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Classroom
Behavioral Support for Students with AD/HD
Ensure that the classroom is a well-structured, physically and emotionally
safe environment with: clear guidelines and boundaries; a nurturing
climate that is respectful, caring, peaceful, and mutually supportive of
all; has high academic and behavioral expectations; and constantly
improves upon students’ skills of self-management (without being punitive
to those who struggle in this area and, therefore, require a great deal
more tolerance and assistance).
Students with AD/HD typically have a history of receiving a
disproportionate amount of negative attention and corrective feedback from
teachers. What unfortunately tends to capture the teacher’s attention and
elicit a response (often one that is emotionally charged) are the
student’s misbehaviors. It is critically important to make a conscious
effort to change and redirect focus to the positive.
Greatly increase your positive interactions with and focus of attention to
the student when he or she is engaged in appropriate behavior. Notice,
acknowledge, and utilize positive reinforcement when the student
demonstrates self-control, remembers to raise his/her hand before
speaking, is sitting and attending to task, and so forth.
Increase the immediacy and frequency of positive feedback and
encouragement.
Use a diagnostic perspective to try determining what are the functions of
the student’s behaviors (e.g., escape/avoidance of something aversive,
access to desired activity or object), and what may be the
antecedents/triggers to problematic behaviors. Be proactive in trying to
identify and alter the antecedent conditions in support of students with
behavioral challenges.
Interventions that address and adjust aspects of the environment are among
the best supports. Examples include: change of seating away from certain
individuals and/or areas of high stimulation and distraction; providing
more clearly defined areas of the room and personal space; visual and
auditory signals for transitions (e.g., music, timers, bells); seating for
easy access to assistance and monitoring; cushioning against excessive
noise (use of headphones); access to other seating options and tools
(e.g., beanbag chair, seat cushion, individual desk, ‘office area’,
privacy boards); and so forth.
Provide numerous visual cues and prompts for routines, behavioral
expectations, procedures, and so forth. Always maintain a visual schedule
of activities and routine, and refer to it frequently – pointing out
changes when they must occur.
Watch for warning signs of the AD/HD student becoming overly stimulated,
upset, frustrated, agitated, restless, or beginning to lose control – and
INTERVENE at once. Divert and redirect (e.g., send out of the room on an
errand), provide cueing/signaling, change the activity/expectations, lend
direct support, employ calming techniques, and remind about
rewards/consequences. Provide the student time and a means to regroup,
regain control, and avoid the escalation of behaviors.
It is often helpful to provide an area that a student can access briefly
as a preventive (not punitive) measure before behaviors escalate to a
higher level. Such an area (‘take a break zone’, ‘cool down spot’) can be
equipped with items such as a fish tank or lava lamp to look at, stuffed
animals, books, calming music on tape recorder with headset, stress ball,
and perhaps a rocking chair.
Build in numerous opportunities for movement in the class (stretch, ‘brain
breaks’).
Many times children are better able to remain seated, pay attention, and
control behavior when they are allowed to doodle/draw/color and touch or
hold objects in their hands while listening.
Establish a close partnership with parents of students with AD/HD. Win
their trust and demonstrate your willingness to do whatever you can from
your end to help their child to be successful. Encourage frequent and open
communications, and collaborative efforts. For example, use of home/school
monitoring forms with joint reinforcers are often quite helpful.
Set up behavioral charts or contracts specifically focused on improving
one or two behaviors that are important for the student to be successful
in class, such as increasing on-task behavior or raising hand to speak
(instead of calling out). Set goals together with the student that are
reasonable and within reach of success, and reinforcers that are clearly
motivating enough for the student to maintain the effort to achieve the
goal.
Build in self-monitoring practices into the curriculum and routine such
as: self-evaluation of work (rubrics/guides for self-evaluating work
according to specific criteria), organizational checklists (Am I prepared
and organized?), behavioral monitoring (How am I doing? Was I on/off
task?), and so forth.
Teach social skills and strategies for anger control, relaxation, conflict
resolution, dealing appropriately with frustration, problem solving, goal
setting, and other self-management skills for life. Practice these
strategies frequently. Talk about and model their use in various
situations/contexts.
Make sure independent seat work is developmentally appropriate and within
the student’s capability of doing successfully without assistance, and
provide access to peer assistance as needed.
If a student is taking medications, be very aware and observant of changes
in behavior and factors such as time of day when he/she is experiencing
more difficulty, complaints of hunger, fatigue, and so forth. Communicate
your observations or concerns with parents, the school nurse, or
physician.
A common antecedent for misbehavior among students with AD/HD is being
given work that is tedious or boring, offers little student choice, and is
perceived as irrelevant and non-meaningful. Students (even with severe
AD/HD) generally exhibit minimal behavioral problems during
lessons/activities that are interesting, keep them actively involved, and
incorporate a variety of engaging, multi-sensory strategies. Teachers who
have the most success with ALL students are those who: pace their lessons
to maximize attention and interest, tap into the needs of students to
utilize/showcase their strengths and be social (work with/talk with
peers). In addition, they know how to alleviate the stress-factors by
creating a classroom environment where students aren’t fearful of
looking/sounding foolish or ‘dumb’ and are willing to take the risk of
participation.
Contents of this article are excerpted
from Sandra Rief's upcoming book:
Rief, S. The ADD/ADHD Book of Lists . Paramus, NJ: Prentice Hall Press, to
be released 2002
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