1. Use Tracking Tools

Create a system to track college application deadlines. If you’re a paper person, try a big wall calendar, whiteboard, or use a weekly/monthly planner. If you prefer digital apps, use an e-calendar that’s accessible from different devices, like Microsoft Outlook or Google. Also consider using sticky notes, phone alerts, spreadsheets — whatever system works for you.

Check each school’s website for application deadlines. In your task tracker, build in cushions by scheduling each task’s deadline one week before it’s truly due. More than 1,000 colleges use the Common App program, wherein you apply to many schools with one application. Other schools use proprietary applications and requirements. Check the “Admissions” link on each college website to confirm its methods and dates. Ask someone you trust to double-check the deadlines in your tracker to ensure accuracy.

[Free Download: Securing ADHD Accommodations in College]

2. Give Thought to Essays

Determine how many essays you need to write and the topics allowed for each. Enter due dates in your tracker for each essay’s outline, first draft, second draft, review by a trusted adult, revisions, and final draft. Use graphic organizers, mind maps, or templates to organize your thoughts. Body doubling with a friend can increase motivation and accountability while you work.

3. Schedule Admission Exams

Many colleges are now “test optional,” but standardized admission exams are still required at other institutions. Don’t discount these exams since colleges may use SAT or ACT scores to award merit or other scholarships. Schedule and take any required exams as soon as possible in case you want to retest later. If you need testing accommodations, request them.

4. Request Recommendations

Decide which teachers, counselors, or other mentors you’ll ask to write letters of recommendation and provide them with early due dates when you make the requests. Offer suggestions to make it easier for them to write about you (e.g., list your clubs, activities, sports, internships, jobs, and volunteer work) Check-in if needed before the due date. Send thank-you notes when the recommendation letters have been completed.

5. Gather Transcripts

Ask your guidance counselor how to request transcripts and complete the college admissions process.

[Self-Test: Could My Teen Have an Executive Function Deficit?]

6. Search for Scholarships

Research scholarships that are available from your school as well as from local and national organizations. Track requirements and deadlines and apply for applicable ones.

7. Consider Financial Aid

Check federal and state FAFSA deadlines (studentaid.gov) and track them. Gather financial records and complete the forms.

The application process can seem overwhelming but breaking big tasks into smaller steps can help. Review tasks weekly, track your progress, ask for help when needed, and celebrate each task you complete!

College Applications: Next Steps

• Read: The College Survival Guide for Students with ADHD
• Watch: “The College Application Guide for Neurodivergent Students”
• Read: Questions To Ask Yourself Before You Choose A College
• Download: What Are Your Teen’s Weakest Executive Functions?

Elizabeth C. McCarron, M.Ed., ACC, is a certified ADHD life coach.

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IEPs and 504 Plans essentially “expire” when students graduate from high school, but that doesn’t mean they can’t receive accommodations in college. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), they can.

However, the responsibility for setting up and maintaining ADHD accommodations falls on the college student, not the school. Colleges are not required to provide any accommodation or modification that would result in a fundamental alteration of their programs. This applies to specific course requirements, graduation requirements, and admissions.

Don’t get discouraged. Plenty of accommodations don’t alter course or degree requirements for students with ADHD or learning differences. To begin the process, students should register with the Disability Services (DS) office when they submit their enrollment deposit.

If accommodations are granted, they will become available, but the student is not obligated to use them. If they don’t register and later decide that they need accommodations, they risk not getting accommodations in time for exams. Registering doesn’t cost anything, and it may save your child undue headaches in the long run.

This download explains how to get undergrad services for neurodivergent students. In this download you will learn the following:

• The best time to apply for college accommodations
• Where to register for college accommodations
• What documents are needed to apply for college accommodations
• What questions to ask after submitting a request for accommodations
• What to do if accommodations need to change
• And more!

Sadly, this is an increasingly common situation, often referred to as “informal removal” or “off-the-books suspension,” which some schools use to “manage” students they deem to be disruptive. However, what ends up being disrupted is the student’s rights — their ability to learn and make academic progress, as well as to benefit from the social interactions of the school day.

What can you do when your student faces this situation? How can schools balance the rights and needs of students they deem to be disruptive with the safety and needs of other students, staff, and the school community?

Students’ Rights to a Free, Appropriate Education

Let’s start with some basic principles. First, no student can be excluded from school, or from part of the school day, without at least minimal “due process” notice of the school’s intent to exclude them and a chance to present their side of what happened. This right applies to all students, regardless of whether they have a 504 Plan or an Individualized Education Program (IEP).

Students with IEPs, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), are entitled to a free, appropriate public education. If a student with an IEP is acting out, having behavioral issues, or otherwise not functioning appropriately in school, the IEP team is required to look at the student’s IEP and examine how that student’s behavior may be related to their disability. This can be done through a functional behavior assessment (FBA), which should result in a Behavioral Intervention Plan. The presumption is that if there are consistent behavioral issues, the student’s IEP is not appropriate or adequate to address their disabilities.

[eBook: The Teacher’s Guide to ADHD School Behavior]

In addition, if a student with an IEP faces a suspension of 10 days or more, an FBA is required as part of a manifestation determination — a determination as to whether the student’s conduct is connected to their disability. If this is the case, the school needs to strengthen the services it provides to that student. This can mean adding supports to their day, placement in a smaller or more appropriate class, or otherwise helping the student moderate their behavior while adhering to the requirement of the IDEA that their education take place in the least restrictive environment.

Like those with IEPs, students with 504 Plans have been determined to have a disability and are entitled to the same kind of school day as their non-disabled classmates. If their day is shortened because they are sent home early or put on “home instruction” because of their behavior, they are not receiving the same educational opportunities as their non-disabled peers. They, too, are entitled to an appropriate education in the least restrictive environment.

Keep in mind that schools are required to keep records of suspensions; informal or “off-the-books” suspensions often fail to comply with this record-keeping requirement.

Parents’ Role as Advocates

As a parent advocate, you need to be a detective, getting as much information as possible from your child and others (a cooperative teacher, a classmate, or a sibling) about what happened at school. Did your child push Sammy? Or did they push Sammy back? Has there been bullying going on that the school knew or should have known about? Or did this incident arise out of the blue? Have there been other issues you have not heard about?

Next, you need to be an advocate. When you get a call from the school, advise them that you will not agree to any kind of removal without an opportunity to hear the basis of the school’s action and to respond to these claims. You want to hear what happened and have a chance to present your child’s position. It can be as informal as a meeting with the principal, but you and your child have the right to this basic due process.

[Quiz: How Well Do You Know Special-Ed Law?]

If your child did something that merits action by the school, you should consider having them evaluated without delay. Do behavioral issues need to be addressed? Is a 504 Plan or an IEP needed, or are modifications to an existing plan warranted to provide the student with the behavioral support they need? Is the school proposing to suspend your student for 10 days or more or exclude them from a regular program to the extent that your child’s school placement would change? Either situation would trigger their right to a manifestation determination (reviewing whether their behavior was related to their disability).

Your child has a right to get the supports and services that they require. The school’s failure to provide these does not give administrators the right to exclude your student from the regular school day.

It’s important to note that very different rules apply when students bring guns or other deadly weapons to school. Every state is required by federal law to suspend such students for at least a year, providing them with alternative education. This is where a student’s right to be educated with appropriate supports comes up against the safety of the school community, and the law is clear that safety is paramount.

The National Disability Rights Network prepared a report on informal school removal in 2022 that looks at the policies, practices, and remedies for these situations. It can be found online at additu.de/isr-report and makes for informative reading.

ADHD Students’ Rights: Next Steps

• Free Checklist: Fight for Your Child’s Rights at School
• Read: When Behavior Interferes with Learning
• Q: “Can the School Expel My Child for ADHD Behaviors?”

Susan Yellin, Esq., is the Director of Advocacy and Transition Services at The Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Education, an innovative learning support and diagnostic practice in New York City.

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Thank you for reading ADDitude. To support our mission of providing ADHD education and support, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

Given the prevalence of ADHD, every educator should assume they’ll be teaching at least one student with ADHD (diagnosed or not) — likely many more. But, for myriad reasons, few of us receive adequate information and training about recognizing common ADHD characteristics or bringing out the best in students with ADHD.

This webinar will highlight some ADHD facts that educators need to know, and address some of the myths about ADHD in the classroom. Topics include how ADHD might present in girls, the different types of ADHD (and what they might look like in a classroom), executive function and ADHD, working with families of ADHD students, and easy accommodations that will work for ADHD — and other students — in your classroom. We will also address how undiagnosed and/or untreated ADHD, as well as our own perceptions and tolerance levels for ADHD behaviors, might impact a child’s social, emotional, and academic growth.

In this webinar, educators will learn:

• Commons facts and fallacies about ADHD
• Surprising ways ADHD might present in the classroom for different populations
• Why working with families of students with ADHD is important and how to do it well
• Evidence-based classroom accommodations for students with ADHD (and others) that can be easily implemented

Watch the Video Replay

Enter your email address in the box above labeled “Video Replay + Slide Access” to watch the video replay (closed captions available) and download the slide presentation.

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Click the play button below to listen to this episode directly in your browser, click the symbol to download to listen later, or open in your podcasts app: Apple Podcasts; Google Podcasts; Audacy; Spotify; Amazon Music; iHeartRADIO.

More on ADHD at School

• Download: “The ADHD Iceberg” Poster for School
• Read: 7 Surprising Ways ADHD Shows Up in the Classroom
• Read: How to Get Students Engaged in Learning

Obtain a Certificate of Attendance

If you attended the live webinar on September 20, 2023, watched the video replay, or listened to the podcast, you may purchase a certificate of attendance option (cost: $10). Note: ADDitude does not offer CEU credits. Click here to purchase the certificate of attendance option »

Meet the Expert Speaker

Evelyn Polk Green, M.S.Ed., is a past president of both ADDA (the Attention Deficit Disorder Association) and CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder). She is an adult with ADHD and the mother of two adult sons, Perry and Robert, both of whom also have ADHD. Active in ADHD and mental health advocacy for almost 30 years, Evelyn has served as a leader representing the family and educator voice in the ADHD and mental health communities in many capacities, including as a member of the Network on Children’s Mental Health Services funded by the MacArthur Foundation. Learn more about Evelyn here.

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We asked a panel of veteran teachers to share teaching strategies and classroom accommodations that had made a real difference in the lives of real students with ADHD and learning differences. Here are some of their favorites:

ADHD Accommodations That Work

• Offer movement breaks.
• Allow quiet fidgeting while working.
• Provide noise-canceling headphones.
• Reduce homework load.
• Provide extra time on tests.
• Maintain a daily report card.
• Use preferential seating.
• Administer tests orally.
• Provide an extra set of books for use at home.
• Tap student on shoulder or use another cue to refocus.

[Download: Free Expert Resource for Teachers of Students with ADHD]

Teaching Strategies for More Engaging Instruction

• Focus on strengths. (An artistic student can draw pictures to summarize book chapters.)
• Start every class with a few minutes of mindfulness.
• Use a step-by-step format with visually matching cues.
• Break tasks into small, quickly achievable goals.
• Divide the class into small groups and use a buddy system.
• Create opportunities for students to self-correct their work to feel more motivated and in control.
• Help a student start a task, then move away and check in frequently.
• Give real-world examples to illustrate why the lesson matters.
• Use a daily check-in and check-out procedure for middle and high school students.
• Use their interests as a launching pad for learning skills.

Teaching Strategies to Boost Executive Function

• Use timers and visual aids to plan and get organized.
• Encourage self-directed goal-setting.
• Lead the class in developing collaborative solutions to a problem to increase awareness and flexibility.
• Identify students’ strengths and incorporate their successes into leadership opportunities.
• Reduce pressure and anxiety. Emphasize a growth mindset.
• Praise students for finding and correcting their own mistakes.
• Administer the executive skills test in the book Smart but Scattered and share ways to compensate for their deficits.
• Cultivate a child’s self-confidence.

[Download: The ADHD Learning Series for Educators]

Teaching Strategies to Improve Behavior & Emotional Regulation

• Give immediate rewards and consequences for behavior.
• After an emotional trigger, encourage self-reflection when students are calm.
• Help students brainstorm different ways to respond to a difficult situation next time.
• Incorporate physical challenges into brain-break times.
• Stay calm with your body language and words.
• Give a five-minute break to chat and snack.
• Lead the class in a quick burst of exercise to refocus their attention before starting the next task.
• Use checklists and constant communication to share a student’s victories with their family.
• Practice mindfulness strategies, from meditation to deep breathing, to build a bit of calm.
• Offer rewards (unstructured time, being a teacher’s helper) for working a specific amount of time.

Teaching Strategies for ADHD: Next Steps

• Read: Positive Teaching Strategies to Uplift Students with ADHD
• Read: 7 Surprising Ways ADHD Shows Up in the Classroom
• Read: 27 Classroom Accommodations That Target Common ADHD Challenges

SUPPORT ADDITUDE
Thank you for reading ADDitude. To support our mission of providing ADHD education and support, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

Young adults with ADHD face unique barriers to higher education that can drastically impact mental health and academic performance. Hence the need for formal accommodations, which are helpful when secured, but vastly underutilized. Most college students choose not to disclose their disability¹ — a requirement for accommodation requests. In a recent ADDitude poll, 32% of current and former students said they were simply unaware of support provided by their college’s Office of Disability Services.

What can be done, then, to empower students with ADHD and/or encourage them to seek support? We asked ADDitude readers with college experience: What types of accommodations, services, workarounds, and/or hacks would you recommend to neurodivergent college students? Did you receive formal disability services, or did you develop your own?

Fun fact: Most students find out about accommodations from their peers² — so consider sharing the tips* below with a classmate. You never know who you might help!

College Accommodations

“My college provides access to an app called Glean for students with accommodations. It records audio and/or video of lectures while allowing you to take notes within the app.” — Kayla, Maryland

[Free Guide to Securing ADHD Accommodations in College]

“I was able to use the Student Development Center to take tests; they offered a noise-free area, which helped me concentrate.” — Starla, Michigan

“Try using color, visuals, taking notes, using Post-Its, or the Cornell Note Method.” — An ADDitude reader

“Flexible/extendable due dates were helpful, as was color-coding my calendar. I used a Panda Planner (#CommissionsEarned) which helped me break down tasks to monthly, weekly, and daily necessities.” — Hannah, Pennsylvania

“Study groups are essential for ADHD. Nothing keeps you on track like a good study buddy.” — Tamara, Wisconsin

[Read: 7 Secrets to Studying Better with ADHD]

“Using Notability to record a lecture has been helpful. It syncs with my handwritten notes using an iPad. I also recently rediscovered bionic reading, and this may be pivotal for me if I can figure out how to easily apply it to textbooks and articles. Reading is my downfall; I’m very slow and comprehension varies.” — Lea, Canada

“One of my professors recommended switching out of in-class learning for some of my courses. I went from failing those classes to getting top marks. I struggled to pay attention and complete work in a formal classroom setting. Being able to do class work on my own time and at my own pace at home, without distraction, made a huge difference.” — An ADDitude reader

“Back when I was in school, everything involved note taking — no tech support or hacks. The biggest help for me was writing everything down and often going back later to rewrite my notes, because it was often a jumble of thoughts that came out on paper. Rewriting allowed me to rethink and reorganize the information in my head. I am also very visual, and I often sketched the information or ideas out as I listened so that I had a visual cue.” — Laura, Oregon

“I am in school, and this is evolving. I find accommodations do less than flexible environments. Traditional, lecture-based classes are challenging for me. However, collaborative or self-directed processes where I can follow my creative and critical thinking are where profound learning occurs.” — Denielle, New Mexico

“Along with regularly zoning out because of my ADHD, I also end up dissociating a lot. I got a notetaker and extra time on tests, which was great, but the game changer was simply having two blank pieces of paper to cover the rest of the page on exams and assignments. My girlfriend, who also has ADHD, found color coding useful. She has categories (general notes, dates, formulas, important people, etc.) and has assigned a color to each category. In class it means she must be focused to know when to switch colors… and in studying the color variety, makes it easier to stay engaged without getting overwhelmed. This strategy also helps her skim notes when looking for a fact — she already knows what category it’ll be in.” — Jessica, New York

“I was not diagnosed when I was in college, but in reflecting back, I was very intentional about allowing my interest levels to drive my course selections and my approach to assignments.” — Alma

“Listening to music, taking my work outdoors, putting on a familiar show or film at a low volume while I wrote papers, always having food near me, and living at home during my undergrad experience helped. The latter meant I could focus on school and not all the adult skills I would have also needed to master in the dorms or in off-campus housing. I knew I wasn’t ready for that and college at the same time.” — Margot, California

[Download: Find Your Passion with This ADHD “Brain Blueprint”]

“Repetition! Repetition! Repetition! Writing material three to four times, or using it three to four times, is what helped me during college when I wanted to learn a new vocabulary word.” — Erin, Texas

“I made sure that every single day after classes, I sat down and worked through as much as possible. Immediately. I was never on top of [my assignments], but this saved me from [my assignments] being all on top of me.” — Debbie, South Africa

“Having a dedicated study routine really helped me. I was undiagnosed all through college, and I started out with really bad grades. I was able to pull them up by building a routine where I scheduled breaks between classes to study.” — Tiffany, Maryland

*Some reader responses have been edited for clarity.

College Students with ADHD: Next Steps

• Download: How to Focus (When Your Brain Says ‘No!’)
• Read: The College Survival Guide for Students with ADHD
• Read: Why Your Teen Must Learn to Advocate for Himself

#CommissionsEarned As an Amazon Associate, ADDitude earns a commission from qualifying purchases made by ADDitude readers on the affiliate links we share. However, all products linked in the ADDitude Store have been independently selected by our editors and/or recommended by our readers. Prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

Sources

¹ National Center for Education Statistics. (2022, April 26). A majority of college students with disabilities do not inform school, new NCES data show. https://nces.ed.gov/whatsnew/press_releases/4_26_2022.asp

² Parker Harris, S., Gould, R., & Mullin, C. (2019). ADA research brief: Higher education and the ADA (pp. 1-6). ADA National Network Knowledge Translation Center. https://adata.org/research_brief/higher-education-and-ada

CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF ADDITUDE
Since 1998, ADDitude has worked to provide ADHD education and guidance through webinars, newsletters, community engagement, and its groundbreaking magazine. To support ADDitude’s mission, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

Click each image below to read detailed advice and strategies for the school year ahead.

It is, therefore, not surprising that the long-term academic outcomes for students with ADHD are strikingly poor. Compared to students without ADHD, those with ADHD have lower grades, more discipline referrals, and more special education placements. These issues can follow students into adulthood, leading to poorer adult occupational outcomes and lower lifetime earnings, likely due to underachievement.

Students with ADHD Sit in Every Classroom

Given that 9 percent of school-age children have an ADHD diagnosis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,¹ it is surprising that scant formal attention has been dedicated to supporting teachers, and by extension, students with ADHD. In a 1999 survey, only 15 percent of teachers stated they had received “a lot” of training related to ADHD. When this survey was repeated 20 years later, the number of teachers reporting this level of training had doubled to 29 percent. In other words, more than two-thirds of educators are in classrooms without substantive training on ADHD, and without knowing how to support the condition in school settings.

Educators in special education settings may also need additional training to help students with ADHD in classroom settings. In a recent study of students with ADHD receiving special education supports, only those who worked with a behavioral consultant to establish a daily behavior report card that addressed goals and objectives improved in behavior and academic productivity at the end of the year.² Students who received special education as usual did not improve on these outcomes, suggesting more direct and ongoing behavioral supports are needed for many students with ADHD supported by special education.

Current school policy may exacerbate these problems. For example, there is no special education category for ADHD, even though this is the reason many students receive an Individualized Education Program (IEP).  Students with ADHD may also be eligible for a 504 Plan, but these are characterized by considerable heterogeneity and inconsistencies in application. Indeed, many formal school interventions and supports are unlocked only when a family secures an outside diagnosis or for a co-occurring concern (e.g., specific learning disability). The lack of explicit school policies to govern ADHD-focused support and intervention may explain why more than 10 percent of complaints to the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights, “involved allegations of discrimination against a student with ADHD,” according to Wrightslaw.com, a legal resource website.

[Read: Teaching Strategies for Students with ADHD That Help Every Child Shine]

Routines and Reminders: Setting Up For Success

All too often, the reactions by educators to a student’s misbehavior or challenging academic situation result in suspensions, expulsions, exclusions, class failures, and grade retention. Instead, parents and educators should focus on addressing the antecedents of school success, such as getting the child to school on time and prepared for the day so that there is not a difficult transition into the morning activities. This also means frequent reminders of rules and expectations prior to starting a new activity in class. Clearly established routines and procedures will also help a child with ADHD be successful in academic settings. Once these procedures are in place, consequences can focus on positive results and outcomes rather than negative ones.

ADHD Accommodations That Work: Improving IEPs

IEPs and 504 Plans can be useful mechanisms for promoting effective supports, accommodations, and interventions in school settings. Yet, they can also be insufficient or ineffective. Most children with ADHD who have a 504 Plan or an IEP will spend the majority of their day in a general education setting, the very setting that may have resulted in the initial referral for additional supports. If these mechanisms do not provide additional and adequate support for the general education teacher, they are unlikely to improve important functional outcomes.

Parents and educators should make sure that the content of these plans address improvements in academic learning and progress, social relationships with peers and adults, and the child’s self-esteem, rather than addressing the symptoms of ADHD (e.g., fidgeting, distractibility).  Indeed, there is now clear evidence that symptom-focused accommodations—providing extra time to complete tasks or provision of fidget-toys—do not result in meaningful improvements. Parents should make sure meetings with school professionals continue to focus on how to include effective interventions in these plans (a daily behavior report card is one such example).

[Download: What Every Teacher Should Know About ADHD: A Poster for School]

There is surprisingly little empirical research to help parents and teachers know the best accommodations and interventions to include in 504 Plans or IEPs. Often the contents of these plans include out-of-class therapies or accommodations of unclear effectiveness (e.g., preferential seating). Parents and educators should ensure that the contents of these plans include:

• Specific positive behavior support procedures that will help the child meet behavioral expectations and goals. This includes a daily behavior report card or contract, school-based rewards contingent on meeting behavioral expectations, and privileges that can be accessed if goals are met.
• Academic accommodations that are functionally linked to the child’s areas of impairment. For instance, if a child is having difficulty completing work in the time given due to difficulty sustaining attention, it is unlikely extra time to complete assignments will help. Rather, breaking tasks into smaller chunks might be indicated.
• Parents and educators should choose their battles. If it is important for a child to complete homework each evening, an accommodation of an extra set of books/materials at home, or an emailed nightly homework assignment overview from the teacher, may be preferable to the child coming home unprepared and thus avoiding the homework tasks.
• Social goals are under-represented in IEPs. Parents and educators should ensure that social-emotional behaviors are adequately addressed in the plans.

Building Better Behavioral Support

I believe all students with ADHD should have a daily behavior report card and older children in middle or high school should have a behavioral contract. (MyGoalPal is a free app that creates a daily report card that parents and teachers can use). These approaches clearly outline specific goals and expectations, provide a mechanism for frequent (i.e., daily) parent-teacher communication and, importantly, positive consequences at home are contingent on meeting the daily goals. For most children with ADHD, a daily report card or contract will provide a critical foundation of positive behavioral support.

Teacher Training and ADHD Accommodations: Next Steps

• Read: 27 Classroom Accommodations That Target Common ADHD Challenges
• Download: The ADHD Learning Series for Educators
• Watch: ADHD Understanding and Services in School Settings – An Evolution in Education
• Read: The Educator’s Guide to Executive Functions – How to Understand Students in Need

Gregory A. Fabiano, Ph.D., is a professor of psychology at Florida International University. He has written two books, Interventions for Disruptive Behavior Disorders and Daily Behavior Report Cards.

CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF ADDITUDE
Since 1998, ADDitude has worked to provide ADHD education and guidance through webinars, newsletters, community engagement, and its groundbreaking magazine. To support ADDitude’s mission, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

Sources

¹Bitsko RH, Claussen AH, Lichstein J, et al. Mental health surveillance among children—United States, 2013–2019. MMWR Suppl. 2022;71(2):1-48.
²Gregory A. Fabiano, Rebecca K Vujnovic, William E. Pelham, Daniel A. Waschbusch, Greta M. Massetti, Meaghan E. Pariseau, Justin Naylor, Jihnhee Yu, Melissa Robins, Tarah Carnefix, Andrew R. Greiner & Martin Volker (2010) Enhancing the Effectiveness of Special Education Programming for Children With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Using a Daily Report Card, School Psychology Review,39:2, 219-239, https://doi.org/10.1080/02796015.2010.12087775″>10.1080/02796015.2010.12087775

It’s hard to know the prevalence of twice-exceptionality, but a report from the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) estimates that 6% of U.S. students receiving special education services are also academically gifted.¹ Patience, persistence, and advocacy are key to improved outcomes for this largely underserved school population.

If your child is twice exceptional, did you first notice their strengths or their weaknesses? We asked ADDitude readers this and more: Did the school system acknowledge and support all the aspects of your child’s learning profile? How does this affect their academic performance and friendships? Scroll down to the Comments section and add to the conversation.

“We recognized the gifted attributes first, which ‘hid’ the ADHD until fifth grade. Teachers have high expectations, but they often do not consider [my daughter’s] ADHD when she forgets something or needs reminders because she performs well. She is still doing well, and they have a great resource department. She has a small group of friends who have ADHD too, and who are also doing extremely well in school.” — An ADDitude Reader

“My 12-year-old son has ADHD, developmental coordination disorder (DCD), and is gifted. The DCD was diagnosed first. The ADHD diagnosis came much later. Because he is bright, an introvert, and not hyperactive or impulsive, he flew under the radar. He does very well in math and reading, but just average on written tasks, which he finds harder because of his motor difficulties and his struggle to make decisions about what to write! He has always had friends but is shy. He finds it hard to initiate social interaction.” — Emily, Australia

 [eBook: Signs & Symptoms of Learning Disabilities]

“We had our daughter tested for ADHD after her brother’s diagnosis. We always felt she wasn’t reaching her full potential at school. They came back with a diagnosis of ADHD and giftedness. I think the diagnosis improved her self-esteem and helped her better understand how she learns, but she experiences a big social and academic disconnect. At school, she hangs out with kids on the fringe but takes AP courses. Her classmates are always surprised that she’s smart because they don’t perceive her that way. She feels that many of her teachers don’t, either. She’s a really bright kid who acts impulsively. Luckily, medication and therapy are helping her make better decisions and focus on her future.” — An ADDitude Reader

“Both of my children are 2e and I couldn’t be prouder of that fact! It’s difficult to distinguish which I noticed first, as both were very bright little people who never stopped moving. The ADHD diagnoses came first and helped push toward a 504 Plan. Once they were old enough for thorough testing and evaluation, high intelligence and specific learning disabilities (SLD) were indicated. Before that, though, there were areas of concern that the school consistently dismissed as typical for the age (which was not the case). Once the documentation showed otherwise, the IEP process began for the SLD need, but all ADHD supports were stopped. It wasn’t totally understood by the teachers involved why an IEP was necessary. Their “low” is average and average is what they were aiming for, but it wasn’t allowing the children to reach their potential. With administrative support at a new school, supports to address their attention and focus were added back in and things have been positive overall.” — Rebecca

“I have three gifted children. They’re all amazing, but two of them are 2e. My oldest was recognized as academically gifted in some subject areas, but the inattentive ADHD wasn’t until much later. I was diagnosed first and it became obvious to us that she had it too. It took three years of work and ‘second opinions’ to get a diagnosis at age 17, with only 5 months left of her school life… My youngest 2e child has been recognized by adults as gifted since he was a toddler. Individual teachers would recognize it, but… we had to pay for an external evaluation to get a diagnosis: first of severe dysgraphia, then combined ADHD. The school now acknowledges the diagnoses and provides minimal support for the dysgraphia during assessments only… I am extremely proud of my middle child, but I look at what she has been able to achieve at school and in the community and wonder what the other two could have done, or could be doing, if they received the support they needed.” — Lisa, Australia

“From the time he was 2 or 3 years old, my son’s incredibly bright mind was obvious to me as a parent. Unfortunately, his keen intelligence left me questioning my parenting when he couldn’t do simple things like stay close to me in the grocery store or listen when he was told not to touch something… He thrived academically but had a lot of trouble adapting to all the rules in a classroom. That’s when we knew something wasn’t lining up. He was diagnosed with ADHD in first grade. His psychological evaluation confirmed his high intelligence, but also revealed a rather low processing speed. Suddenly everything made sense, and I cut myself some slack as a parent. There is no perfect place in school for a 2e child, but he is currently thriving in advanced classes with a 504 plan in place. He has healthy friendships with other bright kids, many of whom are a year older than him.” — An ADDitude Reader, Michigan

[Read: Slow Processing Speed — Signs & Solutions for a Misunderstood Deficit]

“Both of my kids are 2e. In the oldest, IQ masked ADHD (without hyperactivity). We didn’t get a diagnosis until things fell apart in sixth grade. It was hard for my child to cope with always being ‘the professor’ who had no trouble in school to suddenly being the kid who couldn’t find homework or keep up with busy work. In my youngest child, ADHD masked her IQ, so school wouldn’t allow her in the gifted program despite testing from a psychologist. The psychologist didn’t want to ‘label’ my child as ADHD until they were in the correct academic setting, so we wasted a lot of time begging for help and cooperation while my child suffered. Now they are both getting what they need and doing well, but it’s sadly always a gamble: Will they get a teacher next year who doesn’t get them and their strengths or needs? Thankfully, both kids have good friends that got them through their difficult times. I wish teachers would be more knowledgeable and aware of 2e kids so it wouldn’t be such a big ordeal.” — An ADDitude Reader

“A few of [my daughter’s] recent teachers don’t understand her ADHD. She has been in gifted or honors classes since middle school and is now a sophomore… They don’t understand how hard it is for her to stay focused long enough to complete her assignments, which are longer in advanced classes. They don’t know how that goes into getting [assignments] done — taking medication in the morning and afternoon at the right time, being able to fall asleep so she can function the next day… Listening to music on her phone with earbuds helps her focus, but that isn’t usually allowed in school. Sending a text to her dad or I about something important before she forgets gets her in trouble. I think she’ll do better in college, where she can control her course load and have more autonomy to take care of her needs. One advantage of her being 2e is that she has a better understanding of her ADHD and how to manage it. This helps her advocate for herself better.” — Kim, California

“My 16-year-old son is 2e. His IQ is over 130, but he also has ADHD… We recognized his 2e diagnosis in second grade. Although he had read most of the books in the Harry Potter series by age 7, his teacher (in a dual language immersion school) said that she did not think he needed any accelerated or differential teaching. He has had particular issues with teachers who were not trained in the U.S. (Latin America and Europe) and his current high school supports are completely teacher dependent. His private college prep school refuses to give him any accommodations around decreasing homework or allowing additional time on assignments due to slow processing speed (he only receives extra time for tests)… Although transferring schools would probably benefit him, he is adamant to stay at this school. He has had substantial issues with friendships. He currently does not have many good, long-term relationships after starting high school and floats from group to group. He has a lot of social anxiety and difficulty ‘reading’ both his peers and school teachers or administrators.”

2e Students and ADHD: Next Steps

• Free Download: Fight for Your Child’s Rights at School
• Read: Encourage Success, Overcome Struggles
• Replay: The 2e Playbook for Nurturing Gifted Students with ADHD
• Read: Twice-Exceptional and Thriving — At Last

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Sources

¹Baird, L. L. (2022, April 20). How to support your twice-exceptional child. U.S. News & World Report. https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/articles/how-to-support-your-twice-exceptional-child

Hi IEP Parent:

I appreciate how much you want to support your daughter. And the best way to do so is to ensure she gets the support she needs at school. However, as you’ve realized, getting the information you need can be frustrating and overwhelming and depends on good communication with her teachers.

It’s important to know what the modifications and accommodations from your daughter’s IEP look like, how they are being implemented and measured for progress, and how this information will be communicated to you.

I suggest sending each teacher a list of specific questions to gather this data. You want to know if your daughter is performing at grade level, what teaching methods are used in the classroom, and where they see any struggles.

I’ve put together a list of seven questions to help guide the discussion.

[Bring This Form to Your Parent-Teacher Meetings]

7 Questions to Improve Communication with Teachers

1. Have You Read My Child’s IEP or 504 Plan?

You don’t want to assume that your daughter’s teachers have a copy of her IEP or that they have read it. I recommend forwarding a copy of her IEP and a one-page summary detailing your daughter’s strengths and weaknesses to each of her teachers. Don’t forget to include her elective or special-area teachers in physical education, music, art, health, etc. Also, include your contact information, so the teachers will know the best way to get in touch with you. Then send a follow-up email to each teacher a week later to confirm that they received and read the report.

2. Can You Tell Me About Your Teaching Style?

Each individual instructor’s teaching style will differ. Finding out how they teach is critical to her success in the classroom. For example, if your child is a hands-on learner and her chemistry teacher is strictly an old-school lecturer, additional support and scaffolding may be necessary. In other words, you want to know what a typical class period looks like.

3. What Supports Are in Place for My Daughter, and How Are You Specifically Implementing Them?

Academic and behavioral support can be provided in many ways, so you need to get detailed here. What do the IEP accommodations and supports look like in each class? Are they a pull-out model (where a student is removed from class for support) or a push-in model (where support staff blends in with the rest of the class to offer support)? Is the teacher providing her with copies of the class notes? Supplying double desks? Applying homework modifications or offering directions in more than two modalities?

4. Does My Daughter Need Extra Help in Any Areas? If So, How Are You Working with Her to Address Them?

This is a softer way of asking what your daughter may be struggling with and what her teacher is doing to support her.

5. What Type of Progress Can I Expect to See?

It’s not enough for your daughter’s teachers to tell you what accommodations or modifications they are implementing. You also need to know what type of progress to expect and how it will look. Use the following questions to get clear answers.

• What should healthy progress look like?
• What are some key signs that we are moving in the right direction?
• What should I watch out for at home?

[Free Checklist: 12 Parent Advocacy Secrets]

6. How Can I Communicate to You What Works Best for My Daughter at Home?

It’s crucial to give your daughter’s teachers a clear view of what is working at home. Maybe your daughter needs to doodle to focus or move around while learning. Perhaps she needs to listen to music while doing “desk work.”  These strategies need to be communicated to her teachers so they can possibly incorporate them into their classrooms.

7. How Can We Support Classroom Goals at Home?

For students to make the best progress possible, goals must be fluid between school and home. To that end, make sure there is a clear communication plan in place. How will you communicate with your student’s teacher? How will they communicate with you? How often? Do you want to know about specific criteria, milestones, or setbacks? The more specific you make your communication plan, the fewer things will be left to chance, and the most success your daughter will achieve!

Good luck!

Communication with Teachers: Next Steps

• Learn: How to Improve Parent-Teacher Communication
• Read: Don’t Wait for the Parent-Teacher Conference! 11 Year-Round Cooperation Rules
• Download: How to Make School Meetings Count: Your Free Guide

ADHD Family Coach Leslie Josel, of Order Out of Chaos, will answer questions from ADDitude readers about everything from paper clutter to disaster-zone bedrooms and from mastering to-do lists to arriving on time every time.

Submit your questions to the ADHD Family Coach here!

SUPPORT ADDITUDE
Thank you for reading ADDitude. To support our mission of providing ADHD education and support, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

This course, featuring instructional videos from the world’s foremost experts in neurodivergent education, will guide parents and educators through a full syllabus of 51 webinar replays, 72 essential articles, 33 expert Q&As, 39 downloadable resources to share, 17 self-tests, 33 expert Q&As, 15 supplemental videos, and more.

Each lesson revolves around a common challenge for neurodivergent students:

• Learning Hurdle #1: ADHD Misinformation (How to educate educators on ADHD and recognize early signs of ADHD in the classroom)
• Learning Hurdle #2: ADHD Accommodations (How to advocate for your child, secure an effective IEP or 504 Plan, and ensure it’s being followed)
• Learning Hurdle #3: Distractibility and Inattention (How to help students hear and follow directions without losing focus or interest)
• Learning Hurdle #4: Weak Executive Functions (How to bolster executive function skills commonly impacted by ADHD, including working memory, prioritization, and time management)
• Learning Hurdle #5: Behavior Challenges (How to address and prevent the classroom behaviors that interfere with learning such as interrupting, hitting, and fidgeting)
• Learning Hurdle #6: Homework Problems (How to help students accurately log, prioritize, complete, and hand in assignments on time)
• Learning Hurdle #7: Learning Differences (How to best serve and teach students who have dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, auditory processing, dyspraxia, and other learning differences)
• Learning Hurdle #8: Social Struggles (How to teach social and emotional-regulation skills so that kids can make and keep friends more easily)
• Learning Hurdle #9: School Collaboration (How to facilitate and participate in parent-teacher-student cooperation and communication, particularly around accommodations)
• Learning Hurdle #10: Motivation and Resilience (How to build internal and external motivation to encourage resilience in students when they face school challenges)

NOTE: This resource is for personal use only.

2e is a term used to describe “twice-exceptional” students who are academically gifted and also living with ADHD or another diagnosis like autism or learning differences. 2e students are undeniably bright, but often plagued by inconsistent performance at school due to other interfering symptoms. These students seldom receive special-education services, or they are considered “lazy” because they excel in some areas yet appear to lack the motivation to excel in others. The secret to unlocking greatness in a 2e student is recognizing their areas of giftedness by making work more challenging, while simultaneously identifying their areas of greatest need and inserting helpful accommodations and supports accordingly. Understandably, this can be difficult for parents or teachers.

In this webinar you will learn:

• How Lisa Dieker and her 2e son identified his greatest skills as well as the challenges that stood in his path
• Techniques, ideas, and approaches that teachers can use to help students identified as 2e to strive and thrive in the classroom
• How to ensure future pathways to college and careers among gifted students while effectively addressing areas of challenge
• How parents can partner with educators to ensure success from preschool to college

Watch the Video Replay

Enter your email address in the box above labeled “Video Replay + Slide Access” to watch the video replay (closed captions available) and download the slide presentation.

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Click the play button below to listen to this episode directly in your browser, click the symbol to download to listen later, or open in your podcasts app: Apple Podcasts; Google Podcasts; Stitcher; Spotify; Amazon Music; iHeartRADIO.

More on 2e Students and ADHD

• Download: Overcoming Common Learning Challenges
• Read: Unlocking the Potential of Gifted Kids with ADHD
• Read: “Twice Exceptional Is a Cruel Double-Edged Sword”

Obtain a Certificate of Attendance

If you attended the live webinar on September 27, 2022, watched the video replay, or listened to the podcast, you may purchase a certificate of attendance option (cost: $10). Note: ADDitude does not offer CEU credits. Click here to purchase the certificate of attendance option »

Meet the Expert Speaker

Dr. Lisa Dieker is a Pegasus Professor and Lockheed Martin Eminent Scholar in the College of Community Innovation and Education at University of Central Florida (UCF). She serves as the director of the UCF/Lockheed Martin Mathematics and Science Academy, program coordinator for the Ph.D. program in special education, and co-director of the UCF Center for Research in Education Simulation Technology. Her research focuses on harnessing the power of teachers working across disciplines in inclusive settings in teacher education, special education, and simulation. She is leading work in creating artificial intelligence agents to support students with disabilities in inclusive settings. She holds three patents in simulation and education.

Joshua Dieker is beginning a new position in a management role for Trek Bikes in Leesburg, Virginia. Prior to this, he was the customer experience manager at Summit Ropes in Sterling, Virginia. He is an avid sportsman and enjoys biking, rock climbing, and camping. Joshua received a bachelor’s degree in recreation and management from Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 2018. In college, he competed as a gymnast and was a four-time NCAA qualifier, Collegiate All-American, and Academic-All American athlete. He also was the Florida state all around gymnastic champion and won a medal at the Junior Olympics. He is diagnosed with Tourette syndrome, dyslexia, and dysgraphia. He just completed a term serving as an ambassador for the Tourette Syndrome Association.

Webinar Sponsor

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Brain Balance is an integrative cognitive development program designed to help kids with ADHD, Learning Differences, Anxiety & beyond. An exploratory study with Harvard’s McLean Hospital found the Brain Balance Program to be as effective as low-dose stimulant medication in alleviating ADHD symptoms in children. Visit brainbalance.com to learn more about Brain Balance today.

ADDitude thanks our sponsors for supporting our webinars. Sponsorship has no influence on speaker selection or webinar content.

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Jackson’s Story: Learning Differences Dismissed

Third grade was not going well for Jackson* of Brooklyn, New York. Diagnosed with ADHD at age 5, Jackson was in an integrated co-teaching class with an IEP in place, but his school aversion intensified with each passing day. “He would have these giant anxiety fits about going to school, saying, ‘I hate it! It’s boring!’” remembers his mother, Sarah.*

Before a parent-teacher conference, Sarah saw the other students’ writings hanging on the classroom walls and began to understand Jackson’s fears. “The other kids were writing full paragraphs and punctuating and spacing their words,” she says. “My jaw dropped. I thought, ‘Oh my God, what is going on? He is so far behind his classmates. How did I not know this?’”

When Sarah raised her concerns at Jackson’s IEP meeting and asked for a learning disorder evaluation, she got pushback. “They were convinced that he couldn’t spell or write [because of] hard-headedness,” she explains. “The school was acting as though it was a behavior issue.”

Eventually, Jackson received a school evaluation as well as private neuropsychological testing. It revealed that, in addition to ADHD, Jackson had dysgraphia and was cognitively gifted. Now in sixth grade, he is thriving, thanks to an understanding of his learning needs and appropriate technologies and supports. But getting that game-changing set of diagnoses was an exhausting six-year process.

[Download: The Best Learning Tools for Students with ADHD and LD]

“There was so much drama,” says Sarah. “The teachers were frustrated, and it was a miserable thing for my son to be constantly told to do something he was not in a position to do.”

When ADHD is Blamed

Jackson’s story, or some version of it, is familiar to most special education advocates. The repercussions of a missed diagnosis can be enormous to a child. Without the proper supports in place, kids will struggle and fall behind in school, losing invaluable opportunities for remediation during critical windows of growth. And this will have dramatic ripple effects emotionally, socially, and behaviorally, says Cheryl Chase, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and founder of ChasingYourPotential.com.

The problem begins with a lack of testing, says Susan Yellin, a lawyer and director of advocacy and transition services at the Yellin Center for Mind, Brain, and Education in New York City. “A good evaluation has to be the starting place,” she says.

“If you don’t know what you’re dealing with, how can you fix it?” says Matt Cohen, a lawyer and past president of CHADD. “There are so many different areas where ADHD may overlap with, or may mask, other problems that a more in-depth evaluation is good practice. I would even argue it’s legally mandated… and a proactive responsibility.”

[Read: How to Request a Special Education Evaluation]

Under a mandate covered in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) called Child Find, public schools are required to “identify and evaluate all students who are reasonably suspected of having a disability.” This includes vision and hearing, social and emotional status, academic performance, and everything in between. In many cases, however, schools are not pursuing additional testing for kids with ADHD, despite requests from parents. The reasons for this include:

• Symptoms of co-occurring conditions are often mistakenly attributed to ADHD or are conflated with behavioral issues
• School budget constraints limit testing and support services that might be required

“When I see kids who are diagnosed with learning disabilities in sixth or seventh grade, they’ve had years of a script in their head that they’re stupid and not good enough,” says Roberto Olivardia, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and a clinical instructor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. “Kids deal with that differently: Some get anxious, some get depressed, and some become the class clown.”

When LD Red Flags Go Unnoticed

The threads of multiple diagnoses can be difficult to untangle in a child with ADHD. “Co-existing conditions are often missed because the focal point, especially with hyperactive or impulsive kids, is on behavior that is perceived to be disruptive or problematic,” Cohen says. “And that’s as far as the initial investigation goes.”

This was the case for Bradley April of Milton, Washington. He was diagnosed with ADHD at age 4. It took five years, and several evaluations paid for by his family, before he was diagnosed with dyslexia. His mother, Kim April, recalls that Bradley’s explosive behavior began in first grade and steadily intensified until, by third grade, he was being removed from the classroom almost daily. “He was incredibly frustrated, and it was often expressed as avoidance, ripping up papers, flipping desks, and running from the classroom when he could not meet the expectations.”

April says it was obvious to her that reading “had not clicked” for Bradley, but no one suggested additional testing, despite the red flags and discrepancies. “I feel that the school saw his struggles as related to ADHD, and they didn’t look any further due to a lack of training, resources, or both,” says April.

Chase adds that the executive function challenges posed by ADHD make uncovering learning disabilities especially challenging. If a child is inattentive or impulsive, how does an educator, therapist, parent, or even diagnostician know if the learning challenge stems from their executive functioning or another underlying issue? “You might not know,” Chase says. “But if you’ve got at least a couple of data points, including teacher and parent reports that he’s not reading well or that writing is a painful experience, for example, we can’t ignore that.” The next step, she says, should be further testing.

Cutting Corners on LD Evaluations

If experts agree that the best way to identify and address challenges is to evaluate a child fully and comprehensively, then why would schools ever resist additional assessments? “Unfortunately, sometimes, administrators are cutting corners on evaluations,” says Beverley Holden Johns, president of the Learning Disabilities Association of Illinois. “If you don’t do an evaluation that can determine a disability, you don’t have to provide additional services. It’s a way to save money.”

There’s an additional challenge, adds Olivardia: The evaluations that schools are equipped to offer may not be extensive enough to catch all co-occurring conditions. While a full neuropsychological evaluation isn’t usually necessary to diagnose ADHD, he says, it is the standard for assessing learning disabilities. And schools simply aren’t equipped to conduct these highly specialized, and expensive, evaluations.

Making education accessible for a child with ADHD tends to require accommodations — preferential seating, reminders, building in breaks — that largely can be offered in a general education classroom at little additional cost to schools. But for other conditions, particularly learning disabilities, far more expensive interventions are necessary, including instruction by specialists.

Even so, Yellin reminds parents that every child is entitled to an appropriate, free education that meets their needs. “This is not a present from the school,” she says. “This is a right under federal law.”

Taking a Closer Look

Each of the comorbid conditions commonly found in kids with ADHD has a different set of red flags. That said, the following signs should compel further investigation, according to Kathy Kuhl, a Virginia-based education consultant and founder of LearnDifferently.com.

Take additional steps if your child…

• Continues to feel frustrated even though his ADHD is being managed
• Avoids specific subjects at school
• Refuses to go to school
• Seems angry much of the time
• Talks negatively about himself

If you suspect a learning difference. . .

• Request an evaluation from the school in writing, Yellin says. A simple email stating, “I suspect my child has a disability and I am requesting an evaluation” will do. Under the IDEA, schools must investigate and evaluate all areas of suspected disability.
• If the school refuses to evaluate: You have two choices, Cohen explains:
  • Seek a due process hearing to request that the school evaluate the child
  • Get your child evaluated privately if you can afford it or if you can find low or no-cost options. The school district is obligated to consider those findings, but it is not bound by them.

How SEPTA can help

A Special Education PTA, or SEPTA, is a parent-teacher organization in which parents of children with special needs, often from different schools within one district, come together to share resources, build community, plan workshops on topics of interest, and serve as a united voice to advocate for special needs students.

If SEPTA is not in your district, you can form one. Reach out to your state’s PTA office and ask about how to get started. Members can include parents, guardians, teachers, aides, school therapists and administrators—anyone who wants to help support students with special needs.

*Jackson and Sarah’s names have been changed at their request.

Diagnosing Learning Disabilities: Next Steps

• Download: 12 School Advocacy Ideas
• Watch: Your Legal Rights at School
• Read: Twice the Challenge — Getting the Right Diagnosis

Nicole Kear is the author of the memoir Now I See You (#CommissionsEarned) and numerous books for children. A native of New York, she has received a Bachelor’s degree from Yale and a Master’s degree from Columbia University.

#CommissionsEarned As an Amazon Associate, ADDitude earns a commission from qualifying purchases made by ADDitude readers on the affiliate links we share. However, all products linked in the ADDitude Store have been independently selected by our editors and/or recommended by our readers. Prices are accurate and items in stock as of time of publication.

SUPPORT ADDITUDE
Thank you for reading ADDitude. To support our mission of providing ADHD education and support, please consider subscribing. Your readership and support help make our content and outreach possible. Thank you.

Practical Strategies for Teachers and Parents

This free learning resource includes the following articles:
– 5 Surprising Ways ADHD Shows Up in the Classroom: These behaviors and challenges associated with ADHD are commonly misunderstood at school

– How to Build a Better IEP: Make sure goals are specific, quantifiable, and clearly defined. Here’s how.

– Directions for ADHD Brains: A teacher’s guide to giving instructions that students with ADHD can follow.

– The Power of Service: Trust a child with ADHD to help in the classroom, and watch self-esteem rise.

– 4 Ways to Win Over Your Teachers: Students with ADHD shine brightest when teachers are in their corner.