What is ADHD?

People with ADHD have difficulty regulating their attention. This is caused by differences in the neurotransmitters. ADHD usually presents in three ways.

• inattention (not being able to keep focus) 
• hyperactivity (excess movement that is not fitting to the setting)  
• impulsivity (hasty acts that occur in the moment without thought)

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is similar, but without the hyperactivity. 

Signs of Inattention

• Challenges with paying attention and staying organised 
• Easily distracted with difficulty managing time
• Difficulty completing tasks and keeping appointments
• Overlooks details
• Loses objects 
• Cannot follow complex, multi-step instructions, especially when given verbally

Signs of Hyperactivity

• Moves around a lot
• Fidgets
• May talk a lot and more loudly than others
• Impulsivity 
• Often ‘on the go’, difficulty resting

Signs of Impulsivity

• Often interrupts others or speaks over people
• Blurt out answers
• Accident prone
• Unable to consider long term consequences 

ADHD is known to impact the individual in many aspects of their life including academic and professional achievements, interpersonal relationships, and daily functioning. It can lead to poor self-esteem and social function in children when not appropriately treated. And adults with ADHD may experience poor self-worth, sensitivity towards criticism, and increased self-criticism possibly stemming from higher levels of criticism throughout life. An estimated 8.4% of children and 2.5% of adults have ADHD. 

What is ADHD not?

It is important to understand that ADHD is not:

• indicative of intelligence 
• a learning disability
• unmanageable
• the same for everyone with the condition

Gendered Differences

Understanding gender differences in how ADHD presents can help you identify learners who may require additional support or adjustments. 

• Women and girls with neurodiverse conditions are often misdiagnosed, or can fall through the cracks of medical diagnosis, leading them to be represented much higher than men and boys in self-diagnosis or hiding their condition (this is called ‘masking’). 
• It is estimated that up to three quarters of women and girls with ADHD are undiagnosed. Boys with ADHD are often hyperactive and impulsive, whereas girls with ADHD are more likely to be preoccupied and distracted, meaning that girls are more likely to be overlooked as people with ADHD are often stereotyped as having characteristics more evident in boys.  
• Because ADHD traits such as hyperactivity, interrupting conversations and messiness carry a heavier social burden for girls, women with any type of the disorder can often go undiagnosed well into adulthood.

Myth busting

• Myth: Learners with ADHD always have problems paying attention

This is untrue. In fact, a learner with ADHD could be more focused than a neurotypical learner once they are engaged with a task and find it rewarding. 

Learners with ADHD can excel in creative subjects, problem solving, or have a particular ‘hyperfocus’ like music, video games, coding, organising or art.

• Myth: People with ADHD cannot hide their condition

‘Masking’ is a term used to refer to behavioural adjustments to hide a neurodiverse condition. Hiding a neurodivergent condition is common. 

By the time a person with ADHD is 12, it has been found that they have received over 20,000 more corrective or critical messages than their peers. This means that their self-esteem may be lower, and they may already feel as though they won’t be believed about their experiences. This can also lead to ‘masking’ ADHD traits with behaviours they have learned from their neurotypical peers.

Supporting Learners with ADHD in Functional Skills

Cognitive processing 

Consider the factors impacting a learner’s potential. What is the interference and how can we remove or lessen it to improve cognitive processing?

• Are the instructions clear?
• Are there multiple options for learners to demonstrate their understanding?
• Ask learners to think about how best they learn- this could be something they go home and think about or do as part of a group. This could make group exercises more successful as those with similar learning practices could collaborate using their preferred learning method. 
• Ask learners to identify one another’s strengths- Most of us find it easier to identify the strengths of others rather than our own, and this exercise may be a great confidence boost to hear their peers talk about them in a positive light.

Time Management

Understanding ‘time blindness’, a common trait of ADHD:

• Learners don’t know how long a task will take them 
• Difficulty timing tasks- either rush work or complete it too slowly
• Procrastination, challenges completing long term projects or timed tasks

Strategies to support time management:

• Egg timers, timers on mobile phone, timer app on laptop or tablet 
• Body doubling- this is an effective tool when working on a timed task and helps address executive dysfunction while providing accountability. It involves working in the same room with another person, both working on a task at the same time. A helpful tip for body doubling is to establish what the task is between participants. Can be done remotely.

General Tips

• Scaffold work and instructions into manageable steps
• Have a checklist ready so learners can tick off what they have done 
• Have regular breaks in learning
• Think about the set-up of the classroom to minimise distractions
• Do not mistake distraction for defiance

Reframing The Narrative 

It is possible to reframe what people consider to be weaknesses and look at them as strengths.

• Easily distracted – able to multi-task and easily attracted to new stimuli
• Non-linear thinking – creative, thinks outside the box
• Easily bored – focused on areas of interest 
• Risk taking – adventurous and entrepreneurial
• Procrastinates – deadline oriented

Further Reading

• Driven to Distraction by Edward Hallowell and John Ratey 
• Translating ADHD (podcast)
• Scattered Minds: The Origins and Healing of Attention Deficit Disorder by Dr Gabor Maté
• The Blindboy Podcast- episode ‘Intrapersonally Speaking’