Brainworks® - Monthly Tips

8 Tips to Avoid Homework Disasters

Approximately 30% of students ADHD (hyperactive or inattentive) have failed a year of school. Since failure to complete homework is a major contributing factor, how can you make sure your child’s homework is completed and turned in on time?

Why is getting homework finished such a problem for the ADDer in the first place? According to ADD Quick Tips by Carla Crutsinger, many students with ADHD are also what are called Twice Exceptional (or 2e) Children. They are extremely bright despite their learning differences and ADHD behaviors. These students have often been able to get by in school without doing their homework consistently.

A second problem for an ADDer is lack of time awareness. After a long school day, this student tends to slip into a “free time twilight zone” where there is no sense of time passing, and starting an “endless” homework assignment is the last thing on his mind.

If there are so many problems for ADDers, why worry about getting homework done, anyway? The bottom line is that homework, from 1st grade to senior year, makes up some portion of the student’s class average. For example, if homework is 40% of a student’s grade, he can make a 100 on every single test and still fail the class.

So what can you do to help your child?

First, get organized.

1. Use Assignment Sheets.

Whether the teacher provides this or you make your own (there is a sample assignment sheet in the book), you can try copying it on colored paper or putting a colored tab on the edge to make it more visible in binders or backpacks. The student will be more likely to use the assignment sheet if he can have a say in its design and/or use.

2. Write Out Assignments.

Try having each teacher check for and initial the proper homework assignment on an assignment sheet each day for at least four weeks. If all the assignments were turned in on time, see if the student can get the assignments in without the teacher initials. After the first missing or late assignment, go back to the initial routine for two weeks. Use this routine until the student can go six weeks without a late or missing assignment.

3. Use a Homework Folder.

ADDers need one homework transportation folder to carry homework for all classes. Use one pocket for “homework to do” and the other for “homework completed,” which is ready to be turned in to the teacher.

4. Work in Short Bursts and Rotate Assignments.

Set a timer for 15 minutes and tell him he only has 15 minutes to work (not that he must work for 15 minutes). If this is not enough time to complete the assignment, have him work on something else for 15 minutes and then come back to it.

5. Find Study Buddies.

Have your child exchange phone numbers with someone who sits near him in class so that they can call each other with questions about assignments.

Second, eliminate procrastination.

6. Estimate the Time.

Have your child estimate in writing the time he thinks each assignment will take. Then time the actual work and see if the estimate was correct.

7. Know the Purpose.

Make sure your child knows the purpose of his assignments. He should be reminded why homework is important, and he should know that there is a difference between understanding a lesson in class and being able to apply the knowledge by himself.

8. Discourage Stalling.

If your child stalls, try timing how long it takes him