35
These Do’s And Don’ts
are in a hurry, have a bin to throw things in,
and hooks to hang clothes on until there is
time to put everything in the proper area.
Choose one behavior to change at a time.
Think of this as puppy training. Spanking
a dog does not correct bad behavior,
positive reinforcement with treats does.
I was watching the Southeastern Guide
Dogs train one day, and saw that the same
principles are applied in their training.
Reinforce good behavior by applying
tickets, tokens, poker chips, or play
money, to reward the correct behavior.
Ignore negative behavior. This strategy
is called “planned ignoring.”
The ADHD child wants attention, and it
does not matter if it is positive or negative
attention. By using selective attention, the
rewarded behavior will increase and the
ignored behavior will decrease. This is a
behavior system that works at school, and
most teachers are trained in some form of
behavior management.
Occupational therapy techniques do
help with self-soothing and calmness.
An example of these are bouncy balls,
trampolines, squishable toys, and relation
techniques. Assertive “I can” statements,
instead of self-defeating self-talk, help
improve the child’s attitude.
Embrace the disorder and focus on
the wonderful brain difference in the
ADHD/ADD child. Physical touch is
also important when working with these
children. Sometimes by just touching
their shoulder, or holding their hand, the
behavior can calm down.
A rule of thumb to apply to all special
needs children is the 0 percent rule.
A child with this disorder is usually 70
percent of their age. Multiply 0 percent
times their age, and subtract the number
from their current age, and you will be more
developmentally correct in your discipline.
If you have a seven-year-old they are more
like a ve-year-old in their development.
This rule helps the parent be more realistic
in their expectations. This is very helpful
when your 1-year-old is more like a
10-year-old in their behavior.
Time out can be used as a consequence,
but not as long as you would use it for other
children. If your child is eight-years-old,
eight minutes may be too long, and four
minutes should be sufcient. Behavior
management is about administering
consequences - not punishment.
After applying the behavior management
tools and cognitive rehabilitation, you
may find your child still needs help
focusing. If so, nd a psychologist who
is trained in testing ADHD/ADD, and get
the proper evaluation.
Medication is helpful, and will provide
some form of relief for the child in being
able to attend and help with impulse
control. There is no magic cure for ADD/
ADHD. But with help, your child can learn
to be the successful, creative, pleasant
adult that you want them to be.