Comments on: Coaching ADD Students

By: Brenda

Brenda — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 01:59:36 +0000

Jan – I appreciate your comments so much. My son had a teacher in high school who had ADHD and understood him very well. He was instrumental in shaping my son’s future.

Your insights are right on with what I have experienced. I have had the pleasure of coaching 2 ADD Students with genius IQs. Both were barely passing high school. And you’re right – they are creative out of the box thinkers.

Have you read any of Jonathan Mooney’s books? He wrote “The Short Bus” and co-authored “Learning Outside the Lines”. I found both books to be informative as well as inspirational.

I would welcome any more insights or comments you may have. Or perhaps a guest post?

By: Brenda

Brenda — Wed, 17 Aug 2011 01:52:22 +0000

Thanks Mary.

By: Mary

Mary — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 06:25:55 +0000

As an adult who has had ADD my whole life. I wish that someone would have adopted Brenda’s ideas when I was a child.

By: Jan

Jan — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 14:49:57 +0000

In response to Brenda: I am a high school English teacher. I am ADHD and teach many students with ADHD. As a teacher it is very important to know who my ADHD kids are as I understand that, like myself, they think and learn in different ways than linear thinkers.
What I find very upsetting is the stigma that is attached to ADHD. Some of my most brilliant students have been ADHD. They are generally more creative, artistic, and able to readily think outside of the box. Did you know that Albert Einstein was a non-linear thinker? He was very challenged by concrete ideas but excelled at abstract mathematical theory. My challenge is to better understand the linear thinkers and to meet their needs as they think in much more logical terms and often have difficulty with abstract ideas. There are clear pluses and minuses to both ways of thinking. I don’t believe that one is better, they are just different. The world needs both.
Many ADHD students have very low self-esteem because they are trying to fit into a system (school) that is based on linear thinking. It is vital that they understand their strengths and not simply focus on their weaknesses which is often the case. ADHD is not some kind of disease and I truly wish that we could simply embrace the idea that thinking in a different way is not a dysfunction that needs to be fixed. Medication definitely makes a difference as it allows ADDers to focus better, stay on task, and maybe help to keep their minds from going in twenty different directions at the same time. I love working with these kids. I only wish more teachers understood the true nature of ADHD. But I guess, unless you live in that kind of mind yourself, it would be very difficult to grasp.

By: Brenda

Brenda — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:55:26 +0000

Thanks for your comments, Rebecca. You make some good points.

Identifying ADHD in an individual is helpful in order to get them proper treatment – whether that might be medications or natural solutions. It helps the individual understand themselves better. Labeling is another matter, and one that I feel is not helpful at all. Kids who are identified as ADHD within the greater community of elementary school, for instance, get “typecast” for want of a better word. Teachers, parents, administrators, and even other kids will expect the worst from them because of it. Of course, that’s not true of everyone, but it happens often enough.

You are right that if a child or person feels bad about themselves due to such labeling, it can be difficult to motivate them or convince them that they are capable of more. At the same time, it’s important to note that someone with ADHD will always have it; the challenge is to learn to manage it in a way that disrupts your life as little as possible.

Thanks again for commenting.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 14:04:24 +0000

What is the purpose of labeling kids with ADD or ADHD? How does that make them feel? What reason would they have for getting better? When you label someone, why should they even attempt to improve? I believe we do a dis-service to kids by labeling them. Helping them is a much better choice. Parents could find “holistic” teachers, counselors, and others to help their kids instead of labeling them. The kids would probably improve in a quicker amount of time. Just my opinion…