How to deal with the children with A.D.H.D?
By sunny7758521
@sunny7758521 (339)
China
December 10, 2008 11:42pm CST
I'm a teacher. I work in a primary school. In my class, there is a boy, he is very active, he doesn't like study, he always does some little tricks, touch other students, whisper unconsciously.... I think he has a hyperactivity. The classroom discipline is always broken by him. I try to persude him not to do like this , but it's inoperative; I touch him, he doesn't fear, what can I do? Who can help me? i will appreciate your help.
2 responses
@Pascha (65)
• United States
11 Dec 08
First, I thank you for being one of the few teachers that look for ways to handle difficult children that don't involve medication! :) And second, there's hope for this boy. Mine was very much like that when he was younger.
Okay, so what do you do?
1) Stimulate his mind! Kids that display ADHD symptoms are BORED. Either the material is too easy so they get bored, or it's too difficult and they get frustrated. You need to spend the time with him to find out which one of these two situations it really is.
2) They love to HELP. If he's one of the smarter kids, let him help the kids that are falling behind in class. Get him to assist with small things, like organizing the books or clapping erasers. Remember when we were kids, and there was always somebody that teacher picked to be 'teacher's pet'? Guess what? There was a REASON for that! It gives the kid more positive attention than negative attention. And it satisfies that craving for attention without disrupting the classroom.
3) Understand that these kids truly can not sit still and focus. Why? They weren't taught to usually. Start with some very small things that help to teach him to focus. I don't remember the name of them, but you know those small metal Japanese balls? You hold them in your hand and twirl them slowly to create a musical sound? These are GREAT for helping a kid to learn to focus. Those, and singing bowls.
As part of understanding they can't sit still and focus, let him have an excuse to stand up at his desk, such as sharpening pencils for you or his classmates. Allow him to draw quietly or write stories. These kids are amazingly creative!
4) These kids are also so much more curious than others too. They want to tear things apart to see just how it works. They want to know "what happens if I...." So satisfy that craving for knowledge! Science experiments are great things, especially when it's something they can play with also. Bring things to class that the kids can take apart to see the insides of. Let them see how things work.
5) Be patient. Find reasons to give positive praise. Everytime you give the kid negative feedback, make sure you give at least 3 positive feedbacks sometime during the rest of the day. When the kid does something well, TELL him.
6) These kids often don't understand the difference in the roles of the adult and the child. In their minds, they are little adults. Understand that.
7) Talk to the parents about your concerns with the child's behavior, but be very careful to NOT label the child. Don't say "I think your son/daughter has ADHD." Instead, say "I'm concerned that your child has a hard time sitting still in class and tends to distract his classmates. I'd like to work with you on this to see if we can improve the behavior together."
8) And lastly, understand this simple thing. It's the one thing that too many educators and parents forget. Ready for it?
They are KIDS. Kids have short attention spans. Kids are not meant to sit still for hours at a time. Kids are meant to explore. Their minds wander. They are full of boundless energy. They are curious. Nature made them this way for a reason. It is us as a society that goes against Nature's rules by forcing our kids to sit in classrooms all day, every day. Don't fight nature. Instead, use it to your advantage.
The best thing that you can do for your students, all of them, is to understand how their minds work. Read, do research, and actually watch the kids. Too many people read a few medical articles and think they know everything about ADHD or OCD or any other number of difficulties. Unfortunately, they don't. Learn everything you can, but you'll learn the most from the kids themselves.
@messageme (2821)
• United States
11 Dec 08
you seem very well educated in this matter...Do you mind me asking how? Are you a pysch. or a dr.? Just curious where you are getting this imfo from. My step son has these same issues and you seemed to discribe him well, yet they just priscribed him meds for ADHD.
@Pascha (65)
• United States
11 Dec 08
Hi Messageme. :)
I'm a parent. My oldest was once accused of being ADHD. They wanted to medicate him also. I am against medicating kids for a few reasons. 1) they're kids. Their bodies haven't finished growing and maturing. Their brains are still in development. 2) I had a boyfriend once a very long time ago that was a recovering coke addict. He was diagnosed as ADHD as a child and was prescribed ritalin which is nothing more than speed. When the docs yanked his legal speed, he self medicated with Coke. We split up because he couldn't handle recovery very well. 3) ADHD kids are kids that lack discipline. I get to say that cause as a parent of an ADHD kid, and looking back, I know that my kid had a lot of his issues because well.... I didn't discipline him the way HE needed me to. Every kid needs to be taught in ways they can understand. I tried the usual methods of discipline. Guess what? They didn't work. So I had an undisciplined child. Kids can be taught how to control their own behavior. We just have to know HOW to teach them.
For example, have you noticed yet that your son can't handle change very well? ADHD kids NEED schedules. If Seven is bedtime on a school night, it's bedtime EVERY night. If dinner is served at 5 on this night, it's served at 5 EVERY night. They need that consistency. With my boy, every day was exactly the same. If we were going to do something different that day, I would give him two days notice, and constantly remind him.
Here's another fun little thing to try at home. Get rid of the tv completely for one full month. Get rid of video games also. You will notice a change in behavior. Why? These things are causing over stimulation because of the constant movement. Over stimulation leads to irritability. Which leads to being easily frustrated, and temper tantrums.
Here's one more for you. Change of diet! Now, every kid is different. Mine was very easily frustrated and prone to anger. So, I cut red meats down as well as carbohydrates. That helped. But here's something the docs don't tell you.
Sugar and caffeine are GREAT medications for the ADHD child! But, and this is the major thing here, they have to be used right. If a child receives sugar frequently, then their body doesn't respond to it as it should. So if your kid is one that is over sugared, then this won't work for you until you get it all out of his system.
Okay, so how do you use sugar and caffeine as a medication?ADHD kids have a hard time falling asleep at night. Half a cookie, or half a twinkie, or half a pudding cup is gonna put them right out. They'll have a short burst of energy, then out like a light! Kid is irritable and cranky and it's not due to lack of sleep? One to two ounces of soda pop should help them to calm down and to focus a bit better.
Speaking of sleep... (sorry if this is long. I'm part of the been there done that crew.) How much sleep is your child getting? ADHD kids require more sleep than most kids. Why? They expel more energy of course. Even in an absolute calm state, their bodies are using more energy. Their minds are constantly working. Even in their sleep, they are working. A tired child is an irritated child. They are more prone to temper tantrums and not rationalizing their behavior. They don't think through their actions very well.
I've got a lot more tips and tricks for handling hyper kids. I'm sure nobody wants a lecture on handling kids like ours. I will just close this by saying simply...
My kid was a below average performance child. He now makes straight a's. (He's thirteen now.) My son isn't as impulsive as he once was. he thinks through his actions. Most of the diet and tv restrictions we put in place are no longer needed. He's in Boy Scouts, and does community service at the animal shelter. he has great relationships with his peers.
And he's not medicated. :)
@williamjisir (22819)
• China
5 Jan 09
Good morning, my sunny friend. I am glad to see that this problem of yours has already been fixed, as can be seen from the first two responders.
It is true that it is very annoying to have such a student who is hyperactive in class that makes trouble to the whole class affecting the teaching and learning of the teachers and students. I am glad that I do not have such students like this little boy student of yours. Lucky to me, huh? LOL (going to the office now. see you and thank you for being my friend) Good day to you, sunny friend.
@sunny7758521 (339)
• China
5 Jan 09
I'm happy to hear that you have no student like him, you needn't bother to try many ways to educate him. It's a big challenge to me. Thank you anyway! Happy my lotting!
