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School Woes

NOTICE: The following posts are taken from the Christian ADHD Alternative Treatment List. The names, e-mail addresses and locations of all parties involved have been removed to protect their privacy. The posts have been used with permission, but are copyrighted by ADHD of the Christian Kind.

"Seems he's had detention 3 afternoons in a row for not turning in work. I call her and they have a new policy starting February 1 that students get dentention for not handing in work. (Could have told us parents)."

Oh, you have hit my pet peeve. i have had to battle this yearly for my daughter. It may work for average kids to get a zero, in order to motivate them to turn it in, but it does not work for these ADHDers. To give them a zero on not turned in work is unconscionable.

This is the word picture that I used to explain the situation with the teachers. First, I went through the steps required to turn in a homework assignment -- as many as i could think up.

E.g.: Hear the assignment and realize it was meant for them, transcribe it correctly, remember to look for it later, read it, understand it, collect the required materials to get it done, sit through it's completion, put the completed work in the notebook, get the notebook into the backpack, get the back pack in the car, get the back pack out of the car and into the locker, get the notebook out of the locker and to class, get the assignment out of the notebook, put the assignment in the correct spot to turn it in. Now, all these steps are almost unconscious for the average kid. Our kids have to CONSCIOUSLY think of each step. If they miss only one of them, it is not a completed and turned in assignment.

The word picture: If there was a child in a wheel chair in your class, and the allotted time between classes was four minutes, i have no doubt that NONE of you teachers would give him a tardy for showing up after 7 minutes. Not turning in a completed assignment is for an ADHD child the equivalent of arriving 3 minutes late in a wheel chair.

Now, if the wheel chair child was found talking to friends in the hallway, you could mark him tardy. If the ADHD child made no attempt to complete the work, then they deserve a zero. If they did the assignment though, and just had trouble turning it in, we are talking about a handicap here.

"The only problem with him is, when he does the work, he doesn't hand it in. I know of math papers with zeros that he actually did (I saw them) but never turned in."

Very typical (almost diagnostic) of ADHDers.

"The teacher I talked to yesterday said she saw him do a paper in class, but Never turn it in."

DUH! Why do we have to explain this to these teachers??!! They are supposed to be the "experts" on educating kids. ARGHH!

A typical complaint is "If your child doesn't learn how to turn in assignments, how will they ever survive in the real world of jobs, etc..?." My answer is: "Right now, our main goal is to teach this child math (or science ot whatever), and I think we can worry about what kind of job they will be able to do later." DUH! How do they think creating resentment and frustration in a child and giving them lousy grades (because of zeros on completed homework), even though the child is getting As on all the tests is going to help them get a good job in the future?!

I get frustrated, and I think that these "experts" are not using their brains sometimes. I also sense that frequently it is a power trip on the part of some teachers. Especially when they give kids zeros for turnin g the paper in to the wrong stack or whatever. Ugh!!

Venting here!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've helped my daughter, by helping to set up a notebook to put assignments in --one pocket for each class. That way, IF she remembers to open it (some of the teachers will remind her), there is a paper staring at her, begging to be turned in. I use an 8 pocket folder, whose soul contents are things to turn in. I help make sure the assignments that need to be turned in are put in the notebook. i am resigned to the fact that I will be my daughter's perpetual executive secretary. In fact, I am praying for a very organized husband, who is also very tolerant for her. If I can only get her trained in some career where you get to have a n executive secretary, she'll be great!! ;-)