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One of my students has ADHD.
He has caused me much inconvenience. He doesn’t know where his books are; he keeps interrupting me with questions at inappropriate timings; and he keeps misusing the apostrophe despite my repeated reminders. (He sits besides me so that I can monitor his writing.)
I have been preparing my students for their Oral exam, and their half-baked efforts leave me more than a little exasperated. So, yesterday I called upon him to describe what the characters in a photograph were feeling.
This is when his overactive mind came in handy. He just rambled non-stop; I had to remind him to refrain from overusing “and” as a conjunction. On the whole, it was a beautiful thing to witness how he could speak so coherently off the cuff.
I realised that he had just demonstrated the marvel of the ADHD mind. To not be intimidated by pressure (more than 30 pairs of eyes staring at him) and just respond as per normal
ADHD is nothing more than a label.
Yes, that child is different from the rest: very restless, absent-minded, may not pay attention, is in a daze... etc.
The result is that, in truth, their mind works differently, on another level. They need activities that allow them to CREATE, that is, to use their CREATIVITY.
It's not a weakness if they learn to use it to their advantage, and, for the rest, it's someone to learn from, motivating them to increase their own creativity and expression.
Any problem in your life is, truly, a lesson. So, how can a problem be seen as something positive? Simply because it allows you to grow, learn, and reveal your true self.
I hope this brief comment makes sense, as this is a broader topic than it appears.
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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @k00b 16h
I think about most complex things like a point in a hyper-dimensional space represented by hundreds of coordinate components. I think about personality like that too. If you move the point somewhere that represents a severe adhd symptoms, you likely end up changing many of the coordinate components and odds are that some of those component changes represent the increase of an advantage.
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I think about most complex things like a point in a hyper-dimensional space represented by hundreds of coordinate components.
@k00b is a robot, confirmed
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Indeed. But I think we need to stop trying to squeeze everyone into traditional classroom education. ADHD kids may need an alternate approach.
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i think in most things in life a weakness can sometimes be a strength and vice versa, depending on context.
In the case of this kid, it can also be good for you, because it forces you to become a better teacher and figure out new strategies for dealing with kids like him.
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He sounds like a bright student if he can speak freely with ease. Is he on ADHD medication? His disturbing symptoms should improve under medication. In regards to his ability, you should try to see if this is really a talent. Who knows, maybe you have a great storyteller in him. Keep being a kind teacher!
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