Children with ADHD can have a very difficult time in school.  They often suffer with a secondary diagnosis such as learning disabilities, tourettes syndrome, or others.  We want their time at school to be successful for them and may have to adapt expectations to ensure learning has a positive outcome for the child.

These are some suggestions to help you and your child have a successful homework experience.  Keep in mind that every child is different and routines must be fit to your child’s needs.

Find out the recommended amount of time that your child should be spending on homework each day.  This varies depending on the age of the child.  A general guideline is:

• Elementary           30 minutes/school day
• Middle School        60 minutes/school day
• High School          90 minutes/school day

Having a communication book or agenda to write down the homework assignments is a good idea.  I learned long ago though that just because you have one doesn’t mean the homework will get written down, or that it will get brought home.  Of course it depends on your child, but you may need to get the teacher or assistant to help in this regard. 

Remember that schedule and routine is important for kids with ADD ADHD.  Set a homework schedule and stick with it.  When is the child best able to concentrate? Some kids do best to get it done straight after school.  Others are involved in activities and need to do homework after supper. 

Set up a study area, homework should be done in the same area daily.  All the necessary supplies should be close at hand.  Children should not be doing homework in front of the television or while talking on the phone to a friend.  The study area must be free from all these kinds of distractions.

Children with attention deficit disorder can get overwhelmed with large projects.  They have difficulty staying on task.  They work better if the task is broken down into smaller more manageable chunks.  If you have 20 math problems to do, try doing 5 or 10 at a time with a little break in between.

If doing 30 minutes of homework at a time is too much for your child, break it up into 10-15 minute intervals with a small bathroom break.  Using an egg timer helps your child to visualize how much time is left.  Set the timer for study minutes and break minutes, it will help your child stay on task.

Always stop if your child is getting too frustrated.  You don’t want to force the issue and have him hating homework time.  When your child is really frustrated, they will not learn anyway.

I once worked with a child that could not ingest anymore learning after the regular school day was finished.  It was a constant battle of frustration and tears every day.  The child was not getting anything at all out of doing homework, his brain just couldn’t take anymore in.  It was starting to affect the relationship that we had.  I talked to the teacher and explained the situation and said that if that were the case, I would simply put the homework away.  From then on, the teacher did what they could not to send homework home.  If she did, we would try it, some days he could do a bit, other days we just put the books away.

That’s what I mean about working with the individual child’s abilities.  Other kids are able to manage small amounts of homework.  Other kids may work on a reading program so that they try and read 15 minutes each night.  Make a plan so your child will be successful. 

Use plenty of positive reinforcement, and small rewards.  Praising your child and saying job well done goes along way in getting them motivated to continue.  Immediate positive reinforcement will help keep them involved.

[tags]homework for adhd, adhd, homework assignments, learning disability, attention deficit disorder, hyperactive, staying on task, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder[/tags]

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