Raising Boys with ADHD by James W Forgan Ph.D

Author:James W Forgan Ph.D.
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781593639761
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.

Being a Proactive Parent/General Home Interventions

Home plays a far more important role than just a place to do homework (which we’ll cover in the next section). In fact, the expectations you set for your son at home are just as important to his success as anything that happens in his classroom.

In our practices we recommend that you extend the concepts of structure, activity, and discipline into your home. It’s important that your son understand that school is not the only place he needs to maintain self-control, nor is it the only place where he can depend on a certain amount of structure and sameness. Some things to try include the following:

Provide a structured home setting. Have a predictable schedule and try to stick to it.

Try to avoid sending your son to school tired. He will have to expend so much energy to battle his ADHD during the day and will need some reserves.

Help him establish some order in his room, especially for important things. He should have a specific place to keep his backpack, lunch box, or anything traveling with him daily to school.

Until he naturally is able to keep order to his backpack, have him empty it every night and put all of the papers in their proper places.

Provide a quiet, uncluttered homework center. Eliciting his help in selecting and creating the space might result in more compliant use.

Try to feed him a healthy, balanced diet that is not loaded with processed food.

It’s likely that your son with ADHD looks forward to recess or physical education because they allow him to blow off steam and release some of the excess energy that can build up. It’s no different when he’s at home, where you might try the following:

Make sure that he has ample opportunity for activity. If he tends to be sedentary, don’t give up until you find an active outlet that he enjoys. Some parents find that children benefit from running or riding their bike before going to school in the mornings.

Make sure your son is not overscheduled so he has ample opportunity for breaks, activity, and sleep. You want to strive for a balance—enough activities for exposure but not an overload.

Try to avoid placing him in situations where the problems associated with his ADHD will be aggravated. Think ahead.

Never presume that because your son is in school, it’s now his teacher’s responsibility to see that he behaves properly. That job is yours as well. We do recommend that you establish a system for communicating with his teacher (whether it is via e-mail, notes in the agenda planner, or on a daily behavior log), so you can work as a team to steadily improve your son’s behavior and self-discipline. At home, try to put these practices in place:

Work to understand the difference between willful acts of disobedience and behaviors that are the result of his ADHD and may not be under his control. Deal with them accordingly, because open defiance should have definite consequences.

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