Reading Rockets provides an article with tips for parents of children with ADHD. Some of the suggestions which are applicable for a teacher as well are:
- Make reading time fun time for you and your child.
- First, pick a quiet spot away from TV, radio, and video game noise.
- Read for short periods at a time and put the book away if your child loses interest.
- Continue to read for a few more minutes even if your child squirms off your lap. He may still be listening to the story even though he is playing near you.
- Pick up the book later and read for another short time period.
- Choose books that interest your child, such as books on animals or sports.
- Read aloud and talk about the pictures. Allow your child to pick books too, and ask your child to read aloud.
- Praise your child’s efforts at reading!
Some tips for instructing a student with ADHD are:
- Partner activities are an excellent way for students to remain engaged
- Prepare an “I need help” signal the student can use at his or her desk
- Give the student a choice for a quiet place to work without distractions
- Permit the use of headphones or earplugs to block out noise
- Provide visual prompts to refocus the student
- Fidgeting helps many students with ADHD to focus. I once had a student who had to stand in order to stay on task, so we placed her desk in the back of the room where there was minimal distraction to other students.
- Use a timer and set mini-goals
- Provide multisensory learning opportunities. Students with ADHD are frequently kinesthetic learners, and as such, learn best with a hands-on approach.
- Provide pointers on organization, from desk to locker or binders and folders.
Understood.org, a website for learning and attention issues, provides several multi sensory techniques for teaching beginning reading to learners.
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