When you’re a parent, where you choose to live takes on added importance. It happens all the time, families choose to live somewhere because of an amazing school district. They want what is best for their children. Often the schools are ranked within the top in the nation, test scores are off the charts, there are numerous extracurricular options, students go on to great colleges, and graduates are noted to be successful in their careers. It seems like a no brainer.
But for some students, many of which have ADHD, the top rated schools are not always the schools where they find success. Highly intelligent, capable, and creative can kids find themselves not fitting in, not able to keep up, or uninterested in school.
If your local school isn’t the right fit, there are options.
What to look for in a school for students with ADHD?
Small Class Sizes
Less students in the classroom means teachers are able to know your child both as a person and as a student. Students are able to stay more focused, learn to self-advocate, share their ideas, feel validation, and will not be able to fall through the cracks. A school that offers more individualized attention through small class sizes can make a major difference for students with ADHD.
Flexibility and Adaptability
When a great teacher is allowed to manage their own classroom and can make adjustments and changes to their lessons and assessments, your child wins. Many students with ADHD are creative and may get excited about looking at a topic from a different angle or demonstrating their understanding through a different medium. When they are allowed, and even encouraged to do this, their learning can be expanded exponentially.
Learning Skills
If your child has ADHD, you may know they are highly intelligent, but their grades and test scores don’t always back that up. Executive functioning skills like, organization, keeping up with deadlines, and managing workload are central to success at school, but aren’t readily taught. Finding a school with a focus on teaching the skills needed for learning can set students with ADHD up for success.
Free To Be Themselves
If your child feels like an outsider who just doesn’t fit into the proverbial box, it can really drag down their self esteem leading to a disinterest in school. They may be so worried about what other people think of them or how they “should be” that they forget who they are. If a school offers a small and supportive community that encourages kids to just be themselves, a whole new student can emerge.
The thing is, all students would benefit from these things. So much of the time, what works well for students with ADHD, also works well for students without ADHD. Finding a school with a philosophy that encompasses this could be a real paradigm shift in your child’s education.
