The "A" in ADD is "attention". Some kids need lots of it and it has to be the right kind of attention or they get "addicted" to any attention, even negative and will do whatever is necessary to bring about their next "fix".
I've worked with 3 and 4 yr olds whose moms are thinking of having them tested. For the moms and for other adults they're quite the handful, but most of the acting out is a cry for attention-any attention. They're smart little buggers and they know what buttons to push and the moms "reward" them by getting into the same clashes again and again. I can get these kids playing and yes, they require tons of interaction at first, but you can develop routines of play that once they're established, only need to be tweaked here and there and they do just fine. Proper play can give them the chance to practice life skills over and over to the point where they are transferrable to other situations. (Little kids LOVE repetition)
Most adults, however, are unwilling to enter into the child's world-instead, they leave it all upon the child to dwell in the adult realm without having built the skills necessary to live in that world.
Attention Deficit Disorder is sometimes the right name, but the interpretation is often wrong - the child's attention span is not the problem-it's the lack of the right kind of attention that he/she is receiving that causes the problems.
True ADD is a focus issue....like trying to hear over a roar of static or trying to see through a mass of butterflies. The attention is inward with the child, trying to deal with the distractions inside their own heads.
There are about 6 various types and degrees of ADD and ADHD. It’s real, just way a way overused term.