5 Creative Ways to Help Students With ADHD Thrive in the

Classroom

Recently, the NY Times ran an excellent article

entitled: A Natural Fix for ADHD. In this piece,
Dr. Richard Friedman, Professor of Clinical
Psychiatry and Director of the
Psychopharmacology Clinic at Weill Cornell
Physicians, explores the neuroscience behind
ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
In so doing, Friedman attempts to reframe our
understanding of just what ADHD is, and how
much more nuanced our approaches for treating
it need to be.

Photo credit: Mararie

ADHD in the Classroom Has Long Been a Controversial Topic

On the one hand, advocates of pharmaceutical interventions like Ritalin and Adderall point to the
substantial scientific and anecdotal evidence confirming that ADHD medications help students
concentrate in the classroom and better manage their workloads at home. Many teachers consider
these medications essential in terms of classroom management, as untreated students with ADHD
can derail class discussions and require the teacher to devote enormous wells of energy just to
keeping the class in line. (That said, it should be noted that ADHD manifests in many forms and
affects quieter students at high rates as well; in fact, ADHD can take an even more serious toll in
this case, as it often goes undiagnosed for much longer). For these reasons, it is not uncommon to
hear teachers, parents, and even students themselves refer to ADHD medications as a "miracle."
However, take a scroll through the comment section of any article written in support of these
medications, and you are bound to see many commenters offering stories of inappropriate
medication use. ADHD is often used as a catch-all diagnosis for all perceived behavioral issues, as it
is easier to prescribe medications without probing further into root causes of outwardly displayed
symptoms. Many parents and students describe feeling pressured into taking medication, and often
lower resource students aren't given any outside support beyond the prescription. When these
students become adults, they describe feeling like they were pathologized for brain chemistry that
was out of their control.
And yet every teacher, counselor, and administrator knows the frustration that ensues when a
student clearly has ADHD and a family dismisses the medication route out of hand. Many counselors
feel that treating ADHD with medication is just like treating depression, anxiety, and any other
condition that arises in the brain.

Is there a compromise to be made here by stitching together a pharmaceutical, behavioral and

pedagogical approach customized to suit the unique needs of the individual student? The answer to
that is a clear yes -- but in order to get to what that approach might look like, we first must begin
with a deeper look at ADHD itself.
The Neuroscience Behind ADHD
ADHD may sound like a singular diagnosis, but it actually falls into three different subtypes. For
students who mostly exhibit symptoms of inattentiveness, studies indicate that the neurotransmitter
norepinephrine is at the root of the problem; that is, these students have variations in their
norepinephrine transport genes that make it so that the amount of norepinephrine circulating in
their systems is different than that of neurotypical control subjects.
In contrast, students with the hyperactivity-impulsivity ADHD tend to have fewer dopamine
receptors. As Dr. Friedman describes it in his NY Times article, dopamine is a part of our brain's
reward pathway, so with fewer receptors available, students with this kind of ADHD need more
stimulation in order to keep their minds' from wandering. By blocking the reuptake of dopamine,
stimulants like Ritalin and Adderall keep the levels of dopamine high in the brain, while a
nonstimulant like Strattera blocks the reuptake of norepinephrine. In this way, all three medications
(and medications like them) help students to focus.
(Wondering what the third subtype of ADHD is? A combination of the previous two.)
When ADHD Was an Evolutionary Advantage
Look up any definition for ADHD (from WebMD to the DSM-IV) and you will find a laundry list of oftrepeated symptoms: easily distracted; has trouble maintaining attention; disrupts class; fidgets;
always on the go; blurts out answers; butts into conversations. The list goes on.
But while these symptoms may be clear, there is less agreement on just how to interpret them. For
instance, when Stephen Tonti spoke about his ADHD at TEDxCMU, he argued that attention "deficit"
is a misnomer, as people with ADHD can hyperfocus when the task at hand interests them. Instead,
he locates the heart of his difficulty in selecting something to apply that full attention to, and argues
that what he experiences is a difference in cognition rather than a disorder. He is, in his own words,
"attention different."
In his NY Times piece, Dr. Friedman focuses on the tendency of the ADHD-brain to seek out novel
experiences. In so doing, he argues that ADHD was once evolutionarily adaptive, pointing to a recent
study of the Ariaal, a mostly nomadic tribe in Kenya with a recently splintered and settled subgroup.
The study found that nomadic men with a dopamine receptor variant related to ADHD were more
likely to be well-fed, while those with the variant in the settled splinter tribe were gaunt. Friedman
hypothesizes that ADHD is adaptive for a dynamic environment, in which novelty-seeking and a short
attention span actually keep nomads aware of their surroundings and make them better hunters. In
contrast, ADHD becomes problematic in a more sedentary culture where activities like school,
farming, and selling goods require more sustained focus.
This explanation gels with a critique often raised by ADHD advocates: that it is not the ADHD-brain
that is problematic, but an overly regimented school environment constructed for an industrial age
with a high need for workers and bureaucrats. Still, whether you agree with that statement or not,
this is the system we have right now, and students with ADHD will need to navigate it both here and
as they enter the work world. What's more, teachers must have the ability to teach their classes

without constant.

"The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas. Linus Pauling"

interruptions.
5 Creative Approaches
1. Get Hands-On
Many students with ADHD work best with hands-on learning. As such, to appeal to their learning
style, it is often better to "do" rather than "tell." Whether it's engineering their own popsicle stick
building, manipulating blocks, typing on a computer, drawing illustrations for a class book, putting
science into action in the lab, participating in a Maker Fair, or getting to be the "teacher for the
day," hands-on activities are sure to engage and build confidence.
That said, it's important not to assume that all students with ADHD will be kinesthetic learners, and
to engage students in the modality that most speaks to them. We recommend having your student
take this learning styles quiz to give you a grounding for developing customized approaches.
2. Vary the Routine
If we know that students with ADHD are novelty-seeking, why not use that to our advantage? Keep
lectures as short as possible, and rotate students often through activities. While it is important to
keep students with ADHD organized with a structure you have provided, changing the routine up
once in awhile will be a nice surprise and will help prevent boredom. Encouraging students with
ADHD to pick up extracurricular activities can also be useful, as it will allow students to hyperfocus
with their passions and also to nibble at many different tasks throughout the day.
3. Incorporate Movement Into Your Lesson Plans
If you've determined that your student with ADHD is a kinesthetic learner, there are many creative
ways to incorporate movement into the classroom. When reviewing questions for an upcoming test,
try tossing a ball to students you want to call on rather than addressing them by name. Acting out
great scenes from history will embed facts and dates deeply into student minds, as will turning
letters and sounds into characters and acting out their characteristics as you are teaching a class to
read. And never underestimate how fun it can be to simply get out of that desk, stretch, and do a
little dance break!
4. Teach Mindfulness
Teaching mindfulness in the classroom is becoming an increasingly popular technique, and one that
can be particularly helpful for students with ADHD -- although a student with ADHD may need
intensive, individual coaching in this area. In so doing, it can help to have reminder words that you
can say to let a student know when it might be time to pull back for a moment, reflect, and draw on
the mindfulness techniques you've covered previously.
5. Create a Tutoring Program

All students deserve a customized, student-centered learning experience, but students with ADHD
will need extra attention in developing sets of tools and strategies for navigating the classroom.
Smaller class sizes would be ideal here, but since class size is beyond teacher control, it can be more
useful for teachers to advocate for a tutoring or mentoring program for the school. With one-on-one
attention, students with ADHD will have someone there for them to help provide structure and stay
on top of their progress, while also translating the neurotypical classroom experience for them, and
helping them to develop the skillsets they need to operate well in school and beyond.
Students with ADHD are highly intelligent and packed with potential, just as long as they are given
the resources they need to thrive. That may mean medication, but that also means working hard to
find customized teaching and behavioral strategies as well. In the end, only a nuanced, multipronged approach will prove effective -- all the more so when those approaches are backed up with a
diverse support network.

I ought to take this into account given that Englishteaching is actually my bread and
butter. Nevertheless, I would not like treating anything as if it were written in rock
neither should you. It's an fascinating thought though and could worth more
conversation. Let's get back to it and see what lengths we are going to get by moving
this further.

What do you think? Let us know your stance in the comments below or via Twitter @Edudemic!