During the summer leading up to Kendall’s first year in middle school, her parents and doctors decided it would be the best time to switch Kendall to a new medication since she had seemingly built up a tolerance to her ADHD medication, Concerta. They switched her to Intuniv, which is a non-simulant medication. The new medicine appeared to have a dramatic improvement on Kendall’s behavior. She became more in control again and she was not experiencing the negative physical side effects such as headaches and shakiness that had begun to plague her while on Concerta.
Middle school can be a challenging transition for typical children, so Kendall’s parents worried about how the transition would affect Kendall. In elementary school Kendall only had to deal with one classroom environment and a few faculty members such as her teacher and her aid. In middle school she needs to switch to several different classes during the day requiring much more self-organization and management. These executive functions are difficult for a child with ADHD.
Her parents got together with her education team to plan an effective approach for Kendall’s transition into middle school. They decided that Kendall would have an aid in her Math, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies classrooms everyday while she adjusted to her new schedule. For physical education, art, music and the other electives Kendall would try a more independent approach.
Taking the suggestions of the education team, Kendall’s parents enrolled her in a study skills and organizational skills class. The class spends time teaching Kendall ways of organizing her time and space in order to make things easier to remember and focus on. One of Kendall’s aids also helped her organize her locker in order to help her remember things and stay focused. They color coded her binders and hung a matching color-coded class schedule and checklist on the inside of her locker.
These strategies helped Kendall keep track of where she was going and what she needed to bring to each class or home. Although it was an adjustment, by seventh grade Kendall had a good grasp on changing classes and managing her time by using her organizational strategies. She could keep track of making her own reminders with sticky notes and was able to create lists for herself. Academically, Kendall kept her grades up and stayed on par with her peers.
At home Kendall’s parents made sure to check Kendall’s assignment lists and make sure she was keeping up with her schoolwork. They still utilized the white noise strategy when Kendall was studying. The education team also lightened the amount of days Kendall was aided to two days a week.
Kendall still played and exceeded in soccer. Her parents also involved her in karate which greatly helped learn more discipline and concentration.
In eighth grade Kendall seemed to mature greatly compared to her past history. The education team decided that it would be good for Kendall to try having all classes without an aid before she entered high school. Kendall’s parents were not keen on this idea as they feared it would greatly affect Kendall’s academic performance. They came to the conclusion that Kendall would independently attend all of her classes but her study hall period would be spent in the library with an aid going over any lessons she was having trouble with, maintaining her organizational strategies and practicing new study skills. As eighth grade was ending Kendall’s performance was satisfactory but there were marked changes in her attitude towards her aids and counselors. She would try to avoid going to her study hall sessions by claiming she felt ill or when she was there she would act out. Finally Kendall told her parents that she was very embarrassed to be seen with an aid and that other kids teased her about it. Kendall wanted to get rid of having an aid completely so that she would look “normal.”
Questions:
1. What are some other strategies for helping kids with ADHD keep them selves organized?
2. Do kids with ADHD learn better visually or through spoken instruction?
3. What are some affects of having low self esteem?
In high school Kendall’s parents and teachers decided to lessen her study hall days with an aid. At the same time they did speak with the school guidance counselors about the isolation and bullying Kendall had been experiencing in middle school. The school, having realized that there was an issue with many kids not just Kendall, sent out for an organization called Rachel’s Challenge to come talk to the school about compassion. The program has a few parts to it. The school assembly really brings kids together and points out the struggles that everyone is going through while teaching about having compassion for one another. The next step is that within the school a club called Friends of Rachel is formed. This club’s goal is to get to know and help their school community peers, whether it be including people who are usually isolated or raising money for a good cause. The program seemed to have a great impact on the students and teachers as the amount of bullying complaints and incidents has dramatically decreased.
Kendall has also started playing soccer on the high school team. This has helped build a strong group of friends and support within the school. Kendall loves exercising
Academically, Kendall is at the appropriate level through freshman and sophomore year. She even does well enough to earn her parents approval for dropping the study hall aid all together. Junior year, however, her classes begin to get much more difficult for Kendall. The math is much more involved and time consuming causing Kendall difficulty when trying to focus on it. She often skips steps in long math problems or does things out of order. Kendall’s parents get her an after school math tutor who specializes in helping kids with ADHD. She also begins doing study hall with an aid again, once a week or three times a week if it is an exam week. Kendall’s grades do improve back up to satisfactory.
Another issue that becomes clear during junior year of high school is what Kendall is going to do after high school. Kendall is just making satisfactory grades in high school and college is going to be even harder. If she goes away to a four-year school, she will be put in the position of being in a completely new environment with little or no help with regulating her activities. That’s assuming Kendall even wants to continue her academic career. Kendall’s parents begin taking her to different career fairs to get an idea about what she might want to focus on as a career path.
Senior year Kendall decides she does not want to go away to school but she does want to give college a try. Kendall also realizes that she wants to work in a field that deals with exercise and fitness. Kendall and her parents decide to sit down with her guidance counselor to discuss possible options. They decide that Kendall will attend the local community college on a pat time basis first to get her feet wet. She will begin taking her regular gen ed courses and does not have to declare a major right off the bat.
Her first semester in college she takes a nutrition and health course. Kendall loves learning about healthy eating . The other part of the class is an exercise class, which Kendall excels in. After enjoying her class so much she goes to talk to her college advisor about possible career choices in that area. Kendall’s advisor says there is a kinesiology major but Kendall does not want to do it because it requires an extremely heavy load of math and science courses. Kendall’s advisor then suggests the culinary arts program which she can do a specialty focus on healthy living and nutrition. Kendall and her parents agree that this is a great idea. She will continue taking part time classes for the rest of the year and they will reevaluate whether to go to full time her sophomore year or not. When Kendall completes the coursework she will have her Associates of Applied Science in culinary arts. Kendall’s advisor also brings up another idea since Kendall will only be going part time. Since Kendall is so into exercise, she thinks Kendall would enjoy the personal training certification program. It is a nine-week program that meets twice a week. Kendall will learn all different kinds of exercise and how to help other people with fitness. It would also be a great certification on top of her major. Kendall seems very excited about this idea and decides to go for it.
Decision Point: Does Kendall move up to a full-time school schedule after freshman year or does she stick with part-time?
Questions:
1. What kind of careers can Kendall get with an associates degree in culinary arts and healthy eating?
2. What is the average income of a personal trainer?
3. How can nutrition impact the effects of ADHD?
In high school Kendall’s parents and teachers decided to lessen her study hall days with an aid. At the same time they did speak with the school guidance counselors about the isolation and bullying Kendall had been experiencing in middle school. The school, having realized that there was an issue with many kids not just Kendall, sent out for an organization called Rachel’s Challenge to come talk to the school about compassion. The program has a few parts to it. The school assembly really brings kids together and points out the struggles that everyone is going through while teaching about having compassion for one another. The next step is that within the school a club called Friends of Rachel is formed. This club’s goal is to get to know and help their school community peers, whether it be including people who are usually isolated or raising money for a good cause. The program seemed to have a great impact on the students and teachers as the amount of bullying complaints and incidents has dramatically decreased.
Kendall has also started playing soccer on the high school team. This has helped build a strong group of friends and support within the school. Kendall loves exercising
Academically, Kendall is at the appropriate level through freshman and sophomore year. She even does well enough to earn her parents approval for dropping the study hall aid all together. Junior year, however, her classes begin to get much more difficult for Kendall. The math is much more involved and time consuming causing Kendall difficulty when trying to focus on it. She often skips steps in long math problems or does things out of order. Kendall’s parents get her an after school math tutor who specializes in helping kids with ADHD. She also begins doing study hall with an aid again, once a week or three times a week if it is an exam week. Kendall’s grades do improve back up to satisfactory.
Another issue that becomes clear during junior year of high school is what Kendall is going to do after high school. Kendall is just making satisfactory grades in high school and college is going to be even harder. If she goes away to a four-year school, she will be put in the position of being in a completely new environment with little or no help with regulating her activities. That’s assuming Kendall even wants to continue her academic career. Kendall’s parents begin taking her to different career fairs to get an idea about what she might want to focus on as a career path.
Senior year Kendall decides she does not want to go away to school but she does want to give college a try. Kendall also realizes that she wants to work in a field that deals with exercise and fitness. Kendall and her parents decide to sit down with her guidance counselor to discuss possible options. They decide that Kendall will attend the local community college on a pat time basis first to get her feet wet. She will begin taking her regular gen ed courses and does not have to declare a major right off the bat.
Her first semester in college she takes a nutrition and health course. Kendall loves learning about healthy eating . The other part of the class is an exercise class, which Kendall excels in. After enjoying her class so much she goes to talk to her college advisor about possible career choices in that area. Kendall’s advisor says there is a kinesiology major but Kendall does not want to do it because it requires an extremely heavy load of math and science courses. Kendall’s advisor then suggests the culinary arts program which she can do a specialty focus on healthy living and nutrition. Kendall and her parents agree that this is a great idea. She will continue taking part time classes for the rest of the year and they will reevaluate whether to go to full time her sophomore year or not. When Kendall completes the coursework she will have her Associates of Applied Science in culinary arts. Kendall’s advisor also brings up another idea since Kendall will only be going part time. Since Kendall is so into exercise, she thinks Kendall would enjoy the personal training certification program. It is a nine-week program that meets twice a week. Kendall will learn all different kinds of exercise and how to help other people with fitness. It would also be a great certification on top of her major. Kendall seems very excited about this idea and decides to go for it.
Decision Point: Does Kendall move up to a full-time school schedule after freshman year or does she stick with part-time?
Questions:
1. What kind of careers can Kendall get with an associates degree in culinary arts and healthy eating?
2. What is the average income of a personal trainer?
3. How can nutrition impact the effects of ADHD?
Carlyn Parr
ReplyDeleteQuestions
1. Color coding files, reminders, and schedules can be very useful for individuals diagnosed with ADHD. Because people with ADHD are very visual, connecting bright, attention-grabbing colors with forgetful and everyday tasks can help make things much easier for them. Keeping a notebook always on hand is another useful organizational strategy for individuals with ADHD. Being able to jot down important things to remember and always having it on hand will help bring about more productive behavior and a better understanding of the importance of organization. Goal setting is also an important strategy for individuals with ADHD. Making goals accessible and visible (setting out sticky notes and reminders) keeps people on task and in the right mindset to stay productive and organized. Sticky note reminders can help make sure that assignments are not forgotten and things stay in order and under control.
Citation:
Collingwood, J. (2013, January 30). Organization strategies for adhd. Retrieved from http://psychcentral.com/lib/2011/organization-strategies-for-adhd/
2. Kids with ADHD are very visual learners. Seeing things for themselves makes it much easier for them to remember. Having someone show them how to do something visually is much easier for them to refer back to than an auditory stimulus. Because it is hard for them to stay focused and concentrated, auditory learning is much more challenging.
3. Some effects of having low self-esteem can manifest itself in the form of low academic performance. When a child has low self-esteem, they might start to slack off on their school-work and lose interest in social settings. Hobbies and interests that once seemed appealing to them, no longer attracts them. Low self-esteem can cause very big problems in a child's development emotionally and eventually lead to depression and self-harming behaviors.
Decision Point: Kendall decides to go full time sophomore year. She seems to be excelling in all her classes and very passionate about her major. There is no need to hold her back from excelling if she is competent and passionate about what she is doing. Just because she is diagnosed with ADHD does not mean that she cannot handle a full course load of college.
Questions:
1. Kendall can become a chef in a local restaurant or bakery with an associates degree in culinary arts and healthy eating. She could also pursue a career in catering or any other food services in the food industry. There are many opportunities in the food services industry that Kendall could explore such as chef, caterer, baker, restaurant owner, dietary instructor, or personal trainer.
2. The mean salary for personal trainers in the United States today is $39,182 per year.
Citation:
IDEA. (2013). Average personal trainer salary. Retrieved from http://www.ideafit.com/fitness-library/personal-trainer-salary-compensation-guide
3. According to research, some studies have found that synthetic additives such as synthetic dyes, flavors, and preservatives found in processed "junk food" might contribute to hyperactivity and other symptoms of ADHD. Although there is small amount of studies that point to this as a possible contributor, researchers are not unanimous and there is no consensus about how such additives might actually contribute to ADHD symptoms in children. After much research, it cannot be said for sure that bad diet and synthetic additives contribute greatly to ADHD symptoms. It is safe to say that synthetic additives and high-calorie junk food is problematic and unhealthy for all children during development.
Citation:
Unknown. (2009). Diet and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Informally published manuscript, Harvard Health Publications, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, Retrieved from http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Mental_Health_Letter/2009/June/Diet-and-attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder