Teaching remotely is hard enough—but when your student has ADHD, it can feel impossible to keep them focused and engaged. The good news? With the right school, remote learning can actually work better for ADHD students. In this article, I want to digest what works and what doesn’t for ADHD students when in a online classroom. Whether your student is already enrolled in online classes or you’re considering it, I’m going to highlight what the best types of programs are for your student! So before we discuss the details, let’s
talk about understanding ADHD students and their needs in the classroom.
Understanding ADHD Students
Students with ADHD can often have a difficult time learning in a more traditional learning environment. This is due to the learning environment not properly accommodating them. In these settings, ADHD students can exhibit any of the following:
- Easily distracted by sights, sounds, and smells
- Inability to stay focused in the classroom
- Frequently makes careless mistakes
- Fidgets, taps, or moves constantly
- Difficulty staying seated for extended periods of time
- Acts without consequences
- Has trouble waiting their turn
This is by no means an exhaustive list either! For these reasons and more, students with ADHD have a difficult time in a traditional school setting (whether in-person or online). So what exactly doesn’t work for ADHD students then? Let’s discuss!
What Doesn’t Work for ADHD Students
1. Long Unstructured Lessons
Students with ADHD tend to struggle with unstructured lessons. This is compounded with lessons which run on the longer side (30+ minutes). The reason for this extends to how intense the ADHD characteristics are. Most students with ADHD will begin to lose focus quickly in the classroom. As students get older, this becomes less of a concern, but for middle and high school students, the length of the lessons play a big role.
2. Programs with Less Support
If you’re a parent of someone with ADHD, it may come as no surprise that the less support the student has, the worse their learning experience is. In a typical online learning environment, students are expected to remain at a certain level of autonomy and independence. While this may be fine for some students, an ADHD student will feel like they are constantly in an uphill battle with their teacher. Students with ADHD need proper support systems in the classroom in order to maximize their learning experience.
3. Asynchronous Classes
Online classes can generally be split into 2 major categories: Asynchronous and Synchronous learning. Asynchronous learning is when the classroom lessons are pre-recorded. Students who choose to enroll in these programs do so for increased scheduling flexibility and independence. While this can work for some students, students with ADHD will have decreased support in these settings which can create major issues down the road.
What Does Work for ADHD Students
1. Short Engaging Lessons
On the contrary, short-engaging lessons gives ADHD students the right amount of time to engage with lesson content before hyperactivity kicks in. We designed our program with this in mind, by making every class period only 27 minutes long. This maximizes student retention just before they begin to lose focus. We also give students a 3 minute break between each class so students can digest information, get a snack, and recharge.
2. Strong Student-Teacher Communication
The foundation of any strong academic setting is the presence of good student-teacher communication. Many parents have reservations about this quality being lost in an online format. This is a valid concern, especially in asynchronous and large class sizes. We’ve found that programs like Tenney School Live have alleviated these concerns by incorporating synchronous, one-on-one classrooms for all of our students. This gives ADHD students the proper accommodations needed to succeed in all aspects of their learning.
3. Consistent Routines and Expectations
An online school program with consistent routines are essential. ADHD students benefit from a consistent, predictable schedule. For this reason, I would look into schools with a more individualized education model. These schools pride themselves on consistent routines and expectations for students. In addition, these online schools can best assist ADHD students with achieving their long term academic goals and setting them up for success after high school.
The Power of One-on-One Learning
If you’re ready to take the plunge into a one-on-one individualized online education, I highly recommend checking out our program: Tenney School Live. Our program is able to help students with ADHD in grades 5 – 12 achieve their academic goals without having to deal with the pressures of a larger school setting. Inquire today and see how our program can help your student!
