Beware of Cookie-Cutter Accommodations

Well, it’s that time of year again – kids are going back to school, and parents are starting to think about IEPs and 504 plans.  If you are not familiar with these plans, IEPs (Individual Education Plans) and 504 plans are an individualized set of accommodations that the school will provide to help students with physical, mental, or learning disabilities, including ADHD.  For those of you who do not have a 504 plan or an IEP for your child, I highly encourage you to look into putting one in place.  For the rest of you, I have one question: How well is your current IEP or 504 plan working for your child? For these plans to work, it is essential that you and your child’s school work together to determine the right accommodations.  All too often these plans are filled with cookie cutter accommodations that may or may not help the student.  Here are a few of the accommodations that I see on most plans, along with a few things to consider.

Accommodation #1: Student is to sit at the front of the class (or closest to the teacher).

The Reasoning: By sitting in the front of the class and closer to the teacher, there will be fewer distractions.  This will help the student sustain attention during class.

The Problem: If the teacher moves around a lot, sitting in the front can actually be more distracting, because the student has to constantly turn his or her head to follow the teacher.  In addition, if there is a student nearby that is fidgeting, tapping his or her pencil, etc., the ADHD student will likely be distracted no matter where they are positioned.

Solution: Always discuss accommodations with your child, and listen to his or her ideas and concerns.  Find out where he or she feels most comfortable and has the least amount of distractions.

Accommodation #2: The student is sent to another room to take tests.

The Reasoning: A separate room with no other students will eliminate distractions and allow the student to concentrate on the test.

The Problem: This accommodation works really well with some students, but not with others.  Some students need a little background noise to help them focus.

Other Options: If a separate room is too quiet, but you still need to minimize distractions, you may consider having the child sit in a back of the room facing the wall to prevent visual distractions.  You can also try using a study carrel.  If one is not available in the classroom, a makeshift study carrel can be made by propping folders up on the desk.  You can also try using a separate room for tests and bringing in a white noise machine so things aren’t too quiet.

Accommodation #3: The teacher will check and sign off on the student’s agenda every day.

The Reasoning: Students with ADHD are infamous for forgetting to write down assignments or failing to record important information about those assignments.  By having the teacher check the student’s agenda each day, you ensure that the student has written down all the assignments correctly.

The Problem: All too often the students are expected to remember to bring their agendas to the teacher for signing.  Here’s my challenge to that approach – If the student can’t remember to write down the assignments, how will they remember to have their teachers sign off on it?

Other Options: Have your child pick out a study buddy for each class.  Then, every afternoon the student will call the study buddy to make sure all assignments are written down correctly.  Another option is to use a smartphone to take a picture of assignments written on the board.