I don't know how helpful this is going to be, but my daughter attended a "Super Study Skills" class during the summer before 5th grade. It was based off of a program from Sandy Maynard (there are articles on this site from her-specifically about organization). The only reason I even got to take my daughter to this was because it was part of some research study to try to find out if it does AD/HD kids any good to teach them these skills (which is MORONIC in and of itself, it's so obvious that it's needed, even if it doesn't fix everything instantly!!! ---OF course these kids need WAY WAY WAY MORE of these kinds of programs----but I digress) Anyway....turned homework around from a 4 hour a night nightmare to MY daughter, of all people, ALREADY WORKING on her homework when I walked in the door (she gets home about an hour before me, now that she's in middle school). My resources are very severely limited, and it was absolutely fortunate to find this, if I were able to, I would have her going to coaching sessions every week. You can google or go to yellowpages.com-at least where I'm at-and find literally AD/HD coaches. Tutors, academic help, etc. may also be a place to look. It's also vital to have the school really on board. Don't feel like it's out of line, somehow, to ask for a weekly, or even a daily progress report, daily report card, etc., if he needs it, and DON'T let the teachers, etc., turn it into a mean to record everything your kid did that annoyed them that day. Some kind of progress report, so that someone in the school is checking off whether or not your son actually USED his agenda, homework planner, etc., can be a real lifesaver. Some kind of relevant notification of missing assignments, before it's too late, can make all the difference. You still have to work with him on getting and staying organized at home. That's a lot easier with a professional involved, of course, but I do find, since my daughter had that class, she's a LOT more open to suggestions about organization. Behavior charts, in my opinion, are only going to work for something that really is a "behavior", or at best, as a written reminder that's a little better than constant verbal nagging. It sounds like you notice a need to actually learn strategies for organization, study skills, etc. If it's in the realm of possibility for you, I'd look for a study-skills classes and/or general tutoring for his age group/grade level (outside of school) and then narrow it down by asking the tutor's/instructor's what experience they have with AD/HD & similar issues.

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I think it is so important in this case to get the school's help. I know you are working on the 504 Plan and here are some common accommodations that will help your son with his current organizational struggles:

1. His teacher(s) needs to review his planner at the end of EVERY day and initial off that he has all the assignments recorded correctly. 2. If remembering to bring home books is an issue, you can ask for a second set of books that stay at home. 3. Set up a routine at home for him. For example, when he comes home or after dinner you review the assignments in his planner together and you help him prioritize and schedule long-term assignments. 4. If the volume of homework is an issue, ask for reduced amounts of work. For example, if the class gets a math worksheet with 20 long multiplication problems, your son can likely prove he understands the technique in 10-15 problems. (My son also has significant writing problems (3rd grade) and the teacher agreed he can do less of each assignment because it takes him so much longer.) Be sure this accommodation is in a written 504 Plan so he can't be penalized for not "finishing" the work.

Here's a useful article listing possible accommodations: http://www.additudemag.com/adhd/article/1664.html

These things will greatly reduce everyone's stress and make for much happier kids, and parents.

Hang in there! Penny W., ADDitudemag.com & ADDConnect.com Community Moderator, ADHD Momma to Luke, age 7, creator of the Website {a mom's view of ADHD} @ http://adhdmomma.blogspot.com

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Oh YES!!!!! Disorganization and craziness is, for us, probably the worst part of our daughter's ADD! 'Craziness' is really how it feels in our house. Our daughter is extremely forgetful, loses pretty much everything, can't find assignments, doesn't know she has an assignment, and essentially just looks at us with that 'deer in the headlights' look when we ask her where her things are or what needs to be done. I've often said to my husband, "If another person suggests a sticker rewards chart, it won't be pretty". Teachers, despite knowing our daughter's diagnosis, continue to resist the facts....ADD is real and the disorganization is crippling! They have often 'suggested' that our daughter (our youngest one is very immobilized w/ disorganization)simply "make a conscious decision to remember better". It is disheartening. Both our daughters are ADD and/or ADHD and there has never been a teacher who truly understood the issues of ADD/ADHD and how to work w/ us to help our girls-despite our youngest's 504 Plan, the teachers are either unwilling to put the effort into accommodations or don't believe the need exists. Teachers always stress "planners" and "organizational tools, but these do NOT work for the brain that is neurologically disorganized. I believe ADD coaches do work, although we have been searching in our area and haven't found a therapist w/ this expertise. Where ARE these therapists??? Google searches don't reveal much, b/c it seems that all therapists consider themselves (cognitive) "behavior" therapist. In a way, this is true, however, dealing w/ the disorganization of ADD requires very specific therapy. Good luck to you and I am open to further discussion with you through this website's private messaging tool:)

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Oh YES!!!!! Disorganization and craziness is, for us, probably the worst part of our daughter's ADD! 'Craziness' is really how it feels in our house. Our daughter is extremely forgetful, loses pretty much everything, can't find assignments, doesn't know she has an assignment, and essentially just looks at us with that 'deer in the headlights' look when we ask her where her things are or what needs to be done. I've often said to my husband, "If another person suggests a sticker rewards chart, it won't be pretty". Teachers, despite knowing our daughter's diagnosis, continue to resist the facts....ADD is real and the disorganization is crippling! They have often 'suggested' that our daughter (our youngest one is very immobilized w/ disorganization)simply "make a conscious decision to remember better". It is disheartening. Both our daughters are ADD and/or ADHD and there has never been a teacher who truly understood the issues of ADD/ADHD and how to work w/ us to help our girls-despite our youngest's 504 Plan, the teachers are either unwilling to put the effort into accommodations or don't believe the need exists. Teachers always stress "planners" and "organizational tools, but these do NOT work for the brain that is neurologically disorganized. I believe ADD coaches do work, although we have been searching in our area and haven't found a therapist w/ this expertise. Where ARE these therapists??? Google searches don't reveal much, b/c it seems that all therapists consider themselves (cognitive) "behavior" therapist. In a way, this is true, however, dealing w/ the disorganization of ADD requires very specific therapy. Good luck to you and I am open to further discussion with you through this website's private messaging tool:)

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The school systems' "split personality" issues with AD/HD have made my daughter's education (and our lives!) a roller-coaster ride, too. I took her to child find when she was 4, they found speech issues and AD/HD, I took the results into the first meeting w/the school when she started pre-K, and EVERYTHING that child-find said was absolutely dismissed. The (horrible) Pre-K teacher then proceeded to insist my daughter' s only problem was lack of a daddy (which she proceeded to blame on me, of course) and which she humiliated and confused my 4 year old daughter about (cruelly and despite numerous protests from me and other parents that heard her) until I withdrew my daughter from Pre-K early. This bottom-barrel example of a "teacher" also harassed me at work, calling, at one point, up to 10 times in a single hour. I lost my job, we got evicted, and stayed with other families, essentially, homeless, for 2 solid years. I FINALLY got into a decent neighborhood, and my daughter was fortunate enough to have a teacher for 3rd grade that LITERALLY remembered ME from my OWN elementary school, back in my old neighborhood. Everything Happens For a Reason. The 3rd grade teacher went right to the child psychologist, and they pretty much insisted on a 504 (I didn't even know about those at the time). The school also referred me to the county's behavioral health clinic (they actually have a really really good one) that still monitors my daughter's medication & helps to advocate for her when the school comes down with amnesia (about every 2 years). It's still far from perfect, but I have learned how to get the school's cooperation (have at least one person on your side in school-if your blessed enough to have that, and/or embarrass the school with their own incompetence when they do or allow ridiculous things). I've also learned a lot about how to deal with this at home, in a productive way. Charts, routines, etc., can and do work when applied in relevant ways. 6th grade was ROUGH, but my daughter now has an IEP that the school HAS to take seriously. She's in a great martial arts program in a neighborhood just far enough from school to give her a chance to make new friends, regardless of what's going on at school. She was in summer camp with the same program all summer, and her self confidence really went way up. 7th grade is looking a lot brighter, so far. I have severely limited resources, zero support, and almost everything that could go wrong invariable has, but if you are adamant, stubborn, and BELIEVE in your kid (and yourself as a parent) the resources are out there.

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