Here are some great books for Adults with ADHD. Ask for them on your Christmas list! ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life - A good response to the needs of adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. It deals directly and exclusively with the greatest challenge that adults with ADHD face: the problem of disorganization. Moms with ADD: A Self-Help Manual - Chapters on juggling, dealing with school, work, and holidays. Some really good ideas are presented, but even with all the strategies included, I found this book hard to read. It seems to try a bit to hard. Out of the … [Read more...]
Missing the Basics
November 20, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Teachers and parents often work so diligently on a skill with a child that the child appears to 'get' it. Sometimes, however, the understanding is only temporary. This could be that the material is so fresh in their minds that they are able to perform well on a test. But the knowledge hasn't 'taken root', and is soon forgotten. Keep an eye on your child as school progresses. If she is having trouble with mental math, maybe she passed - but never fully understood her basic math facts. If he can't conjugate French verbs, check and see if he really understood the basic grammar taught in grade … [Read more...]
Check Your Calendar – Busy Times Ahead
November 18, 2008 By Leave a Comment
With Christmas coming, it's a good idea to start eyeing your calendar now. Even without the busy-ness of the Holiday Season, there are days in the week that are more busy than others, because of sports or Scouts or church or music lessons or whatever. Wednesdays are always slam full at our house. Keep this in mind when scheduling appointments. Try to sandwich the full days in between two days that are less busy. On these days, try to work ahead a bit in homework. If you have a project coming up, and you're trying to do a little bit each day, leave that 'busy' day out of the schedule. On those … [Read more...]
Organizing Homework – For Kids Who Lack The Gift of Organization
November 14, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Keeping homework organized for school is such a major challenge for kids with ADHD. They lose it, mix it up, remember things that don't exist, ruin it, and are sure they put it "right there"...We've discovered a few top ideas that help even the worst ADHD offenders. Color Code - At the beginning of the year, each subject gets a color, and the notebook and folder for that subject stay the same throughout. Actually in our house, every year, math is green (for money), science is black (for dead things!), social studies is blue (for the world), and English is red (for frustration?). If you're … [Read more...]
IEP and 504 – Up for Review?
November 14, 2008 By 2 Comments
If yours is up for review, consider asking the school to add things to the IEP or 504 that will help keep your child more organized. Some ideas: ~Keeping one copy of textbooks at home. ~Exemption from notebook checks. ~Teacher provided copies of homework and notes. ~A time/place after school to organize materials and assignments. ~An individual to assist child with organization on a daily basis. ~Taping organization cues to desk. ~An extra day to 'find' homework that has been completed by is lost. This can be without penalty or with a reduced penalty. ~Planners completed by teacher … [Read more...]
ADHD Books Make Great Christmas Gifts
November 12, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Don't look now, but Christmas is just around the corner! With that in mind, here are the top ten ADHD books, all perfectly sized to go into that Christmas stocking! A Mind at a Time - Dr. Mel Levine describes how each child learns differently by defining eight mind systems. He then gives solutions for when things go awry. The book has a lot more information on inattention than most books about ADD/ADHD. Driven To Distraction: Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood Through Adulthood. Written by two doctors with ADHD, this book is primarily about adult ADHD. … [Read more...]
A Warning and a Hope
November 6, 2008 By Leave a Comment
Last Monday our fifteen year old asked me at dinner if we could go to Wal-Mart and buy him a Scooby Doo costume for him to wear to "character day" at the high school the next day. (I know. Scooby Doo? But it was homecoming week, and Scooby Doo is his favorite character because in real life, Scooby Doo has Lebanese roots in the form of Kasey Kasem.) "I asked you about it on Saturday." To be fair, he had. But it was a casual mention. I thought it was a fleeting thought. I thought wrong. Long time readers know that I am NOT a coddling mother. I believe in consequences, in discipline, in … [Read more...]
Problem Solving
November 5, 2008 By Leave a Comment
NOTE: The following was written November 16, 2006. Watch the blog tomorrow for a follow-up post! I got an email today from a teacher concerning a project that one of my boys hadn't turned in. I called this child at work!, asking what was up. "I was at the orthodontist when she assigned it and I don't know how to do it." This is why I worry he'll one day lose a checkbook and therefore neglect to pay his bills. Many times our children have a difficult time 'switching gears' into problem solving mode. One of ours used to sit around in his boxers complaining about being cold. It took a long … [Read more...]
Organizing an ADHD Child
November 4, 2008 By Leave a Comment
I just created a Squidoo Lens with ten tips on how to keep your ADHD child organized. It could also be titled: "How I Kept My Sanity in the Chaos of Three ADHD Boys". Check it out here: http://www.squidoo.com/organizeADHD. Make sure you take a look at three of my favorite books on Organizing an ADHD Child. Help your kids to be more focused, organized, encouraged and successful! Visit Kayla Fay at http://www.adhd-inattentive.com. … [Read more...]
