For many students, focusing in school takes real effort. For students with ADHD, it’s sometimes an almost insurmountable obstacle. Now, with so many students learning from home either full-time or part-time, and with all other students working at least six feet apart from their teachers, sustaining focus and engagement on school tasks is harder than ever before. But whether or not your students are in front of you in person or onscreen, there are strategies you can try to bring a little more engagement into your classroom. Spoiler: the answer is NOT to ignore or “force out” the symptoms of their ADHD; this will only make it worse. Instead, help them find learning pathways that work with their ADHD symptoms, not against them.
Here are some ideas for increasing engagement and maximizing learning for your students with ADHD:
Embrace their low focusing stamina!
Allow them to switch tasks often so they aren’t forced to try to focus on one thing for too long. And let them determine when it is time to switch. They are more likely to be successful if you give them this flexibility and freedom than if you dictate the length of time they will work on a given task.
Give frequent breaks—before students show signs of needing one
It’s a simple fact: students with ADHD need to take breaks. Their ADHD isn’t an excuse to just goof around and blow off steam. Their brains need those mental breaks in order to return to the task at hand–or even a different one–with enough focus and brainpower to be productive for any period of time.
Movement breaks
Some, if not all, of the breaks you give students should involve movement. Exercise has been proven to help with brain functioning and increase focus in both kids and adults. Depending on whether it’s a short break or a longer one, students could do 10 jumping jacks, 5 pushups, or do a “shake out,” where they shake each limb for a few seconds to re-energize. There are more options for movement if the student is remote, but this can still work in the classroom, too. Just be sure the student knows and is able to observe your school’s social distancing guidelines while on their break.
Build up their confidence through scaffolds
It’s easy for any student to feel overwhelmed by a task that’s too open-ended. This is especially true for students with ADHD. If they don’t know where to start, it is very likely that they never will. And this is often misconstrued as students not caring about their learning. Caring has nothing to do with it! Most of the time, when students haven’t started something yet, it’s because they don’t know how. So our job as teachers is to give them the confidence and tools that will let them be successful.
It’s always a good idea to be as clear and structured as possible with all students, but those with ADHD and other executive function issues in particular will benefit from steps being laid out a bit more explicitly. If the task is exploratory, give the student a checklist so they will know when they are approaching the end. If the task is project-based, give them a set of steps, and help them break the assignment down into smaller, bite-sized pieces.
Allow different forms of expression
Students with ADHD often like to be able to express themselves in ways other than writing. Give them the option of presenting their work in other media besides pencil and paper. Let them draw their brainstorms instead of writing them down. Let students type writing assignments instead of hand writing them. Or let them create a powerpoint presentation on their topic instead of a poster.
Give choices
Finally, nothing motivates students quite like having choices. Giving students choice in their learning not only makes them more likely to want to follow through on assignments, but it gives students the sense that they are in control of something. This is especially meaningful for students with ADHD, when so much of what’s in their brain is not in their control.
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