How to Create an Appropriate Learning Environment for Children with ADHD

Educational strategies for children with ADHD are largely general, good teaching strategies that benefit all children in the classroom. However, for the child with ADHD they are particularly necessary.

Have a well-established daily routine in the classroom and a clear system for keeping track of what work has been done and what has yet to be finished. These children need structure, routine and predictability.

Set a good example by having a well-organized classroom which is tidy and calm and yet well structured. This will encourage the children to organize their desks and their time on a regular basis but they will need to be taught how to go about it. Typically, children with ADHD have extremely poor organizational skills and time management as they have a very poor concept of time passing.

Children with ADHD

If possible, have a quiet area that is available for all children but can be used when there are upsets in the classroom and the child needs somewhere to go to calm down.

Have good visual clues on the blackboard or whiteboard, with a clear plan for when various assignments are due.

If you have to seat your pupil with ADHD at a table, leave an empty seat next to him. This will allow for a bit more wriggle room and also provide a seat for you to slip into easily to offer added assistance or to direct focus.

Allow for alternative seating – this can be used for all pupils at different times but can be useful to allow movement for the child with ADHD. This extra seating might be a standing desk, a desk with a ball chair (a chair made from a frame that supports a large therapy ball), a kneeling desk, or even a lying down desk. Having a regular alternative seat in a different area of the room can provide a necessary break for the fidgety pupil with ADHD.

Because children with ADHD are easily distracted and easily bored, they benefit from having a fairly structured classroom setting, with, if possible, all seats facing the front, rather than an open plan classroom.

Try and seat the child with ADHD towards the front of the room in a position where distractions can be minimized and where he is close to the teacher. Seat the child as close as possible to you without giving the impression of being punitive. Also, sitting him close to another pupil who could be a good role model can help. If possible, increase the distance between the desks. Avoid seating the child at the back of the classroom or near hallways or windows, where he is likely to be distracted.