"But I know what it's all about. He's highly active and easily bored. He can focus very well when he's interested in a topic. But he needs the information processed very quickly. He can pick up information very quickly watching TV/video or using a computer CD, and he has an excellent memory. He just doesn't have much patience. He's very kinesthetic - he has to move around, not sit still. "
Both me and my son are ADD. You described my son perfectly. We both take Metadate, me when I need something important done, my son 5 days a week and 7 during hockey season.
We combined the medication with establishing a set of goals and periodic reviews. I did this to keep him focused on tasks and results. His grades went up from C's to B's and A's. I also have him in music.
It works so I am not going to change anything. While I am against medication, unless schools are ready to change where they take the distractions away, then medication is the way for us to go.
>>>> "Both me and my son are ADD. You described my son perfectly." <<<<
I see my son in many descriptions here. Especially the father who posted that his son's teacher said, "He's not with me," that his son is distracted by every little thing in class and will get up out of his seat, that his son will take a test and give answers that make no sense whatsoever one day, then take the same test another day and score 100%. That's my son TO A TEE.
That's why I can understand how parents of kids diagnosed with "ADD" feel. I just don't agree with the tendency these days for the "experts" to label kids with a "disorder" when they don't fit a cookie-cutter mold.
I think there may be something special about these kids - we adults tend to look at their qualities as negative, such as "impulsive" and "daydreamers". Maybe we should see them as "risk-takers" and "imaginative".
My son is homeschooled, so luckily we don't have to worry about him dealing with a teacher in a classroom environment every single day, but he is in classroom environments on a limited basis, and that's been a challenge. Still, I have the power to tailor his education to his needs... now if I could just figure out what his needs are... ;-)
I think the idea that kids are overstimulated with all the media surrounding them in the modern world is correct. I've always thought most of his behaviorisms stem from too much TV and media surrounding him.
Even though I think he's overstimulated with too much media, I'm going to take the leap and go with it this year - let him learn using mainly CDs and videos, if that's what he prefers to do. I'm also not going to make him sit in so many "classrooms" this year, either, and will add more hands-on activities. We'll see how it goes.