My son has ADD and this year he is in the 7th grade and boy he is struggling. he is forgetting homework all the time. He went from a solid B to a C-/D. Not sure what to do. The teachers are not much help because they want him to keep up like everyone else. He is on Ritalin LA 30 but I am not sure if thats even helping him. Last night he lost his math homework. A 5 page math report gone. He has become so forgetful. Any suggestions
2011-03-01T09:45:29Z
We do a 504 plan and he has his homework and assigments emailed to us each day. His study hall teachers help him with work as well. Somewhere in the mix he is losing work. We tried different meds but he has bad reactions, facial tics, mood swings , etc.
Joey2011-03-01T10:11:15Z
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Sounds like me when I was growing up. It took some tough love from my parents. I found myself in about the 10th grade and got up to a 3.5 gpa. It doesn't sound like ADHD so stop listening to those guys that know nothing about the disorder.
There are different types of ADD. Meds are not always the answer. Yours sounds like the Inattentive type of ADD. Does not pay attention to details or makes careless mistakes, Has trouble staying focused, is easily distracted, Appears not to listen when spoken to, Has difficulty remembering things and following instructions, Has trouble staying organized, planning ahead, and finishing projects, Frequently loses or misplaces homework, books, toys, or other items
Find something he loves. Writing is probably a good one for him. Daydreaming comes naturally so putting it on paper is just a step away. Make that a hobby. Or scrap booking, stamp collecting, stone polishing. Something that he can see his progress and set his own goals.
Give Him a day planner and have him organize his day and consult you with it. This will teach him to be more responsible and organized. Also a kid with a nice business looking day planner, well whats cooler than that?
Have him keep track of his money/allowance on paper. Or he wont get any.
Make sure his study place at home is quiet and free of distraction.
This summer, don't let him take a break. If he wants to go out and play, he needs to read a book and do a report for you. Read a chapter, write a paragraph, every day. Want to watch a movie with you before bed. Do a few math problems. Make him feel successful when he does it right.
Proper exercise and diet. That contributes more than you could imagine.
Do something together and finish it. Build a model car or do a puzzle. Play board games. All these things teach our kids valuable lessons. Patience, turn taking, finishing what you start.
I could keep typing but someone has already came up with these solutions somewhere cause they worked for me. BEST OF LUCK!! Keep your chin up. Call my mom, she will tell you. lol
Honestly ADD is alright. Some people consider this a gift to have. Its been known that people with ADD can be some of the best employess. Ive had managers and been with workers that have ADD ADHD. I have it and Ive work quite a few different jobs. They all went well. I also graduateed from High School and went to college. Yeah medication is probobly a good thing with healthy diet. The best thing for ADD and ADHD kids and adults is to have goals and shoot for them. Write down your goals and think about them. Find out what you like about life and what you want out of it. Other than that satying active is good and hanging with the right group of friends. I have gone to some doctors checkups and they went good. Your son may need to seek a psychiatrist and talk about him getting alittle more organized and what not. ADD and ADHD people are some of the most fun high energy people to be around he will make it.
Have you tired other medications? Adderall worked for my son. We went through several different meds before we found the right one. ALso, what type of help is he getting at school? Does he have an IEP? Was he tested in the school for ADD/LD? If so. they are leagally bound to provide accomodations for your son. Sounds like he needs help with organizational skills and he may benefit from at least one hour a day in a resource room which would be similar to a study hall hour.
As a adult with add i know what life is like for your son , the reason people with add tend to lose things is because our minds are going so fast and thinking so hard that we tend to not put things in the spot that must people would think it the right place to put them , I know i had a very hard time in school keep up with my home work cause every teacher wanted us to keep it in a different spot , try talking to his teachers about maybe letting him have just one place to keep his home work , site down with you son and ask him what he thinks would help him keep a better eye out on his home work , 9 times out of 10 kids and children with add know the best way for them to control there add and it gets easier as you get old and find thing that help and thing that make it worse, I know that my mother was very open to asking me what i thought , how the meds made me feel what class made me twitch all those things , life is very hard when you have add because you see things like on one else but at the same time it makes life so much fun because you do see thing different , find something that your son loves that he is very good at and try to use that in ways to help with his school work too .. I hope this helps some , just know that every one with add has good days and bad days there are all kinds of things that make as twitch and you just have to help him learn what makes it better and what makes it worse !!
Parents often put their children on medication without reading the (long) list of "possible side effects) go to your local pharmacy and ask the druggist for the interdiction sheet which comes with most medication. get a magnifying glass and read "possible side effects and you will see what is happening with your son.
Did you know that if he stays on Ritalin past his 13th birthday the military services will not take him without an "exemption/" this is because the military view Ritalin a "mind altering drug" which it is.
So read, learn, and decide if you want your son taking that stuff.