivity. ADHD is considered to be a deficit in ability to inhibit responding with consequent deficits in self regulation and self monitoring of behavior. The underlying deficit in ADHD is hypothesized to be biological, and based on differences in neurotransmitter regulation of dopamine. Most affected are the areas of the brain that deal with the executive functions, that is the ability to regulate, modulate, produce on demand, organize, and sustain focus.
Giftedness, for the purpose of this paper, is defined as an IQ of 120+ or outstanding achievement in one or more academic areas. However, it should be noted that some children with full scale IQs in the average range may also be gifted but ADHD can decrease some scores enough that giftedness may not be readily expressed in this way, especially in older children with years of failure behind them.
Gifted children with ADHD differ from more average children with ADHD in a number of ways that impact assessment of both giftedness and AD/HD, and which affect planning and treatment for these children. Based on years of assessments of several hundred gifted children with ADHD at the Gifted Resource Center of New England, data have been collected on both an anecdotal and more formal basis. Anecdotal data have led to conclusions about the social, emotional and cognitive status of gifted children with AD/HD. More formal data explore how these children differ from other gifted children and from average children with ADHD on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children and on neuropsychological assessments (Lovecky, 1999).
Gifted Children with ADHD Differ from Average Children with ADHD in Cognitive, Social and Emotional Variables
On tests of intelligence and achievement, gifted children with AD/HD, mixed type, show a greater degree of inter- and intra-test variability. They miss many easier items and are correct on much more difficult items. They have greater amounts of scatter with performance usually ranging from average to highly gifted. In addition, highly gifted children (IQ 150+), particularly those who are mathematically gifted, are so adept at recalling, using and hearing numbers that arithmetic and digit span subtests may be among their highest scores. For these children, the freedom from distractibility factor of the WISC-III scale simply does not measure the problems they do have with sequential processing. Thus psychologists who rely exclusively on the Wechsler tests to determine ADHD patterns will miss many gifted children (Lovecky and Silverman, 1998).
The gifted ADHD child is also likely to show higher level functioning in at least one subject area. Abstract reasoning ability in particular is often well developed and in advance of other more basic skill levels.
Gifted children with ADHD may also differ from more average children in the greater degree of asynchrony (differences in degree of development across cognitive, social and emotional areas compared to age and IQ) they show. They may behave less maturely than average peers some of the time, but more maturely at other times, for example, making airplane noises in school at age 7 and 8, but on the other hand, having advanced ideas about how to play complex games. They also can be far more emotional than age peers with AD/HD. Sensitivity is an important aspect of giftedness, and gifted children with ADHD show their sensitivity in awareness of the external environment, internal states and feelings, projective identification with aspects of their field of interest, in empathy and compassion for others and in passionate feelings for people and causes. When feelings are negative, gifted children with ADHD can become overwhelmed by worries that would never occur to the more average child.
Gifted children with ADHD often have more specialized interests than age peers, and perform similar activities in more complex ways. Gifted children with ADHD need and like more complexity than age peers, and seek it out in activities and interests. Interests may be pursued over a number of years and to an intense degree. Some also pursue many activities over the course of years, and become proficient in several diverse areas of accomplishment.
Friendships tend to reflect both the giftedness and the ADHD of the child. These children have advanced needs for complexity in friendships, want to share complex interests, and have more advanced understanding of rules, games and strategies than age peers; however, they also exhibit deficits in social behavior, misreading social cues and showing poor timing and lack of understanding of group goals and group dynamics. Often concerns about fairness are paramount and reflect the gifted children's advanced moral reasoning ability, while immature emotional development is shown in the children's inability to act on these same moral issues. Thus, the child insists on fairness in game rules, until he or she starts to lose. Then fairness becomes less salient than winning.
Gifted Children with ADHD Differ from Other Gifted Children
These children show a greater degree of asynchrony among cognitive, social and emotional areas of development, and much greater variation in their ability to act maturely. Cognitive deficits, compared to other gifted children, are shown in less ability to think sequentially, to use working memory adequately, to solve problems using part to whole relationships, and to reason inductively especially since they have trouble picking out the main or salient feature among data. Gifted children with AD/HD, compared to gifted peers, complete less work, tend to try to hurry through it, often change topics on projects, or take inordinately long to complete simple exercises. They find it particularly difficult to work in groups, even groups of gifted children. Gifted children with ADHD also find completing tasks less rewarding than do other gifted children, that is, for many, the intrinsic reward of completion is not as satisfying to them. On the other hand, when working on a self-chosen activity, gifted children, with and without AD/HD, are able to immerse themselves in the task and work for long hours without much external reinforcement. This ability to hyperfocus, the falling into "flow" (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996), is what makes creative work so satisfying to so many gifted children, whatever their other problems.
In terms of social and emotional development, gifted children with ADHD tend to show more difficulty with self-control and self-monitoring of behavior, less ability to judge situations for their salient features, less ability to predict cause and effect in behavioral situations and difficulty inhibiting action.
Assessment of Gifted Children Needs to Be Done by Those Knowledgeable About Both Giftedness and ADHD
Misdiagnosis of ADHD can occur in two directions. Highly energetic gifted children can be seen as AD/HD, and some gifted children who can concentrate for long periods of time on areas of interest may not be seen as ADHD even when they are. Thus, knowledge about what is giftedness and what is ADHD is vital in assessing AD/HD, and in ensuring that gifted children are not misdiagnosed. This is particularly the case for those children who are very inappropriately placed academically and who receive little academic stimulation (Baum, Olenchak, and Owen, 1998). For many gifted children with mild AD/HD, a stimulating school environment coupled with small classes will significantly decrease symptoms of ADHD (Hartmann, 1996). In fact, for some children with very mild AD/HD, the stimulation of a specialized gifted class may help them organize their energy significantly. These children can utilize the stimulation of the class, with their own abilities to hyperfocus, well enough so that they can achieve impressive results. Many of these children have the ability to self-reflect on their own behavior, something more severely affected ADHD children do not have. This reflection can allow mild ADHD gifted children to compensate for deficit areas while using their ADHD abilities to their advantage.
Children with ADHD symptoms at moderate to severe levels are unlikely to be helped enough if the only intervention is changing classroom parameters to more meet their stimulation needs. ADHD is not only a school problem. It often affects social and emotional areas as well. Children may need multiple interventions in all of these areas in order to function better. This is particularly the case for those ADHD gifted children whose asynchrony is much greater than that of other gifted students, because the ability to meet demands across a variety of situations is diminished by the greater asynchrony. Changing the school environment then is necessary, but not sufficient for gifted children with moderate to severe AD/HD. It is also not sufficient to meet the needs of even mildly affected children who lack the skills to learn compensatory mechanisms themselves. Often these are students whose ADHD will show as more involved than previously thought as the demands of academic requirements increase.
In assessing AD/HD, gifted children need to be compared to gifted peers in a stimulating environment rather than average children in regular classes. Checklists and teacher observations need to be considered in the context of the type of classroom in which the child is placed. Thus, a profile of strengths and weaknesses needs to be collected from various sources including home, school and other activities. These then should be compared to the children's own mean, rather than to absolute age norms. Deficit areas of gifted children with ADHD can be overlooked if only age norms are used as a measure of ability or achievement. This applies also to tests of executive functions, memory and processing when used to determine areas of strength and weakness. Furthermore, intelligence should not just be based on the Wechsler scores. Use of the Stanford-Binet LM as a supplementary test should be considered when two or more verbal subtests of the Wechsler are in the SS 17+ range. Use of the Stanford-Binet LM in this manner provides a better estimate of intellectual potential since the Wechsler test may have too low a ceiling for some gifted children (Silverman and Kearney, 1992). The Stanford-Binet V, when available, will provide a better assessment of strengths and weaknesses of gifted children in general.
Recommendations About IEP or 504 Planning Need to Consider Both the ADHD Problems and the Effect of Being Gifted
School programs need to consider both strengths and weaknesses, and work to provide environments that maximize stimulation and interest at the appropriate level for children. This is because gifted children with ADHD have underlying deficits in executive functions that require intervention, but accommodations needed will be different from those recommended for more average children with AD/HD. A good example is acceleration. Gifted children with ADHD may need acceleration at the same time that they need to learn metacognitive skills that will support the higher level of functioning required. Thus, they will need a differentiated program, not just placement in an advanced class. Gifted children without ADHD may pick up the support skills quickly, can skip ahead and keep up with older students. Average children with ADHD will not need this kind of accommodation but may need resource help to build skills to function in the regular classroom doing the regular work.
Gifted children with ADHD will need academic programs that allow them to go ahead in areas of strength while building on weaker areas. They may need to be specifically taught study and organizational skills, in the context of higher level work, that gifted peers acquire without difficulty. Also, gifted children with ADHD need access to mentors to work in areas of strength. Without work that meets their cognitive needs for stimulation and complexity, gifted children with ADHD develop less ability to focus and sustain attention, poorer work habits and less advanced achievement. They also may lose their interest in learning and develop behavioral and emotional problems secondary to their lack of investment in achievement. Thus, working with gifted children with ADHD requires a team approach in which specialists with expertise in both giftedness and ADHD pool resources to meet these children's unique needs.
-------------------
For parents, help your child with ADHD to develop the skills he have. There are many schools you can enroll them to enhance and develop their skills.
Source
There are a number of reasons for considering gifted children with AD/HD. The dual exceptionality of being both gifted, and AD/HD, often means that such children are not recognized as having either exceptionality, and thus, their needs for an appropriate education are not met. AD/HD, in this paper, refers to the mixed type, those children with symptoms of both inattention, and hyperactivity. ADHD is considered to be a deficit in ability to inhibit responding with consequent deficits in self regulation and self monitoring of behavior. The underlying deficit in ADHD is hypothesized to be biological, and based on differences in neurotransmitter regulation of dopamine. Most affected are the areas of the brain that deal with the executive functions, that is the ability to regulate, modulate, produce on demand, organize, and sustain focus.
Giftedness, for the purpose of this paper, is defined as an IQ of 120+ or outstanding achievement in one or more academic areas. However, it should be noted that some children with full scale IQs in the average range may also be gifted but ADHD can decrease some scores enough that giftedness may not be readily expressed in this way, especially in older children with years of failure behind them.
Gifted children with ADHD differ from more average children with ADHD in a number of ways that impact assessment of both giftedness and AD/HD, and which affect planning and treatment for these children. Based on years of assessments of several hundred gifted children with ADHD at the Gifted Resource Center of New England, data have been collected on both an anecdotal and more formal basis. Anecdotal data have led to conclusions about the social, emotional and cognitive status of gifted children with AD/HD. More formal data explore how these children differ from other gifted children and from average children with ADHD on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children and on neuropsychological assessments (Lovecky, 1999).
Gifted Children with ADHD Differ from Average Children with ADHD in Cognitive, Social and Emotional Variables
On tests of intelligence and achievement, gifted children with AD/HD, mixed type, show a greater degree of inter- and intra-test variability. They miss many easier items and are correct on much more difficult items. They have greater amounts of scatter with performance usually ranging from average to highly gifted. In addition, highly gifted children (IQ 150+), particularly those who are mathematically gifted, are so adept at recalling, using and hearing numbers that arithmetic and digit span subtests may be among their highest scores. For these children, the freedom from distractibility factor of the WISC-III scale simply does not measure the problems they do have with sequential processing. Thus psychologists who rely exclusively on the Wechsler tests to determine ADHD patterns will miss many gifted children (Lovecky and Silverman, 1998).
The gifted ADHD child is also likely to show higher level functioning in at least one subject area. Abstract reasoning ability in particular is often well developed and in advance of other more basic skill levels.
Gifted children with ADHD may also differ from more average children in the greater degree of asynchrony (differences in degree of development across cognitive, social and emotional areas compared to age and IQ) they show. They may behave less maturely than average peers some of the time, but more maturely at other times, for example, making airplane noises in school at age 7 and 8, but on the other hand, having advanced ideas about how to play complex games. They also can be far more emotional than age peers with AD/HD. Sensitivity is an important aspect of giftedness, and gifted children with ADHD show their sensitivity in awareness of the external environment, internal states and feelings, projective identification with aspects of their field of interest, in empathy and compassion for others and in passionate feelings for people and causes. When feelings are negative, gifted children with ADHD can become overwhelmed by worries that would never occur to the more average child.
Gifted children with ADHD often have more specialized interests than age peers, and perform similar activities in more complex ways. Gifted children with ADHD need and like more complexity than age peers, and seek it out in activities and interests. Interests may be pursued over a number of years and to an intense degree. Some also pursue many activities over the course of years, and become proficient in several diverse areas of accomplishment.
Friendships tend to reflect both the giftedness and the ADHD of the child. These children have advanced needs for complexity in friendships, want to share complex interests, and have more advanced understanding of rules, games and strategies than age peers; however, they also exhibit deficits in social behavior, misreading social cues and showing poor timing and lack of understanding of group goals and group dynamics. Often concerns about fairness are paramount and reflect the gifted children's advanced moral reasoning ability, while immature emotional development is shown in the children's inability to act on these same moral issues. Thus, the child insists on fairness in game rules, until he or she starts to lose. Then fairness becomes less salient than winning.
Gifted Children with ADHD Differ from Other Gifted Children
These children show a greater degree of asynchrony among cognitive, social and emotional areas of development, and much greater variation in their ability to act maturely. Cognitive deficits, compared to other gifted children, are shown in less ability to think sequentially, to use working memory adequately, to solve problems using part to whole relationships, and to reason inductively especially since they have trouble picking out the main or salient feature among data. Gifted children with AD/HD, compared to gifted peers, complete less work, tend to try to hurry through it, often change topics on projects, or take inordinately long to complete simple exercises. They find it particularly difficult to work in groups, even groups of gifted children. Gifted children with ADHD also find completing tasks less rewarding than do other gifted children, that is, for many, the intrinsic reward of completion is not as satisfying to them. On the other hand, when working on a self-chosen activity, gifted children, with and without AD/HD, are able to immerse themselves in the task and work for long hours without much external reinforcement. This ability to hyperfocus, the falling into "flow" (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996), is what makes creative work so satisfying to so many gifted children, whatever their other problems.
In terms of social and emotional development, gifted children with ADHD tend to show more difficulty with self-control and self-monitoring of behavior, less ability to judge situations for their salient features, less ability to predict cause and effect in behavioral situations and difficulty inhibiting action.
Assessment of Gifted Children Needs to Be Done by Those Knowledgeable About Both Giftedness and ADHD
Misdiagnosis of ADHD can occur in two directions. Highly energetic gifted children can be seen as AD/HD, and some gifted children who can concentrate for long periods of time on areas of interest may not be seen as ADHD even when they are. Thus, knowledge about what is giftedness and what is ADHD is vital in assessing AD/HD, and in ensuring that gifted children are not misdiagnosed. This is particularly the case for those children who are very inappropriately placed academically and who receive little academic stimulation (Baum, Olenchak, and Owen, 1998). For many gifted children with mild AD/HD, a stimulating school environment coupled with small classes will significantly decrease symptoms of ADHD (Hartmann, 1996). In fact, for some children with very mild AD/HD, the stimulation of a specialized gifted class may help them organize their energy significantly. These children can utilize the stimulation of the class, with their own abilities to hyperfocus, well enough so that they can achieve impressive results. Many of these children have the ability to self-reflect on their own behavior, something more severely affected ADHD children do not have. This reflection can allow mild ADHD gifted children to compensate for deficit areas while using their ADHD abilities to their advantage.
Children with ADHD symptoms at moderate to severe levels are unlikely to be helped enough if the only intervention is changing classroom parameters to more meet their stimulation needs. ADHD is not only a school problem. It often affects social and emotional areas as well. Children may need multiple interventions in all of these areas in order to function better. This is particularly the case for those ADHD gifted children whose asynchrony is much greater than that of other gifted students, because the ability to meet demands across a variety of situations is diminished by the greater asynchrony. Changing the school environment then is necessary, but not sufficient for gifted children with moderate to severe AD/HD. It is also not sufficient to meet the needs of even mildly affected children who lack the skills to learn compensatory mechanisms themselves. Often these are students whose ADHD will show as more involved than previously thought as the demands of academic requirements increase.
In assessing AD/HD, gifted children need to be compared to gifted peers in a stimulating environment rather than average children in regular classes. Checklists and teacher observations need to be considered in the context of the type of classroom in which the child is placed. Thus, a profile of strengths and weaknesses needs to be collected from various sources including home, school and other activities. These then should be compared to the children's own mean, rather than to absolute age norms. Deficit areas of gifted children with ADHD can be overlooked if only age norms are used as a measure of ability or achievement. This applies also to tests of executive functions, memory and processing when used to determine areas of strength and weakness. Furthermore, intelligence should not just be based on the Wechsler scores. Use of the Stanford-Binet LM as a supplementary test should be considered when two or more verbal subtests of the Wechsler are in the SS 17+ range. Use of the Stanford-Binet LM in this manner provides a better estimate of intellectual potential since the Wechsler test may have too low a ceiling for some gifted children (Silverman and Kearney, 1992). The Stanford-Binet V, when available, will provide a better assessment of strengths and weaknesses of gifted children in general.
Recommendations About IEP or 504 Planning Need to Consider Both the ADHD Problems and the Effect of Being Gifted
School programs need to consider both strengths and weaknesses, and work to provide environments that maximize stimulation and interest at the appropriate level for children. This is because gifted children with ADHD have underlying deficits in executive functions that require intervention, but accommodations needed will be different from those recommended for more average children with AD/HD. A good example is acceleration. Gifted children with ADHD may need acceleration at the same time that they need to learn metacognitive skills that will support the higher level of functioning required. Thus, they will need a differentiated program, not just placement in an advanced class. Gifted children without ADHD may pick up the support skills quickly, can skip ahead and keep up with older students. Average children with ADHD will not need this kind of accommodation but may need resource help to build skills to function in the regular classroom doing the regular work.
Gifted children with ADHD will need academic programs that allow them to go ahead in areas of strength while building on weaker areas. They may need to be specifically taught study and organizational skills, in the context of higher level work, that gifted peers acquire without difficulty. Also, gifted children with ADHD need access to mentors to work in areas of strength. Without work that meets their cognitive needs for stimulation and complexity, gifted children with ADHD develop less ability to focus and sustain attention, poorer work habits and less advanced achievement. They also may lose their interest in learning and develop behavioral and emotional problems secondary to their lack of investment in achievement. Thus, working with gifted children with ADHD requires a team approach in which specialists with expertise in both giftedness and ADHD pool resources to meet these children's unique needs.
-------------------
For parents, help your child with ADHD to develop the skills he have. There are many schools you can enroll them to enhance and develop their skills.
Source
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Teaching Children with ADHD
Attention deficit disorder is a syndrome characterized by serious and persistent difficulties in the following three specific areas:
1. Attention span
2. Impulse control
3. Hyperactivity (sometimes)
ADD is a chronic disorder that can begin in infancy and extend through adulthood, having negative effects on a child's life at home, school, and within the community. It is conservatively estimated that 3 to 5 percent of our school-age population is affected by ADD.
The condition previously fell under the headings, "learning disabled," "brain damaged," "hyperkinetic," or "hyperactive." The term attention deficit disorder was introduced to describe the characteristics of these children more clearly.
Diagnosis of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
According to the criteria in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., rev.) (American Psychiatric Association, 1994), to be diagnosed as having ADD/ADHD, the clinician must note the presence of at least 6 of the 9 following criteria for either Attention Span or Hyperactivity/ Impulsivity.
Attention Span Criteria
* Pays little attention to details; makes careless mistakes;
* Has short attention span
* Does not listen when spoken to directly
* Does not follow instructions; fails to finish tasks
* Has difficulty organizing tasks
* Avoids tasks that require sustained mental effort
* Loses things
* Is easily distracted
* Is forgetful in daily activities
Hyperactivity Criteria
* Fidgets; squirms in seat
* Leaves seat in classroom when remaining seated is expected
* Often runs about or climbs excessively at inappropriate times
* Has difficulty playing quietly
* Talks excessively
Impulsivity Criteria
* Blurts out answers before questions are completed
* Has difficulty awaiting turn
* Often interrupts or intrudes on others
Establishing the Proper Learning Environment
Seat students with ADD near the teacher's desk, but include them as part of the regular class seating.
Place these students up front with their backs to the rest of the class to keep other students out of view.
Surround students with ADD with good role models
Encourage peer tutoring and cooperative/collaborative learning.
Avoid distracting stimuli: Try not to place students with ADD near air conditioners, high traffic areas, heaters, or doors or windows.
Children with ADD do not handle change well, so avoid transitions, physical relocation (monitor them closely on field trips), changes in schedule, and disruptions.
Be creative! Produce a stimuli-reduced study area. Let all students have access to this area so the student with ADD will not feel different.
Encourage parents to set up appropriate study space at home, with set times and routines established for study, parental review of completed homework, and periodic notebook and/or bo assignments each day. If a student is not capable of this, the teacher should help him or her.
1. Sign the notebook daily to signify completion of homework assignments. (Parents should also sign.)
2. Use the notebook for daily communication with parents.
Giving Assignments
* Give out only one task at a time.
* Monitor frequently. Maintain a supportive attitude.
* Modify assignments as needed. Consult with special education personnel to determine specific strengths and weaknesses of each student.
* Develop an individualized education program.
* Make sure you are testing knowledge and not attention span.
* Give extra time for certain tasks. Students with ADD may work slowly. Do not penalize them for needing extra time.
* Keep in mind that children with ADD are easily frustrated. Stress, pressure, and fatigue can break down their self-control and lead to poor behavior.
Modifying Behavior and Enhancing Self-Esteem
Providing Supervision and Discipline:
* Remain calm, state the infraction of the rule, and avoid debating or arguing with the student.
* Have pre established consequences for misbehavior.
* Administer consequences immediately, and monitor proper behavior frequently.
* Enforce classroom rules consistently.
--------------------
ADHD needs more supervision from their teachers. They get easily bored and teachers should be very creative to keep them entertained.
Source
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