Question: Does anyone have any suggestions of rules and responsibilities and rewards for helping a 9 year old girls with her behavior? She has recently been diagonsed with ADHD
Answer:
Cayden, 6 years old, had ADHD also. His behavior is out of this world and we did go to medicine, however, the teacher worked with us on creating a “link” reward system and Cayden is allowed to chew gum during the day. It allows him to focus a bit better.
The link reward system is where for every time the teacher catches Cayden being good they give him a link (we use plastic colorful paperclips at home) after 10 links are earned he gets to go to the treasure box. IT IS IMPORTANT THAT EVERYONE RECOGNIZES THE GOOD BEHAVIORS BUT DOESN’T HARP ON THE BAD ONES. This is what Cayden’s psychiatrist has said. The teachers can turn it around. Also, we use the system at home, but a bit different because he is on one med at home and I know he has a bit of help so it is a little bit more difficult to get a link. Cayden gets links for being good at speech therapy (private), he gets one for being good that day ( I gauge the behavior based upon age and what I think he is capable of). The teachers and I also have a special “gotcha” reward and that is if they are behaving somewhere you have gone (shopping, doctor’s, dentist etc) then they get a link for getting caught being good.
After 10 links he gets to go to the treasure box. The treasure box contains all different types of toys, books, stickers. I let him pick out things at Wal-Mart, Target, Five Below and Dollar Trees so that I know that he will want them.
Another thing that the teachers do is give Cayden certificates of behavior (responsibility, great attitude, finishing tasks etc). You can get these at Dollar Store. If you can’t find them I would be happy to get them and send them so you can give them to teachers. I display these in my kitchen where everyone can see them and he gets another link at home for them.
Because Cayden is on meds it is easier to get through to him so this has worked out well. However, I did try a responsibility chart with him before the meds when he was three and that worked out okay.
Cayden was a “I don’t care what you do to me, I am not going to do it” attitude. It is very difficult to get through to them and you have to find what makes them “tick”.
Cayden was almost put in a behavior class because of his bad behavior at school, which is the WORST thing to do to a duplication child!
As far as school goes, you have a child that has ADHD and the school now has to provide exceptions. ADHD is now looked at no differently than an autistic child because it is a neurological issue (front lobe). Just a suggestion, I would call an IEP meeting and have them come up with ways to deal with Gabi’s behavior.
Some of the things they did for Cayden before the meds:
- Had him carry bottles from one end to another. (he doesn’t need this any more)
- Chewing gum
- Had his own seat up front
- Had a special place for him to go if he needed comforting
- Gave him time on the computer if he was good (It has been proved that video and computer games stimulate ADHD kids. Cayden is very good at them. There are many advantages to them. (fine motor skills, coordination, learning games etc)
Now that Cayden is on a med, only gum and a seat up front is what is needed now. His whole entire attitude changed when I put him on Abilify 2mg a day. Cayden has ADHD and ODD (oppositional defiance disorder).
I wish you all the best in trying to find that one or two things that work. It is a difficult journey and nobody knows exactly how difficult it is.
Take care,
Susan
* Other input from a mom on this post: One note on videos, and especially computer games: The evaluator who diagnosed my son’s ADHD told me that TV watching and playing computer games should be limited to no more than 20 minutes at a time, because that’s the point where children’s brains (especially children with ADHD) become overstimulated, and nerve cells start shutting down. She said, “After 20 minutes, their brains start to turn to mush. It’s just too much input.” Scary – scary enough for me to schedule 20 minutes of computer time, then a break to play outside, play with Legos, read . . . and 20 minutes again later.
* Another mom said, "This will not apply to all but maybe can help some. My 5 yr old granddaughter can have bad behavioral problems, they just found out she has a strange food allergy that makes her aggressive (my son also had this when he was little) so far they know milk, bleached flour and red 40 make her like this. I don't think blood tests detect these kinds of allergies, she is getting tested in a couple weeks with an electro dermal machine, hoping that will show them all the foods. but she behaves so much better and can control herself better if she does not eat these foods, I have seen the difference."
* Other input from a mom on this post: One note on videos, and especially computer games: The evaluator who diagnosed my son’s ADHD told me that TV watching and playing computer games should be limited to no more than 20 minutes at a time, because that’s the point where children’s brains (especially children with ADHD) become overstimulated, and nerve cells start shutting down. She said, “After 20 minutes, their brains start to turn to mush. It’s just too much input.” Scary – scary enough for me to schedule 20 minutes of computer time, then a break to play outside, play with Legos, read . . . and 20 minutes again later.
* Another mom said, "This will not apply to all but maybe can help some. My 5 yr old granddaughter can have bad behavioral problems, they just found out she has a strange food allergy that makes her aggressive (my son also had this when he was little) so far they know milk, bleached flour and red 40 make her like this. I don't think blood tests detect these kinds of allergies, she is getting tested in a couple weeks with an electro dermal machine, hoping that will show them all the foods. but she behaves so much better and can control herself better if she does not eat these foods, I have seen the difference."
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