6 Strategies for Managing Your Feelings with ADHD Students
How do you consistently teach, care for, and offer help to a child who is obnoxious and uncooperative more often than not? How do you prevent your feelings toward a difficult child from becoming hostile and negative? Below are a few suggestions mentioned in the book:
1. Admit the irritation to yourself and don't feel guilty about it and don't try to cover it up.
2. Don't attack the child with words or embarrass them in front of the class. Ex: "John did you take your medication today?" or "All of you who feel John is acting like a first grader raise your hand."
3. Adjust your expectations. If you are upset your expectations are out of whack with reality. What can you reasonably expect from this child?
4. Learn about ADHD. Increased knowledge about a person, his motivation, and his behavior always lead to less anger and more understanding. Can you understand what is means to have a neurologically based problem with self control? Can you take to heart the fact that ADHD is hereditary problem and not caused by bad parenting?
5. Be helpful. The kids need direct, frequent interventions from you such as positive reinforcement, directions, and limit setting. The more energetic and creative you are in trying to solve problems presented by the child the more you will like the child and in return have higher self esteem.
6. Avoid judgemental thoughts and replace them with positive thoughts. Instead of thinking that the child is deliberately out to get you remind yourself that this kid probably aggravates his parents in the same ways he aggravates you.