Diane: One of Danielle's best friends is a graduate of Dartmouth College who now has a distinguished career with a well-known national accounting firm. When Athena was visiting us one day, I told her a little about this book project.
She confided to me that she had been diagnosed with ADHD after her first year of college. Her mother had pressured her in high school to be tested, but she had resisted the suggestion. However, in college she had experienced the same frustrations as Danielle, and began to realize that her style of learning and taking tests was very different from the other students in her classes.
'Tell me about it!" I said. "What do you remember about elementary school?"
Athena proceeded to sit cross-legged on our sofa and pound out on her laptop a poignant, four-page story of her childhood memories about her experiences in school, not all of them positive. But one teacher handled her beautifully:
In third grade, I had a teacher, Mrs. Walther, who taught the way I learned. She let me do 15 things at once. and she even rewarded me for it. I remember her class like it was yesterday because it made me love learning. I could learn how I needed to learn, which in the process made me feel invincible. I look back at my awards scrapbook for elementary school, and I am most proud of the awards that I received in her class because I felt that I really deserved them, and I enjoyed earning them. Teaching Children With ADHD Techniques
The one that I am most proud of is the one that I received because I was "Child of the Year." I hadn't received this award because I had scored the highest on an exam or because I had behaved the best, but because I had received the most stars on the project board. I had obtained the most stars because I had successfully completed the most projects that year. In essence, she rewarded me for doing 15 things at once and learning outside the box of the classroom.
I loved doing these projects because it meant I didn't have to sit still and do nothing. Mrs. Walther planned her classroom so that we were always busy, When I finished one task, I had another to move to. She kept my mind engaged.
Dennis: I like Athena's story because her teacher taught at her "success level" rather than at her "frustration level," She made Athena feel special, and she understood her learning style. I know it's a challenge to sometimes actually like the most difficult kid in the class, but there are such rewards if the effort is made. These kids are so filled with self contempt because they feel that they are the problem, rather than the teaching method.
Athena had her best teacher in the third grade, but, as you've already read, my third grade experience was the opposite. For years I didn't have my third grade teacher on my list of folks who have influenced my life. But in hindsight, she was a good lady, a Christian. She was all business and didn't enjoy the silly stuff, but her class was my turning point. It was where I started to use my gifts to compensate for inadequacies.
She died a year or so ago. My morn called and told me. Mom said that she would bump into this teacher at the mall on occasion, and she would tell my morn how proud she was of my success. Little did she know that she was the catalyst for my comedic development. Teaching Children With ADHD Techniques
The school system, whether it be public or private, is really not geared for the kid with ADHD, so these children have to work harder just to cope with the everyday classroom. It's like hearing a different language when everybody else is hearing English. They often need help with their social skills, their manners, their ability to interact with others, and their ability to control impulsive words and actions.
But if a teacher has the patience to work with them, they have the potential to become extremely compassionate, conscientious, and considerate human beings.
Diane: My oldest daughter, Nicole, is an elementary school teacher with the patience of a saint. Perhaps she should thank her sister for preparing her for her career! She spent the first two years of her elementary teaching experience in the inner city. Many of the children came to school hungry, so she provided food out of her small salary.
One child was particularly ingenious about the way he washed his clothes every week. He would come to the school on Saturdays when he knew the sprinklers would be on watering the grass, and that was his water supply for his laundry. So when a teacher is simply trying to meet the basic needs of the children entrusted to his or her care, it is often difficult to give the one-on-one attention that a child with a disability needs so desperately.
Next post, we'll continue to talk about how Nicole handled her class of kids, especially those with ADHD. At mean time, you can get Teaching Children With ADHD Techniques right now and follow the steps to handle your ADHD children.
