| Subject: Re: help for son with ADD |
Author:
Laurie
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Date Posted: 17:00:24 05/20/05 Fri
In reply to:
Cathy
's message, "help for son with ADD" on 11:10:15 01/05/04 Mon
Cathy,
my son has ADD too. He is 16 now, and I completely understand your feelings of frustration. Here are a few things I have learned about my son over the years.
One, his learning style is completely different than mine. If I expect him to sit still at a table/desk and look at me while I am talking, I will frustrate both of us. He needs to fidget, squirm, move, and look away. Hands on activities work really well to reinforce learning.
Two, he needs lots of variety. Incentives work for a short time, then they become boring, and stop working. Frequently changing the rewards, or type of incentive tracker (sticker charts, "coins", points, etc) keeps the interest high.
Three, handwriting was (is)a huge struggle. In the early years, we used a tape recorder for him to record his stories, and then he or I would transcribe them. Some activities we would do verbally, to give him a break from handwriting, or we would use something "fun" like the dry erase board or magnets (works great for practicing spelling words)
I would like to suggest to you that you not push "formal" schooling for another couple of years. If I could go back and do one thing differently, I would have given my son lots more time to run, play outside, help in the kitchen, study nature, and be read to, instead of having him sit in school and struggle with academics. It set a negative pattern we are still trying to overcome. I recommend the book Better Late than Early by Raymond Moore. School Can Wait, by the same author, has a section that further explains the learning that can occur outside a formal educational setting.
sorry this is so long - hope you can pick out some helpful ideas
laurie
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