1. Strengthening Your Child’s
Behavioral & Academic
Success
Beijing Parents and Open Community
November 17, 2010
Sandra Rief, Presenter
www.sandrarief.com

2. Hidden Brain-Based Disorders
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Learning Disabilities (LD)
• Asperger’s Syndrome

3. ADHD Descriptions
• Developmentally inappropriate degrees of
inattention, impulsivity, and sometimes
hyperactivity.
• Neurobiological inefficiency in the
attention/inhibitory center of the brain.

4. • The management functions (overseers) of the
brain
• The range of central control processes in the
brain
What Are
Executive Functions?

5. • Working memory
• Focusing, sustaining and shifting focus
• Organizing, planning, and prioritizing
• Time awareness and management
• Arousal & activation (task initiation)
• Sustaining alertness and effort
• Self-regulation (emotions, motivation)
• Self-monitoring
Executive Functions Involve...

6. Things to Keep in Mind
About ADHD
• Disorder in performance, output, and production
• Approximately 30% delay in self-control/
inhibition, and executive functions

7. ADHD Research Indicates
• Heredity is number 1 cause of ADHD.
• Multiple genes are involved in ADHD.
• Chemical imbalance/deficiency in certain
neurotransmitters (brain chemicals)

8. Research-Validated Treatments
for ADHD
1. Medication therapy (stimulants)
2. Behavioral therapy

9. Treatment Components
Medical
Education about ADHD
Behavioral
Academic Supports/Accommodations

10. Definition of Learning Disabilities
NCLD, 2009
A neurological disorder that affects the
brain’s ability to receive, process, store and
respond to information.

11. Dyslexia
• A language-based LD in the area of basic
reading skills.
• Difficulty in using and processing linguistic
(speech) and symbolic (letter) codes.
• Most common LD (~80%)
• Typically struggle with word recognition,
fluency, decoding and spelling.

12. Key Elements for School Success
• Flexibility & willingness of teachers to
accommodate
• Knowledge & understanding of ADHD, LD, and
other neurobiological disorders (hidden
disabilities)
Rief, S. (2005). How to Reach & Teach Children with ADD/ADHD, 2nd
edition. Jossey-Bass.

13. Key Elements for School Success
• Engaging, motivating lessons
• Differentiated instruction (variety of methods,
choices/options, adaptations as needed)
Rief, S. (2005). How to Reach & Teach Children with ADD/ADHD, 2nd edition. Jossey-Bass.
One size does not fit all.

14. Key Elements for School Success
• Close home/school communication
• Developing & nurturing students’ strengths
• Belief in student…doing what it takes!
Rief, S. (2005). How to Reach & Teach Children with ADD/ADHD, 2nd
edition. Jossey-Bass.

15. Getting Started & Staying On-Task
• Read directions together; get them started.
• Accessible materials
• Divide assignment/task into parts with mini-
goals.

16. Attention and On-Task Strategies
• Frequent “check-in” times
• ‘Beat the clock’ challenges and incentives

17. Memory Supports &
Accommodations
• Provide written and verbal instructions.
• Have child repeat instructions.
• Provide written reminders (post-it notes:
paper & electronic).

18. Memory Supports &
Accommodations
• Provide task cards (listing steps in a process,
procedure or routine)
• Use “To do” lists
• Use technology to compensate.
(electronic devices, self-reminder messages,
vibrating alarms)
Rief, S. (2008). The ADD/ADHD Checklist, 2nd
edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

19. Dawson, P. & Guare, R. (2009). Smart but Scattered. New York: The Guilford Press.
Getting Started & Staying On-Task
• Each time child starts something right away
or at time agreed on, or without need for
more than one reminder, earns a token.

20. Homework Tips for Parents
Establish a homework routine and schedule.
Clarify teachers’ expectations.
Help your child prepare for homework:
structuring, questioning, problem-solving.
Help chunk and segment the work load, and
get them started.

21. Homework Tips for Parents
Buffer from distractions; limit interruptions.
Be available if possible to assist.
Monitor, give support and feedback.
Encourage, praise, and reward efforts.
Talk to teacher about homework problems.

22.  Require backpack and use of 3-ring binder.
 Allow alternative of accordion file.
 Use a pocket folder for younger students.
 Consistent use of a planner, calendar, ,or
assignment sheet.
Rief, S. (2005) How to Reach & Teach Children with ADD/ADHD, 2nd edition.
Organization & Homework Support

23. Organization & Homework Support
 Color code: schedule, books, notebooks,
folders, etc.
 Acquire a second set of books for home.
 Use a “things to do” list & other checklists.
 Use a monitoring form to track and
communicate between home and school.
Rief, S. (2008). The ADD/ADHD Checklist: A Practical Reference for Parents & Teachers, 2nd ed.

24. Time Awareness & Self-
Monitoring
• Write begin/end time on paper.
• Student track length of time it takes to
complete assignments.

25. Organization & Homework Support
Chunk down long-range assignments
Rief, S. (2008). The ADD/ADHD Checklist: A Practical Reference for Parents & Teachers, 2nd ed.

26. Research Paper Planning Guide
• Pick a topic
• Decide what to find out
• Gather information
• Organize notes
• Write a draft
• Discuss and revise
• Write report
Due Date Date Done

27. Structuring the Home
• Try to keep a schedule (meals, homework
time).
• Post lists and schedules.
• Establish routines to avoid rush and stress.

28. Morning List
1. Get dressed
2. Eat breakfast
on chart if done by 7:15 a.m.
3. Brush teeth
4. Brush hair
5. Make bed
6. Put on shoes, jacket, backpack and out the door.
on chart if done by 7:45 a.m.
X stars = reward

29. Reverse the “praise deficit”.
It takes changing the interactions:
3:1
(minimally)

30. Recognition, Acknowledgement,
and Specific Praise
“I really appreciate how you ______.”
“I appreciate the self-control you are using.”
“I noticed how hard you were working on ____.”
“I see the effort you are showing.”
“Thank you for the good choice you just made.”

31. Prevent Problems
• Provide closer monitoring and supervision.
• Address skill deficits.
• Prepare for transitions.
• Adjust the environmental factors.
Rief, S. (2003). The ADHD Book of Lists. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

32. Environmental Accommodations
• Preferential Seating (away from distractions)
• Standing work stations
• Office area/study carrel, 2-desks
• Visual supports & prompts
Rief, S. (2003). The ADHD Book of Lists. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

33. Home Rewards
• x minutes uninterrupted time with mom or
dad
• Activity/privilege of choice
• Earning minutes for screen time (TV,
computer)
• Extended curfew
• Freedom from chore

34. What to Keep in Mind
With Challenging Kids
• Remain calm.
• Change what you can control…YOURSELF
(attitude, body language, voice, strategies,
expectations).
• Be firm, fair, & consistent.
Rief, S. (2008). The ADD/ADHD Checklist, 2nd
edition

35. What to Keep in Mind
With Challenging Kids
• Affirm & acknowledge their feelings & your
confidence in their ability to make good choices.
• Use “what” questions rather than “why”.
• Acknowledge: “I can’t make you. But remember
your choices are either __ or __.”
Rief, S. (2003). The ADHD Book of Lists. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

36. • What are you supposed to be doing right
now?
• What would be a good choice?
• What is your plan?
• What else could you try?
• What would you like to happen next?
• What was our agreement?
• What are you risking by doing that?
Rief, S. (2008). The ADD/ADHD Checklist, 2nd
edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

37. Reaction to a Reaction
• We are training children not to be reactive
without thinking.
• Adults must show the same capability.
Rief, 2010

38. Key Instructional Factors for Students
with Reading Disabilities
• Explicit teaching of language concepts
• Direct teaching to areas of need
• Systematic: sequential and incremental
• Repetition and cumulative review
• Multisensory
Rief, S. & Stern, J. (2010) The Dyslexia Checklist. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

39. Proficient Readers
• Search for connections
• Distinguish important from less important ideas
in text
• Use metacognition - monitoring & repairing faulty
comprehension
• Know how to use “fix up” strategies when text is
confusing
Rief, S. (2008) The ADD/ADHD Checklist, 2nd
edition.

40. Fix-Up Strategies
• Reread the text.
• Read ahead.
• Slow down the pace of reading.
• Read aloud.
• Insert a ? or leave a space for what they
don’t understand.
Rief, S. (2008) The ADD/ADHD Checklist, 2nd edition.

41. During Reading
Comprehension Strategies
• Stop at points to process text.
– Re-tell in your own words…
– Discuss (with your partner)
– Visualize
– Summarize
– Record a ?, thought, connection

42. Notes Questions,
Thoughts, &
Connections

43. Try These Tools & Strategies
• Whisperphone
• Marker on page
• Write begin/end time down & pages read.
• Break down lengthy reading assignments.
• Audio recordings of text
Rief, S. & Stern, J. (2010). The Dyslexia Checklist. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

44. Why Writing is a Struggle
 Planning & organization
 Memory
 Self-monitoring
 Language
 Skills (spelling, mechanics, grapho-motor)
 Many steps (e.g., revising & editing)
Rief, S. (2005). How to Reach & Teach Children with ADD/ADHD, 2nd
edition. Jossey-Bass.

45. Writing Accommodations
• Pre-Writing and Organizational Supports
• Editing Assistance
• Shortened/modified written assignments
• Use of scribe, note-taking assistance, pre-made
notes
• Alternatives/Options to Writing Assignments
P. 7
Rief, S. (2008). The ADD/ADHD Checklist: A Practical Reference for Parents & Teachers, 2nd ed.

46. Collaborative Efforts
• In the evaluation process
• Developing a plan
• Monitoring
• Providing follow-through and reinforcement
• COMMUNICATING
Rief, S. (2005). How to Reach & Teach Children with ADD/ADHD, 2nd edition. Jossey-Bass.

47. Contact Sandra:
www.sandrarief.com