Classroom Strategies for Students with ADHD

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common disorders among children. It is a neurobiological disorder affecting 15.5% of children in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, characterized by high levels of difficulty concentrating, inattention, impulsivity, and difficulty focusing for long periods of time. In addition to children diagnosed with attention deficit disorder, they experience learning difficulties even if they do not have hyperactivity. The disorder also affects the child's behaviors and social interactions, and in this article we will present some broad points for managing them inside the classroom.

In the first aspect, many children with ADHD face difficulties in following instructions, completing homework, and prioritizing.

Among the most prominent tips for dealing with these issues are:

Break down the task the child is required to accomplish into steps from simple to complex and from easy to more difficult. Provide a model of the work required for the child to accomplish so that they maintain their focus level, reduce their distraction level, and understand the required goal. Help the child manage their time and provide them with organizational and management supports at school or at home by creating a dedicated schedule for the child and a timer for each session or goal to be accomplished, making it clear to them when all tasks are finished.

As for dealing with the behaviors that typically accompany the disorder, we analyze the antecedents and consequences of the behavior so that you can identify the element causing the behavior and maintaining it, and use proactive measures with it; depending on the cause, the appropriate method is chosen to eliminate it. Give the child a break during the lesson and be flexible in proportion to your child's need, yet do not make the process random. Use a preferred seating arrangement according to the child's condition and the nature of the presented goal, and it is preferable to vary the seating mechanism, sometimes at a chair and desk, sometimes on the floor, sometimes in the schoolyard, and so on. Finally, use a special cue for redirection, such as picture cards, transition cards in the corner, and a timer so the child can know the start time of the session, its end time, and how long it will last.

Finally, individuals with ADHD often struggle to understand social cues, so do the following: to increase their social interactions with their community, role-play situations to increase social communication, either by presenting a social story to the child to teach the skill or through live or video modeling and acting out the situation; create appropriate social opportunities for the child through peer interaction in play or engaging them in classroom activities; and finally, reduce the child's frustration, give the child positive self-esteem, and reinforce them each time they initiate interaction with their peers or properly join in at the request of others.

Yasmeen Al-Suqair - Master's Student in Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

King Saud University

References

.Www.Ngha.med.sa

Originally published in Arabic. This English version was produced with AI-assisted translation; the Arabic original remains the reference.