Teaching Addition to a Child with ADD

A Child with Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity disorder tend to be more physically active, inattentive, difficulty responding appropriately, difficulty working steadily toward goals (even their own goals), and may not be able to control their behavior on command.

These children fail to give close attention to detail and will make careless mistakes. They have trouble sustaining attention in tasks and/or play activities. They do not seem to listen when spoken to, nor do they follow directions, usually leaving them not completing their schoolwork. They have difficulty in their organizational skills, and avoids, dislikes, or is reluctant to engage in work that involves mental effort. These children often lose the things necessary to complete activities, and are also easily distracted and forgetful.

They suffer from impulse control problems such as blurting out answers, waiting for their turn, or interrupting or intruding in on others conversations or games. There are some noticeable physical indicators of ADHD and that is the child tens to fidget with their hands or feet, squirms in his or her seat, tends to leave seat during inappropriate times, talks excessively, and has difficulty playing or engaging in leisure activities. These children are described to be acting as though they are "driven by a motor".

According to theorist Russell Barkley, a Professor of psychiatry and neurology at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center in Worcester, and a author of numerous books on ADHD, including ADHD and the Nature of Self-Control and Attention- Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Handbook for Diagnosis and Treatment,

"Well, I've begun to study self-control in ADHD children, because we began to realize that the problems with attention that ADHD children were having were not problems with how they perceived things or see the world around them. It really was more of a problem that they couldn't persist at something as long as other people. And they couldn't resist the distractions around them as well as other people, particularly when they were involved in very boring or very tedious work. That began to suggest that there was a problem in how they were controlling behavior, not in how they were seeing the world. It would therefore be a problem with how the output of the brain--behavior--is organized, and not a problem with input coming into the brain, with how you perceive and see your world. . . . What we've found is that ADHD children can pay attention to things that are around them in the immediate situation, so that it's really not an attention problem.

What they don't pay attention to is what lies ahead in time, what has to be done next in order to get ready for the future. They're not stopping to think about that future. So they don't have a problem with attention; they have a problem with intentions. Intentions are the things we are doing to get ready for what lies ahead in time--our goals; our plans; the assignments that we should be working on; the paths that other people have given us that we need to be paying more attention to in order to be ready when that time gets here. That's what ADHD children are not doing . . . "

These are things that have to be kept in mind when teaching a child with ADHD, that is not that the have an attention problem, but rather an intention problem.

According to SPARK, a society for the promotion of ADHD research and knowledge, children with ADHD had good qualities to, such as, children with ADHD / ADD are usually creative and daring. Some other strengths of the ADHD /ADD child may include: good at math, read well, artistic, good gross motor skill, good computer skills, good memory, helpful, kind to others, loves outdoor activities, good with animals, and they have a variety of interests (Swee Huat, 2002).

Some challenges in teaching a child with ADHD is that long assignments may overwhelm them, therefore to teach this child you must only give them a few problems at a time with clear consequences for completion. Another approach to teaching the child with ADHD effectively is a combination of instruction in learning with memory strategies and motivational training. The teacher should try and develop the "skill and will" to improve the students achievement, another thing is that the teacher should encourage the student to be persistent and try to get them to see themselves as in control, using the SMART approach. Some suggestions for important teaching opportunities to overcome challenges these students may encounter come best from the students with ADHD. Some of these documented suggestions are to use visual clues (lots of pictures), to offer choices, do more then lecture, to realize that these children are intelligent, to notice their accomplishments, to conceal their problem, to let them walk around the classroom, to be patient, do not overload on homework, and to know when to bend the rules.

Lesson Plan Teaching Addition

To teach Mathematics to a child with ADHD I would try to keep the problems short, and would also teach them by incorporating it into a game. The following is a lesson plan created to enable the child to concentrate on one problem at a time, but also in a game situation so that way the child can have fun, it is not just a lecture, the child can be recognized for doing well, and it uses visual clues.

Addition Game Add it Up! Addition Objective: The students will roll a dice and create two numbers that consist of two digits. The students will then add together the two-digit numbers. The students will be able to understand and perform the concept of carrying. The students will also be able to read their problem and solution aloud.

Materials: Pencil,Paper consisting of many Addition grids

Directions:

1. Distribute a paper to each student. Have each student have a pencil and eraser. 2. Introduce the game as an "Addition Game". 3. Discuss how many numbers are in a two-digit number. Explain to the students in this game we will be adding 2 two-digit numbers. 4. Then begin by playing a game with the students, in which you will all insert the number into the same place. 5. Roll the dice. Use that number as one of your numbers in a two-digit number. 6. Repeat 3 times until all spaces are filled. 7. Use this as a way to refresh to the children their concept of carrying. 8. After giving an example, have the students compete against each other. Roll the dice and let the students pick where to put the number. Their goal is to get the highest number. 9. After calling all the numbers. Have the students read their math problem out loud. 10. Decide who has the highest number as a class. 11. The students will are now able to play on their own.

PA Standard: 2.2.3.B Computation and Estimation. Solve double-digit addition problems with regrouping in vertical form.

Works Cited

PBS FRONTLINE (2001).Interview with Russell Barkley. (Link Removed)