Organizational Tips for Students with ADHD

Children these days lead very busy lives, juggling schoolwork, homework, chores, after-school activities, and relationships with peers and family. As students get older they have more and more things to keep up with from school. Organization and time management skills are important to academic success and many children need to be taught those skills. Students with ADHD face the challenge of trying to maintain a sense of order with a condition that often manifests in problems prioritizing tasks, organizing materials, and managing time.

All parents of students who have trouble being organized, both those with an attention deficit disorder and those without, should take an active role in teaching organizational and time management skills that will benefit them throughout life. Here are a few tips and strategies to help set up a successful school year.

Organizational Tip 1: Purchase a planner and teach your child how to use it. The planner could be a calendar or agenda book with dates and enough space to record the due dates for homework, tests, and projects. Make sure the student is using it daily.

Organizational Tip 2: Make sure your child has a system for keeping up with materials for each class. One three ring binder works well for many students. Use color coded dividers to section off space for each class and teach the student how to use the first section only for his or her first class, the second section for the second class, and so on. Students should not cram class work and notes into the book bag at the end of class. If the teacher doesn't have a 3-hole punch in the class, add a folder to each section and provide a hole punch at home so that every day the student can organize the materials appropriately.

Organizational Tip 3: Even though your schedule is packed, make the time daily to sit down with your child to review the homework, look over the planner, and make sure there aren't papers stuffed in a book bag or notebook. While this might seem tedious, it's an important step in the process to helping your child become organized. Organizational skills have to be practiced and reinforced in order to become part of the child's daily routine.

For more information on how to help your child with homework, click here.