ADHD and Executive function
In children, ADHD can have a variety of effects. People use their executive function skills throughout the day to strive toward meeting goals. You will have a better understanding of your child's behavior after you grasp how ADHD affects executive functioning. You can then seek to get your child the assistance and adjustments at school that will help them develop these abilities.
What is Executive Function?
Working memory, attention control, inhibition, and problem-solving are all part of the executive function group of cognitive abilities and activities. These processes are managed by the frontal lobe of the brain. Children with ADHD may struggle greatly with these skills that come naturally to those without ADHD because ADHD impairs the frontal lobe of the brain. Understanding that ADHD can have a significant impact in these areas makes it simpler to comprehend the difficulties and frustrations your child experiences when doing tasks that seem simple to you.
How we use executive functioning:
Executive functions are tasks that call for conscious effort and thought. It's not like breathing, which your body performs automatically. Unknowingly, when we are given a task to complete, our brain will begin to analyze the information and we will begin to think through the assignment. Although it requires conscious effort, we frequently are unaware of the exact processes our minds go through to process knowledge and put it into practice.
When ADHD and executive functioning collide:
For a child with ADHD, things operate somewhat differently. When a child with ADHD hears the information, their brains might process it in a different way than that of the ordinary person. Their brains won't just begin to take in the knowledge and organize the actions necessary to do the activity. Simply said, it doesn't come to them naturally. Many regular things that seem easy to you can be really challenging for your child if they lack the capacity to manage these thoughts and attempts. To achieve better control in this area, a person with ADHD needs to learn tactics and unique coping mechanisms. Students must learn to take in what is said, deconstruct it into logical steps, and then carry out each step.
Take away:
I hope this knowledge will be useful to you as you try to understand your child more and figure out how to support them. As a parent, you must continue trying and making progress because it is still a work in progress. Even if it is really difficult, we must continue to support our children. They require an ally to fight for them. Contact me if you are dissatisfied with the IEP procedure and receiving the support your child needs at school. My objective when working with clients is to teach the parents HOW to speak up for their children so that they won't need to do so in the future. I can help you by coaching you and providing the tools you need to effectively represent your child's interests at school.