All about ADHD
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How to Teach Students with ADHD
1. Establish classroom routines and rules
Consistency is key in managing children with ADHD. Create a well-
structured daily routine, making transitions predictable and smooth for
them.
2. Incorporate physical activity into lesson plans
A study in 2022 found that exercise helps manage ADHD symptoms by
improving attention, executive functions, and motor skills.
A short workout, a dance routine, or simple stretching exercises can work
wonders in renewing the focus energy among students with ADHD.
3. Cultivate mindfulness in the classroom
Like focused breathing or quiet reflection in class can help control
impulses and build resilience in stressful situations.
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4. Use visual aids. Students with ADHD respond well to visual
cues and examples.
Increase active class participation. Group strategies include asking
students to write their answers on dry-erase white boards and showing
them to the teacher, asking students to answer questions in unison
(choral response), having students give a thumbs up or down if the
answer to the question is yes or no — a level palm, if they don’t know the
answer. Paired learning is also effective. Have students work through a
problem in a group and discuss for maximized understanding.
Encourage hands-on learning. Create learning opportunities where
children experi ence things first-hand. Have students write and act out a
play, record an assignment on videotape or take apart and put together a
model of a miniature eyeball when studying the human body.
Give appropriate supervision to ADHD students. Children
with ADHD require more supervision than their peers because of their
delayed maturity, forgetfulness, distractibility, and disorganization. Help
these students by pairing them with classmates who can remind them of
homework and classwork, using student partners to team up on a project,
and involving classroom aides as much as you can during and after class.
Reduce potential distractions. Always seat students who have
problems with focus near the source of instruction and/or stand near
student when giving instructions in order to help the student by
reducing barriers and distractions between him and the lesson.
Always seat this student in a low-distraction work area in the
classroom.
Allow for movement. Allow the student to move around or fidget,
preferably by creating reasons for the movement. Provide
opportunities for physical action — do an errand, wash the
blackboard, get a drink of water, go to the bathroom, etc. If this is
not practical, then permit the student to play with small objects kept
in their desks that can be manipulated quietly, such as a soft
squeeze ball, if it isn’t too distracting.
Let the children play. Recess can actually promote focus in
children with ADHD so don’t use it as a time to make-up missed
schoolwork or as punishment as you might for other students.
Ask questions rather than reprimand. If the student
misbehaves, in class, ask, “Is that a good choice or a bad choice?”
The student will get the message that his behavior is inappropriate.
Allowing breaks or time to move around;
Changes to the environment to limit distraction;
Pair them with less distractible students who are likely to follow the
teacher’s instructions
Assignments and Tasks
Make assignments clear—check with the student to see if they
understand what they need to do;
Provide choices to show mastery (for example, let the student
choose among written essay, oral report, online quiz, or hands-on
project;
Make sure assignments are not long and repetitive. Shorter
assignments that provide a little challenge without being too hard
may work well;
Allow breaks—for children with ADHD, paying attention takes extra
effort and can be very tiring;
Allow time to move and exercise;
Minimize distractions in the classroom; and
Use organizational tools, such as a homework folder, to limit the
number of things the child has to track.
Teach and reward good listening. Be specific about expectations,
such as staying seated or not interrupting.
Allow some fidget objects. Fidget tools can help some children focus
: squeezable balls, tangle toys or small building blocks
With discipline be specific. It’s best to tell them what they should be
doing rather than what they shouldn’t; e.g., instead of saying “Liam,
can you stop talking and bothering Sadie?” say “Liam, please listen
to me and finish the writing in your book.”
Keep all instructions short and simple e.g., “Pick up your books
please”
Try to make eye contact wherever possible
Then give your instructions in a simple step-by-step way, pausing
between each step and perhaps giving them the chance to do each
activity
Walking around the classroom æ Instead of trying to get students
with excessive motor activity to remain still, find them opportunities
for regular seat breaks æ If something needs to be written on the
whiteboard, ask them to do it æ Give them a job or task that allows
them to be active in a controlled way during the lesson
Encouraging attention : If attention seems to be waning, use special
cue phrases to stimulate interest. Attention grabbers include “Right,
here we go”; “Wait for it”; “Now for the interesting bit”; “The next
clip is amazing”; “We’re nearly there now”
Is that a good way or a bad way to talk in class?”
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You know the brainpower is there, but they just can’t seem to focus on the
material you’re working hard to deliver. Plus, their behaviors take time
away from instruction and disrupt the whole class.
Students with ADHD may:
Demand attention by talking out of turn or moving around the room.
Have trouble following instructions, especially when they're
presented in a list, and with operations that require ordered steps,
such as long division or solving equations.
Often forget to write down homework assignments, do them, or
bring completed work to school.
Often lack fine motor control, which makes note-taking difficult and
handwriting a trial to read.
Have problems with long-term projects where there is no direct
supervision.
Not pull their weight during group work and may even keep a group
from accomplishing its task.
Starting the lesson
Supporting memory weaknesses : Capture students’ attention with a
visual and/or aural cue to indicate that the lesson is starting, and
they are expected to listen.
List the lesson plan on the board in simple steps for students to
refer back to throughout the lesson.
Clearly tell students what they will be learning and what they will
need to participate in the lesson.
During the lesson
Alternate between activities that capture different levels of interest
to help students with ADHD stay focused and engaged in the
classroom. Consider delivering high-concentration tasks earlier in
the lesson or at a time you have identified as their best time of
‘alertness’. This is when they are most likely to maintain focus and
retain information.
Students with ADHD may find it difficult to move from one task to
the next. You can help them transition by letting the class know a
few minutes before you are about to start a new activity.
Finishing the lesson
Capture students’ attention and summarise what has been covered
during the lesson.
If there is homework, write it on the board and have the class repeat
the task and/or document it before leaving the classroom for the
day.
[Link]
Think of what the school setting requires children to do: Sit still.
Listen quietly. Pay attention. Follow instructions. Concentrate.
These are the very things kids with attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD or ADD) have a hard time doing—not because
they aren’t willing, but because their brains won’t let them. That
doesn’t make teaching them any easier, of course.
START FROM HERE
How to Teach Students with ADHD
1. Establish classroom routines and rules
Consistency is key in managing children with ADHD. Create a well-
structured daily routine, making transitions predictable and smooth for
them.
2. Incorporate physical activity into lesson plans
A short workout, a dance routine, or simple stretching exercises can work
wonders in renewing the focus energy among students with ADHD.
3. Cultivate mindfulness in the classroom
Like focused breathing or quiet reflection in class can help control
impulses and build resilience in stressful situations.
4. Use visual aids. Students with ADHD respond well to visual
cues and examples.
Encourage hands-on learning. Create learning opportunities where
children experi ence things first-hand. Have students write and act out a
play, record an assignment on videotape or take apart and put together a
model of a miniature eyeball when studying the human body.
Give appropriate supervision to ADHD students. Children
with ADHD require more supervision than their peers because of their
delayed maturity, forgetfulness, distractibility, and disorganization. Help
these students by pairing them with classmates who can remind them of
homework and classwork, using student partners to team up on a project,
and involving classroom aides as much as you can during and after class.
Allowing breaks or time to move around;. Provide opportunities for
physical action — do an errand, wash the blackboard, get a drink of
water, go to the bathroom, etc. If this is not practical, then permit
the student to play with small objects kept in their desks that can be
manipulated quietly, such as a soft squeeze ball, tangle toys or
small building blocks if it isn’t too distracting.
Let the children play. Recess can actually promote focus in
children with ADHD so don’t use it as a time to make-up missed
schoolwork or as punishment as you might for other students.
Ask questions rather than reprimand. If the student
misbehaves, in class, ask, “Is that a good choice or a bad choice?”
The student will get the message that his behavior is inappropriate.
Teach and reward good listening. Be specific about expectations,
such as staying seated or not interrupting.
With discipline be specific. It’s best to tell them what they should be
doing rather than what they shouldn’t; e.g., instead of saying “Liam,
can you stop talking and bothering Sadie?” say “Liam, please listen
to me and finish the writing in your book.”
Try to make eye contact wherever possible
Keep all instructions short and simple e.g., “Pick up your books
please”
Then give your instructions in a simple step-by-step way, pausing
between each step and perhaps giving them the chance to do each
activity
Is that a good way or a bad way to talk in class?”
Starting the lesson
Supporting memory weaknesses : Capture students’ attention with a
visual and/or aural cue to indicate that the lesson is starting, and
they are expected to listen.
List the lesson plan on the board in simple steps for students to
refer back to throughout the lesson.
Clearly tell students what they will be learning and what they will
need to participate in the lesson.
REVIEW
Here are some techniques for dealing with typical problems facing the
teachers of students with ADHD.
Walking around the classroom : Instead of trying to get students
with excessive motor activity to remain still, find them opportunities
for regular seat breaks, If something needs to be written on the
whiteboard, ask them to do it, Give them a job or task that allows
them to be active in a controlled way during the lesson or allow him
as laptop operator as reward
Encouraging attention : If attention seems to be waning, use special
cue phrases to stimulate interest. Attention grabbers include “Right,
here we go”; “Wait for it”; “Now for the interesting bit”; “The next
clip is amazing”; “We’re nearly there now”; In some cases it can
help to have non-vocal music playing either in the background
Classroom Management:
Avoid seating student near distractions and pair them with less
distractible students who are likely to follow the teacher’s
instructions.
Incorporate physical activity & mindfulness into lesson plans : A
short workout, a dance routine, or simple stretching exercises also
focused breathing or quiet reflection in class can help control
impulses and build resilience in stressful situations.
With discipline be specific. It’s best to tell them what they should be
doing rather than what they shouldn’t; e.g., instead of saying “Liam,
can you stop talking and bothering Sadie?” say “Liam, please listen
to me and finish the writing in your book.”
Try to make eye contact wherever possible
Allowing breaks time to move around;. Provide opportunities for
physical action — do an errand, wash the blackboard, get a drink of
water, go to the bathroom, etc. If this is not practical, then permit
the student to play with small objects kept in their desks that can be
manipulated quietly, such as a soft squeeze ball, tangle toys or
small building blocks if it isn’t too distracting.
Ask questions rather than reprimand. If the student misbehaves, in
class, ask, “Is that a good choice or a bad choice?” The student will
get the message that his behavior is inappropriate.
Try to ignore mildly inappropriate behavior if it's unintentional and
isn't distracting other students or disrupting the lesson.
Information Delivery:
Use visual aids: Students understand and remember information
better when ideas, words, and concepts are associated with
pictures, diagrams, charts, and maps.
Use multisensory instruction : Use song, movement, and color to
emphasize lessons and aid memory
Give instructions one at a time : Students may have memory
problems and may only be able to remember one step at a time.
Repeating directions helps keep instructions in memory longer.
Keep all instructions short and simple e.g., “Pick up your books
please”
