Preparing My ADHD Son for Success…At School and Beyond

You may recall that at the end of the school year I was pretty frustrated and angry with myself and the school.  Andrew’s needs as a child with severe ADHD were not met.  My meeting with the psychologist is coming up on the 4th and I am happy to report the anger is gone and I am excited to get to work on my Son’s roadmap to success.

Here’s a refresher.

My extremely bright 6th grader, first year middle schooler, received a final grade of an “E” in Social Studies.  He started out poorly in all subjects but raised his grades in all of them throughout the year except in Social Studies, his favorite subject. 

His grades were not at all a reflection of what he had learned in any of the subjects but we chose to celebrate the success of bringing Ds and Es up to As, Bs, and Cs, rather than dwell on the fact that they could have been all As and Bs.  Andrew worked too hard to not have his accomplishments acknowledged. 

The problems

Many folks on Andrew’s team at school did not recognize ADHD for the challenge it is.  They accused me of wanting to coddle him when all I asked for is implementation of strategies recommended by experts and regular communication between me and the teachers.  That is all I have ever requested.  According to experts, I did not demand enough.  According to the teachers, I expected too much. 

Andrew did so poorly in school because he didn’t turn in his work.  I know he did it because we stayed up late doing it together.  Homework kicked our butts this year.  The assignments became more complex with more problems, which is overwhelming to ADHD students.  So we had more complex assignments times more classes.  He cried every night at the impossibility of it all.  And every night when it was done laughed and said, “Well that wasn’t so bad.”  He also didn’t turn in classwork which I do not understand.  If a teacher has a special needs student whose special needs happen to include getting distracted and stuffing his work in his desk rather than passing it forward, is it too much to expect that teacher ask for his work?

Our basic requests this year

• student planner to be completed each day and initialed by myself and all teachers.
• completion of homework verified each night by parent and verified receipt by teacher each day.
• strategic placement in the classroom to avoid distraction and keep close contact with teacher.
• weekly email from teachers informing of any missing assignments and classwork, giving the opportunity to complete over the weekend.
• modified/reduced assignments, not for special attention but to accommodate his slower pace so he can stay caught up in class.
• gentle reminders from teacher when he appears to drift off in class
• direct eye contact when giving instruction followed by confirming with him that he heard and understands. 
• consistent use of strategies in the classroom.
• tests given individually or in small groups.

Can  you all think of anything I am missing?  We are reviewing his 504 on September 4th and setting up some tests for him.  We just have to get it right this year, I am afraid he is slipping through the cracks. 

I found a great resource while researching to prepare for my meeting with the school.  It is called The ADHD Road Map to Success Kit.  If you have a child who suffers from ADHD or even just needs help with organization, check it out here.