Exceptionalities Resource Project: ADHD by Jessica Fratianni

What is ADHD?

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It is a disorder that impacts individuals in many aspects, such as academics, professional achievements, and daily functioning skills.

Inattentive Type

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The first type of ADHD is Inattentive Type. According to psychiatry.org, inattentive type "refers to challenges with staying on task, focusing, and organization." For example, this could be when this person is not paying close attention to the speaker and misses important key details and makes mistakes, whether it be at school or their job. Another example would be having trouble organizing. This could be at work, where the files they need or specific papers are not in the right spot, and everything is cluttered. This could cause them to have a messy workspace and then, due to not having that paper, miss the important deadline. This leads to another factor, which is being on time or managing their time efficiently.

Background

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With ADHD many children have difficulties sitting still, focusing, waiting their turn to speak, and acting impulsively (psychiatry.org). The children who meet this diagnosis do not all have the same type of ADHD. These symptoms can lead to problems at school, at home, and at work. Having ADHD does not mean the person does not understand the task that is being given, it just might take them a bit longer to process and get started on that task.

References

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“About Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 Oct. 2024, www.cdc.gov/adhd/about/index.html.

CDC. (2024, October 22). ADHD in the Classroom: Helping Children Succeed in School. Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). https://www.cdc.gov/adhd/treatment/classroom.html

Chow, J. C., Morse, A., Zhao, H., Kingsbery, C., Murray, R., & Soni, I. (2023). A Systematic Review of Characteristics of Students with Emotional Disturbance in Special Education Research. Remedial and Special Education, 44(5), 409–422. https://doi.org/10.1177/07419325221125890

Hyperactive/Impulsive Type

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The second type of ADHD is Hyperactive hyperactive-impulsive type. This is when the person moves too much, such as fidgeting, not sitting still, is very talkative, and can sometimes make decisions without thinking of what might happen if they follow through with their choice. According to Psychiatry.org, some examples listed are not able to stay seated for long periods, run or climb where not appropriate, blurts out an answer before a question is finished, and interrupts others who are already in a conversation. From experience, people who have this problem don't want to lose their train of thought and will sometimes say something they have in their head just to get it out because they might forget. This is a common thing in people who are not diagnosed, where they tend to forget things as well, but are not one to jump into a conversation and blurt out something that way they don't forget it.

Three Types of ADHD

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There are 3 main types of ADHD, which are Inattentive, hyperactivity/impulsive, and combined type.

Combined Type

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The third and last type of ADHD is the combined type. This is when you have both inattentive and hyperactive impulses combined. According to an article, About Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD), just like Inattentive and hyperactive impulses, symptoms can change over time and can increase depending on the increase in daily life. For example, those with this type struggle just as much with their daily life as those without the combined type.

References

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“What Is ADHD?” Psychiatry.Org - What Is ADHD?, 2025, www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/adhd/what-is-adhd.

“10 Proven Strategies for Teaching Students with ADHD in 2023.” Positive Action Curriculum & Program, 20 Sept. 2023, www.positiveaction.net/blog/teaching-students-with-adhd.

SCHATZ, N. K. et al. Twenty-Year Trends in Elementary Teachers’ Beliefs about Best Practices for Students with ADHD. School Psychology, [s. l.], v. 36, n. 4, p. 203–213, 2021. DOI 10.1037/spq0000442. Disponível em: https://research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=ee66d2c8-527e-37ae-b3aa-0569832418f1. Acesso em: 17 abr. 2025.

Educational Interventions

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There are ways to meet the needs of students with ADHD in schools. These include treatments, special education services, and accommodations. When working with students with ADHD, teachers can use classroom strategies such as positive behavior reinforcement. According to CDC, one approach is having a reward system or daily report card that focuses just on the positive behaviors and discourages negative behaviors. This type of system has been shown to work on students of all ages and improve overall classroom engagement and participation. Having these little rewards for the student is something for them to look forward to once they do earn, and that will continue to get them to want to keep earning. Another way to help students with ADHD in the classroom is organization training. This allows the student to learn important skills like time management, planning, and ways to keep their items organized.

Individualized Education Plan(IEP) or 504 Plan

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Most students who have ADHD receive special education services and accommodations. In order to determine which one is given to the student all depends on which one they are eligible for. The two types of plans are either an Individualized Education Plan(IEP) or a 504 Plan. According to CDC, the difference between an IEP and a 504 is that an IEP provides services that are provided to the individual to meet their specific needs, and a 504 provides services and changes to the learning environment and not to the school material. For example, a student with an IEP plan would be able to get a reduction of the number of answer choices on their test since it is tailored to the specific needs of the student. Similar to an IEP, a 504 can offer accommodations such as extra time, breaks, small group instruction, positive reinforcement, as well as many others.

Strategies for Teachers to Support Students

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There are many ways to support students with ADHD. One of the ways is having a collaborative teaching approach. According to an article "Twenty-Year Trends in Elementary Teachers’ Beliefs About Best

Practices for Students With ADHD", it talks about implementing co-teaching models where the general education and special education teacher provide targeted supports for the students with ADHD (Schatz et al.,2021). This is something I do when working with my math students. I work with my co-teacher, and we collaborate on ways to help our students in the classroom become successful. Even though she is the general education teacher, we still work together to help all of our students, regardless of whether they have an IEP/504 or not. Another way to support these students is using behavioral interventions, such as positive reinforcement. Having positive reinforcement, structured routines and clear expectations of what is being asked of the student will help put them in the right mindset for what to do in the classroom(Schatz et al,. 2021). For example, students with ADHD rely on structure and routine, and having an agenda on the board with a list of tasks the students will need to complete will make it easier for them to get things done. According to Positive Action, it states, "crafting these routines and rules should involve student input, as it fosters a sense of responsibility"(Positive Action). In my classroom, each week, my students are responsible for completing a weekly packet and two skills from their IXL skill plan. If they don't hand in by the end of the week, they don't get a grade. However, I will remind them throughout the week that these assignments are due and it is their job to check if they have completed them. Additionally, the students had input about completing it over the weekend, and I agreed that if it gets handed in Monday morning, I would still accept it. The last strategy is parent communication. It is important to have open communication with the student's parents so that if any problems arise or progress with their child, it is communicated to the parents. Schatz talks about in the article that teachers should be comfortable discussing behavioral strategies and other ways to help their child who has ADHD (Schatz et al., 2021).

Suggested Activities

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When helping students with ADHD, one activity that can be used is hands-on learning, as well as giving students brain breaks, or breaks in between tasks(Schatz). For example, I did a lesson with my 7th graders that involved learning how to use the distributive property, and I ended up using manipulatives; it was very hands-on. This was another way for the students who did not grasp the first method I taught them. Also, it allowed the students to visualize the numbers being multiplied. The second activity mentioned was brain breaks. This could be a simple video that has the students completing an activity based on what is being asked of them, that does not relate to the content they are learning, or, as I like to give them a break by playing a game called Silent Ball. This game forces them to be quiet while throwing a ball around to their peers. These simple activities allow students with ADHD to take a short break from work, which will help them refocus. Another way to support students with ADHD would be to have choice boards. When working on a topic, give the students a choice board that way which allows the student to select an activity they want to complete, but it still relates to the topic. This is something I have been meaning to do with my class, where I give them a choice board based on a math topic we worked on during the year, and they need to complete 3 assignments of their choosing from that board, and they would have 9 options to choose from. This allows the students to feel more comfortable and have a sense of ownership in their learning. The last activity is to turn learning into a game. For example, I review for math tests with my students by playing various games or doing a point-and-click activity where they must answer questions to get points. One game that I did was Math Jeopardy. They were on teams and had to answer math questions to get points for their team. Another idea was this escape room review game, where to escape the haunted house, they had to solve equations, and their answer would open the door to get them closer to escaping. These are just a few activities that would help those with ADHD.

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