Helping the Teacher Help Your Child with ADHD Accommodations

A realistic game plan so parents can set up special services and ADHD classroom accommodations to help children with ADD and learning disabilities succeed at school.

by Laura Flynn McCarthy

From extra time on tests or a seat near the blackboard to a full-time aide, children with attention deficit disorder (ADD ADHD) are legally entitled to ADHD accommodations in the classroom. But even though a child should receive academic accommodations, there’s no assurance that he or she will actually get them. This is especially true in our time of under-funded schools and overworked teachers.

What does it take to get your child the accommodations he or she needs? “You need to have an understanding of your child’s ADHD, and how it affects him,” says Robert Tudisco, of White Plains, New York, a lawyer who frequently advocates for special-needs children. “And you need to know exactly what you want the school to do to help.”

In addition, says Tudisco (who, like many of his clients, has ADHD), parents must know how to ask for these accommodations — and, when necessary, how to push for them without seeming pushy.

It’s essential to view teachers and school administrators as allies, rather than adversaries — and to mind your manners. If you come across as rude or impatient, says Tudisco, school officials may be slow to provide the accommodations you request — if they grant them at all. In some cases, officials withhold accommodations to “punish” parents they deem “difficult.”

“Administrators and teachers often tell me, ‘You should have heard the way that mother spoke to me,’” says Tudisco. “Or, they’ll say, ‘That father slammed his fist on the desk and walked out of the meeting!’ When getting kids with ADHD the services they need in school, 85 percent of what goes into it is diplomacy, pure and simple.”

Kristin Hill Callejas, a first-grade teacher in Shelley, Idaho, has had her share of run-ins with parents. She recalls one mother’s demands for special help for her son, who had experienced academic difficulties in kindergarten. “She stormed into the classroom, spewing fire from her nostrils and muttering things under her breath,” says Callejas. “Only after she calmed down, and we got to a level of mutual respect and civility, were we able to work together to come up with some effective strategies.”

Starting the conversation

If your child needs only minor accommodations — a bit more time to complete tests, for example, or a sticker chart as an incentive to behave better in class — you may be able to line them up simply by speaking with the teacher. Often, the best approach is to contact the school to schedule a meeting just before the school year begins.

During your initial conversation with the teacher, give her your phone number and e-mail address. Let her know that you are always available to talk about your child and the challenges he or she faces. Also, find out how much the teacher knows about ADHD. “It’s perfectly reasonable to ask, ‘Have you worked with students with ADHD before?’” says Callejas. “That can start a discussion about what strategies the teacher has used before and what might work best with your child, and give you a sense of whether the teacher is flexible and open to suggestions.”

No matter how the teacher treats you, treat her with courtesy and respect. Making accusations or being needlessly confrontational is likely to backfire. “Don’t go in with guns blazing, ready to attack,” says Callejas. “When you expect the worst, you set a negative tone from the beginning.”

This article comes from the April/May 2007 issue of ADDitude.

To read this issue of ADDitude in full, purchase the back issue and SUBSCRIBE NOW to ensure you don't miss a single issue.

School Accommodations, Part 2

Vagueness is a no-no

When discussing your concerns with the teacher, “be specific,” says Susan Luger, a child advocate in New York City. “Rather than saying, ‘It takes John forever to do his homework,’ record how long it actually takes, and send a note that says, ‘John needed three hours to complete this. Is that typical?’ Or set an alarm for one hour and send the homework in with a note that says, ‘This was all John could complete in one hour.’” With this information, the teacher can get a sense of what she can do to help solve the problem.

In many cases, a minor accommodation can solve a major problem. That was true for Valerie Shapiro, of Wilmette, Illinois, the mother of three ADHD children. When her son, Danny, who is now a college sophomore, was in junior high school, he kept losing track of his homework assignments. Shapiro asked his teacher to initial his notebook to make sure he had copied down the assignment correctly. That solved the problem. Similarly, when Danny had trouble finishing tests on time, she worked with the school to let him take tests on a computer, and to get copies of the teacher’s notes.

Jane Hall, of Montgomery Village, Maryland, is the mother of a highly distractible eight-year-old, Michael. When she noticed that Michael had been seated at the back of his third-grade class, she asked his teacher if he could move to the front — where, she believed, he would be better able to focus on his work. “It made a huge difference in his performance,” she says. “I also suggested to the teacher that, if she needed to talk to him, it was best to get up close and look him in the eye, to make sure he was paying attention.”

The next step for Hall? Recently, she scheduled a meeting with the teacher to discuss ways to improve Michael’s weak penmanship. “Michael is very bright and is advanced in math and reading, but his handwriting slows him down,” says Hall. “I’m hoping that he can use a computer to overcome his handwriting problems and continue to succeed.”

If your child’s teacher is unwilling or unable to provide the necessary accommodations, request a meeting with school administrators and the special-education instructors. State your concerns, and ask that your child be formally evaluated. “Once a parent has filed a written ‘Consent for Evaluation’ form with the school, requesting a special-ed evaluation, federal law says the school has 60 days to evaluate the child, explain the results of the evaluation to the parents, draw up a plan for helping the child, and explain how the plan will be implemented,” says Luger.

If the school fails to devise a plan within 60 days — or if you feel that the school is failing to meet its obligations to your child — you may request a “due process” hearing before a judge. “At this point, you need a lawyer,” says Luger. “Still, there’s no reason for you to get aggressive. Let the lawyer be aggressive for you.”

The paper trail

No matter how cordial your discussions with school officials, it’s always a good idea to create a paper trail. In addition to copies of all correspondence, your records should detail every meeting and phone conversation you have with the teacher or any other school official (dates, times, what was discussed, who was present, and so on). Put everything in a three-ring binder, along with report cards, test scores, and doctor’s evaluations, as well as every note sent home by the teacher and copies of your responses.

Good documentation can do more than jog your memory. It can act as evidence if you must seek legal help to persuade the school to meet your child’s academic needs. Explains Tudisco, “Suppose you’re at a legal proceeding and someone says, ‘We had no idea that your child had trouble seeing the blackboard.’ You pull out your binder, find the appropriate teacher note and your response, and say, ‘Two years ago, this teacher recognized this as a problem, and I thanked her for it.’ You have evidence to prove it.”

This article comes from the April/May 2007 issue of ADDitude.

To read this issue of ADDitude in full, purchase the back issue and SUBSCRIBE NOW to ensure you don't miss a single issue.

School Accommodations, Part 3

Pitching in at school

Although Hall’s primary goal was to help her son, her efforts ended up helping every ADHD student in the school get what he or she needed in the classroom. “I photocopied articles on ADHD and gave them to the teachers, with notes that said, ‘I don’t mean to inundate you, but if we can work together, I know he’ll be successful,’” says Hall. “The teachers wrote me back saying that not only had the strategies helped Michael, they were helping other kids in the school, too.”

Hall continued her efforts while she served as president of the PTA. When she brought in an ADHD expert to speak to parents, the turnout was huge. The principal thanked her, and told her that she planned to ask the expert to speak to school staffers.

Not every parent has the time or inclination to be PTA president. But, even if you work full-time, it’s smart to volunteer at your child’s school — especially if your child has special needs. If teachers and school administrators see you pitching in — reading stories in the classroom, leading a fundraising drive, and so on — they may be more likely to look favorably on your request for accommodations.

Open, honest communication

Kids’ needs evolve; an accommodation that works well today may stop working next semester — or even next week. So it’s essential to keep the lines of communication open. When your child comes home from school, ask how the day went. Is she making good progress? Is he encountering any particular problems? If so, what is being done in class to address them?

It’s also a good idea to stay in close contact with the teacher. Notes sent back and forth in a child’s backpack are especially helpful. “If I have a question, I write the teachers a note in my son’s agenda book, or I e-mail them,” says Jane Gemunder, of Huntington Station, New York, the mother of a fourth-grader with ADHD. “I usually get an answer the same day.”

In addition, Gemunder makes the most of the school’s twice-yearly parent-teacher conferences. “I ask very specific questions,” she says. “‘Does he get up a lot? Is he fidgety during class? Who are his close friends?’ The more specific your questions, the more information you’ll get about your child.”

Jane Hall has found it helpful to keep a journal with daily updates from herself, her son, and his teacher. Says Hall, “The journal has a section for each of us to write what Michael did well today, what his ‘yahoo!’ moment was, and where he needs to improve. It keeps me aware of how things are going, and prevents small problems from turning into big ones.”

This article comes from the April/May 2007 issue of ADDitude.

To read this issue of ADDitude in full, purchase the back issue and SUBSCRIBE NOW to ensure you don't miss a single issue.