*An ADD Child's Bill of Rights*
"Help me to focus"
~Please
teach me through my sense of "touch." I
need "hands-on" and body movement.
"I need to know what comes
next"
~Please give
me a structured environment where there is a dependable routine. Give me an
advanced warning if there will be changes."
"Wait for me, I'll still
thinking"
~Please allow
me to go at my own pace. If I rush, I get confused and upset.
"I'm stuck, I can't do
it!"
~Please offer
me options for problem-solving. I need to know the detours when the road is
blocked.
"I didn't forget, I didn't
hear it in the first place"
~Please
give me directions one step at a time and ask me to say back what I think you
said.
"I didn't know I WASN'T in
my seat!"
~Please
remind me to stop, think and act.
"Am I almost done now?"
~Please give
me short work periods with short-term goals.
"What?"
~Please don't
say, "I already told you that." Tell me again in different words. Give me a
signal. Draw me a symbol.
"I know, it's ALL wrong,
isn't it?"
~Please
give me praise for partial success. Reward me for self-improvement, not just for
perfection.
"But why do I always get
yelled at?"
~Please
catch me doing something right and praise me for my specific positive behavior.
Remind me (and yourself) about my good points, when I'm having a bad day.