Karen J. Rooney, Ph.D.
President, Educational Enterprises, Inc.
3108 N. Parham Road
Richmond, Virginia 23294
(804) 747-1883
Classroom Interventions for Students
with Attention Deficit Disorders
Several lessons need to be learned to
work effectively with students with attention disorders. Jimmy
taught his teacher the first of these lessons. Jimmy was sitting
in class listening to a well-planned lesson on farm animals.
His reaction to the lesson was to ask his teacher if she had
ever been to the Empire State building which certainly gave
the impression that Jimmy had not been paying attention. The
teacher responded, "Jimmy, why would ask that question now?"
Jimmy explained, "You were talking about farm animals and
my uncle used to have a farm which I visited every summer.
Last year, he sold his farm and moved to New York City so
I went there instead of the farm and he took me to the Empire
State building." Jimmy taught his teacher that students with
attention disorders do not always process information the
way their parents or teachers think they should and that behavior
is not always what it appears to be.
Sarah taught her teacher the second lesson
during a well -intentioned spelling lesson which demonstrates
the necessity for on-going monitoring and diagnostic teaching.
Sarah's teacher taught her to use small words within words
to help her with spelling. Sarah spelled the word brown as
"brone." She was asked to identify a small word within brown
to enable her to spell the word correctly. She identified
the word "ow" in brown and the teacher was quite satisfied
until Sarah wrote "brone" on the retest. The teacher asked
Sarah if she remembered the small word she had identified
and she said, "Yes, the word "ow." The teacher pointed to
Sarah's word and queried, "Do you see "o-w" in brown?" Sarah
gave the teacher an exasperated look and said, " Well, you
didn't tell me that "c (see)-o-w" was in the word so that's
why I got it wrong." Sarah taught her teacher that working
with students with attention disorders is not always easy
and that interventions need to take into account the unique
characteristics of the individual as well as the situation.
There isn't going to be a program or intervention that magically
cures an attention disorder.
In addition to these very basic lessons,
an in-depth understanding of the basic descriptors of attention
problems needs to be developed.
Descriptors of Attention Disorders
The definition of attention has frequently
been described in generic terms as though attention was a
singular construct but this approach has not been supported
in the literature (Goldstein & Goldstein, 1990; Keitzman,
Spring & Rubin,1980; Posner & Snyder, 1975; Rosenthal & Allen,
1978). In contrast, Postle (1988) described attention as "the
process through which we construct the world we experience."
Thus, a multi-factorial definition of attention is necessary
for understanding the construct (Halperin, Newcorn, Sharma,
Healey, Wolf, Pascualvaca, & Schwartz, 1990). In spite of
this research data, when a child is diagnosed as having an
attention deficit, it is unusual to have sufficient attention
given to the description of the attention problems involved.
Typically, the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder is
treated as a definitive, singular construct that will identify
the individual's disorder. The use of subtype descriptors
can prevent the oversimplification of a complicated construct
and make the diagnosis of an attention disorder a more salient
description that can be translated into appropriate educational
and behavioral interventions.
Attention can be divided into categories
that describe specific types of attentional weaknesses. The
first category deals with encoding or problems with incoming
stimuli and the storage of this stimuli for processing. The
second category relates to the selection of stimuli to process
further.
Encoding
Attention Span refers to the length of
time an activity is pursued. For example, switching from task
to task without completing the task is an example of a weakness
in attention span. A child is not able to continue attending
long enough to successfully complete the task or process.
Focusing attention refers to the ability
to tune out distracting or irrelevant stimuli so that attention
is directed toward the appropriate stimuli. This type of attention
deficit is exacerbated as the degree of the complexity of
the task increases (Keitzman et al, 1980; Zentall, 1983).
Divided attention refers to the ability
to split attention between two or more inputs or aspects of
a task. Impairment in the ability to "split" or allocate attention
results in deterioration in speed and accuracy of attentional
processing (Zeitzan, 1980). If a teacher is giving an example
of gravity by describing a ride at an amusement park, the
attention needs to be focused on the message and distracting,
irrelevant conversations or environmental noises need to be
ignored. Focused attention requires the elimination of distracting
or irrelevant stimuli. For example, if a teacher is demonstrating
a math problem and teaching the steps verbally, the student
has to divide or allocate attention between the problem being
worked and the message being delivered.
Sustained attention is the ability to
maintain the focus of attention over time and is related to
arousal or activation of the nervous system. Kahnehan (1973)
states that arousal is the degree of effort required for attentional
processing. If arousal is low, motivation, alertness and processing
capacity are diminished and sustained attention is impaired.
Many students with ADD exhibit fatigue because of the greater
demands on energy when processing information or paying attention.
Intensity of attention has been shown
to have an influence on focus as well as memory storage (Pettijohn,
1987). The greater the intensity of the attention from factors
such as interest, motivation or novelty, the greater the ability
to focus and sustain attention. Weaknesses in intensity would
be similar to widespread underarousal which interferes with
attentional processing capacity. Research on students with
ADD indicates that the students perform better under novel,
highly stimulating conditions but not under routine, boring
conditions ( Zentall, 1983).
Sequential attention is the ability to
focus attention on the stimuli in the order that is necessary
for successful task completion or accurate comprehension.
For example, if directions are being given, attention must
be directed to the stimuli in order for accurate comprehension
and execution to take place. Accuracy of sequential attention
affects comprehension of behavioral situations as well as
academic processing because of the importance of the sequential
order for comprehension and generalization.
Selection
Selective attention is the ability to
choose the appropriate stimuli for processing. After attention
is focused and sustained, certain pieces of information or
stimuli are chosen for further processing. For example, in
a textbook, the terms are put in bold print to help the selection
of these pieces of information for processing rather than
other words in the text. Students with ADD have more difficulty
with the selection process than non-ADD students (Hallahan
& Reeve, 1980). The concept of selective attention is very
important in terms of educational intervention because of
the implications for studying and test-taking.
Involuntary attention is an automatic
response to a stimuli. For example, if someone calls a person's
name, the attentional response is immediate.
Voluntary attention is conceptually driven
and refers to "the allocation of attention to stimuli that
are relevant to current plans, expectations and intentions"
(Keitzman et al., 1980). This type of attentional processing
is intentional, deliberate and conscious. The process of choosing
relevant stimuli requires excessive energy, demands extensive
practice but can become more automatic over time. For example,
driving a car is an example of a task involving voluntary
attention that becomes an automatic process. As the car leaves
the motor vehicle department, the new driver is thinking of
every detail related to the driving process but with experience,
the driver can look at scenery, recognize familiar friends
and listen to the news while driving without interference
in the driving process.
Filtering is the process of weeding out
irrelevant stimuli from relevant stimuli. Theories such as
the "bottleneck" suggest that information is narrowed to the
most critical stimuli. However, this filtering process has
also been viewed in terms of "set." "Schema set" (Broadbent,
1971) is a filtering process that targets appropriate stimuli
because of the physical properties of the stimuli. A second
filtering process called "response set" selects stimuli for
further processing based on the similarity between the stimuli
and the conceptual expectation. For example, if a child is
told to attend to the teacher with the blue dress, the schema
set would control the selection. If the child were told to
attend to the teacher talking about space, the response set
would control the selection. Since ADD students have difficulty
with schemas, the filtering process is complicated by the
organizational weaknesses as well as the attentional focus.
The use of these descriptors of attention
has been well-documented in the literature. Encoding descriptors
such as short term/working memory deficits have been reviewed
by Baddeley (1986), Torgeson, Kistner & Morgan (1987), and
McIntyre, Murray & Blackwell (1981). Selective attention deficits
have been analyzed in some of the most interesting studies
from an educational perspective (Hallahan & Reeve, 1980; Hallahan,
Tarver, Kauffman & Graybeal, 1978; Richards, Samuels, Turnure
& Ysseldyke, 1990). A more in-depth understanding of these
descriptors of attentional disorders will enable educators
to understand the nature of the disorder as manifested within
the individual so intervention planning will be more suited
to the individual and be more successful.
Intervention Planning
In regard to intervention planning, an
in-depth understanding of two techniques for behavioral analysis
and two important approaches to intervention needs to be developed.
Behavioral observation and behavioral analysis are important
techniques to enable a teacher to analyze a student's individual
needs as well as environmental dynamics that need to be addressed
during intervention planning. In addition, behavior management
and organizational training need to be included in the intervention
program. First, the tools for analysis will be presented and
then the two types of intervention will be discussed.
Behavioral Observation
The use of behavioral observation systems
are valuable tools to collect information about a student's
behavior. The techniques are simple and depict behavior over
a period of time so the practitioner can view the behaviors
more objectively than when using less structured approaches.
There are many checklists available which can be used for
assessment (Goldstein & Goldstein, 1990) but observation is
necessary to determine how the disorder manifests itself in
the individual student. The observational techniques below
represent some simple methods to obtain behavioral information:
Strength/Weakness Chart
A simple chart can be made from teacher perceptions of the
individual's strengths and weaknesses which can facilitate
educational/behavioral planning. Teacher comments often have
less impact because the comments are narrative in nature and
are not succinctly organized. The use of charts will clearly
convey the perceptions of a teacher or multiple teachers about
a student's strengths and weaknesses as well as the concerns
of the teacher/teachers. An example of such a chart for a
tenth-grader is outlined below:
| Strengths |
Weaknesses |
| Discussion in class |
Sustained attention |
| Leader in cooperative
learning |
Fatigue |
| Oral responses |
Written Language |
| Multiple Choice tests |
Essay tests |
| Memorization |
Integration |
Accommodations/Recommendations
Oral test alternatives
Eliminate rote copying tasks
Frequent breaks
Practice essay questions
Use of pictorials/diagrams for concepts
Use graphic organizers that force attention to detail and
identification of the concept
Key word notetaking
Preparation of study materials in cooperative learning groups
Use review systems consistently
Use tests that are multiple choice in nature with essays that
have been organized in advance
Narrative Cards
November 10
Sue had trouble starting her classwork immediately.
Sue had difficulty finishing her seatwork and had to take
classwork home to finish. Sue was involved in a disagreement
on the playground. She and Marta fought over their turn on
the swing. Both girls were separated and were put in time-out
until they could control their behavior.
Did not have papers signed by parents.
November 11
Sue did not finish seatwork again today and had to take work
home. She did not have her book for reading so could not complete
reading assignment.
Had to borrow a pencil.
Did well on the playground today.
November 12
Had Pair Instruction activity and work was completed.
Did well on playground.
Recommendation: More pair instruction
for social as well as academic reasons.
Quantitative Cards
| Did Sue
finish her work this week? |
Yes |
No |
| Monday |
|
x |
| Tuesday |
x |
|
| Wednesday |
x |
|
| Thursday |
|
x |
| Friday |
|
x |
| Was Sue
working? |
November
10 |
| 9:00 |
yes |
9:50 |
yes |
| 9:10 |
no |
10:00 |
yes |
| 9:20 |
yes |
10:10 |
yes |
| 9:30 |
no |
10:20 |
no |
| 9:40 |
no |
10:30 |
no |
| Was Sue
working? |
November
11 |
| 9:00 |
yes |
9:50 |
yes |
| 9:10 |
yes |
10:00 |
no |
| 9:20 |
yes |
10:10 |
no |
| 9:30 |
yes |
10:20 |
no |
| 9:40 |
yes |
10:30 |
no |
| Was Sue
working? |
November
12 |
| 9:00 |
yes |
9:50 |
yes |
| 9:10 |
yes |
10:00 |
yes |
| 9:20 |
yes |
10:10 |
yes |
| 9:30 |
yes |
10:20 |
no |
| 9:40 |
yes |
10:30 |
no |
Tracking the frequency of the behaviors
can sometimes be difficult for teachers actively involved
in the teaching process, but easy access to a card with designated
spaces representing particular behaviors may enable the teacher
to record a quick checkmark as a frequency tally. The use
of manipulatives such as moving the pieces of an abacus, moving
colored macaroni from one container to another or shifting
rubberbands from one wrist to another are examples of creative
substitutions for written tallies. The frequency number is
then recorded on the daily card and the data from daily cards
can be graphed or tabulated to provide a more objective view
of the severity of the problem and is very useful for parent
or student conferences.
Time Sampling of Attention
Attention has been defined as on-task
behavior which can be measured through the use of a time sampling
method to identify the occurrence and non-occurrence of on-task
behavior representing attention (Hallahan, Lloyd, Kosiewicz,
Kauffman & Graves, 1979; Hallahan, Kneedler & Lloyd, 1982;
Rooney, Hallahan & Lloyd, 1984). The observation of on-task
behavior is particularly useful when looking at student levels
of attention in the classroom. The task that will be observed
is defined in behavioral terms so the definition of on-task
behavior is very clear. If the student is supposed to be reading
a book, on-task behavior may be defined as eyes being on the
book. If the student should be listening to the teacher, the
student's eyes must be on the teacher. If a student should
be writing, the pencil should be moving on the paper. The
behavioral definitions make the judgements more objective,
uniform and accurate.
A sample of students is randomly selected
in addition to the target student. Usually, the observational
sample consists of five students, including four randomly
selected students plus the target student. Each student is
given a number and the observational procedure described in
the previous section for a time sampling of a single behavior
is employed. The observer counts, times or listens to the
tape and records the on or off-task behavior of each student.
The observer looks at the identified student and places a
check in the "yes" column if the student is on-task according
to the behavioral criteria established for the task or places
a check in the "no" column if the student is not doing one
of the behaviors identified as on-task criteria. The recording
sheet may look like this:
| Was
Bob paying attention (eyes on book while reading)?
|
| Bob |
Sammy |
Jonah |
Jonathon
|
Francis |
| Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
No |
| X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| X |
|
X |
|
|
X |
X |
|
X |
|
| X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| |
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| |
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| X |
|
|
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| |
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| |
X |
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
X |
|
| Percentages
on-task: |
| 67% |
92% |
83% |
92% |
100% |
The use of behavioral observation
systems are valuable tools to collect information about a
student's behavior. The techniques are just a sample of observational
techniques that are simple and depict behavior over a period
of time so the behaviors can be viewed more objectively and
accurately than when using less structured approaches.
Behavioral Analysis
The use of visual organizers can be useful
to facilitate the process of behavioral analysis when observing
students with attention disorders. The organizers help focus
attention on the dynamics of the behavior by forcing consideration
of the situation prior to the occurrence of the behavior and
after the occurrence of the behavior which can dramatically
change the intervention planning. For example, if the behavior
of concern is that Bill yelled out in class, the intervention
will be geared toward Bill but if the analysis reveals that
Steve pinched Bill very hard on the back first, the target
of the intervention should be both Steve and Bill. Without
sufficient analysis, the target of the intervention can't
even be identified accurately. However,, if the analysis discloses
that Bill is yelling out and that, after class, Bob and Sarah
tell him how funny he was when he yelled and dare him to do
it again. The intervention will need to take into account
the peer pressure that is causing the behavior to continue.
Examples of some visual organizers are the Three, Four and
Five Square approaches:
Three Square Approach
Before Target After Jim kicked Bill Bill slaps Jim Bill gets
a in the hall. on back when he detention. enters class.
The situation prior to the occurrence
of the behavior must be included to put the behavior in the
appropriate context. In this situation, Bill has received
a negative consequence and is probably going to be mad because
Jim started it but got away with the kicking. Bill's anger
is likely to affect future interactions with the teacher.
Jim is going to continue the behavior because he did not receive
any consequence at all and probably enjoyed getting away with
the kicking.
Four Square Approach
Before Target After Solutions Jim kicked Bill slaps Jim Bill
gets Give Jim a Bill in the on the back a detention. detention.
hall. when he enters class. Apologize to Bill for being unfair.
Have conference with both boys. Find out what actually happened
next time.
Five Square Approach
What Before Target After Solutions Works Jim kicked Bill slaps
Jim Bill gets Give Jim a Apology Bill in the on the back detention.
detention. hall. when he enters class. Apologize to Bill for
being unfair. Have conference with boys. Find out what actually
happened next time.
In the Three Square Approach, the behavior
is analyzed in its context to arrive at causative factors
that are making the behavior occur or dynamics that are making
the behavior continue. The fourth square generates solutions
and the fifth square tracks effective interventions for the
individual student.
Behavior Management
Behavior management depends on the predictability
of behavior, on the premise that people learn behavior and
on the assumption that programs can be devised to change behavior.
There are also general assumptions that must be recognized
(Morris, 1985):
1. Behavior is learned.
2. Behavior problems are learned separately.
3. Behavior and learning problems can be changed through behavior
modification procedures.
4. The behavior or learning of a specific situation only shows
how the child typically behaves in that particular situation.
5. Emphasis is placed on behavior change in the current time
frame, not in the past.
6. The goals are specific.
7. Behavior and learning problems are caused by the environment;
unconscious motivation has no critical role.
8. Insight is not necessary for changing a child's behavior.
9. Symptom substitution does not occur (new symptoms would
be related to the precipitating factors of the new situation).
In the following paragraphs, two typical
behavior management formats are exemplified to analyze the
effectiveness of behavior management in light of the characteristics
used to describe attention disorders. The first format is
geared to the individual:
Mrs. Jones, the teacher, would like Jane
to volunteer more often in class. She sets up a system that
will give Jane a star on a chart taped to her desk each time
she volunteers for an answer. When Jane has all the ten squares
filled in on the chart, she will earn a special eraser for
her pencil.
The second format, called a token economy
system, is geared to the group and is often used in classrooms
and residential settings. A list of behaviors and reinforcers
for the group is compiled so the individual operates within
the system set up for the group. A typical classroom list
of activities and reinforcers are listed in the chart below:
Activities Points Reinforcers Points On
time for class 10 Prize Bag 200 Has materials 20 Computer
time (15 min.) 100 Completes work 30 Activity Table (15 min.)
100 Raises hand for Conversation Time (15 min.) 100 question
10 Daily Messenger 200 Test grade A 50 Listen to music 200
Test grade B 40 Library time (15 min.) 100 Test grade C 30
Takes turn 20
The students receive points as the behaviors
occur so the tallies result in the number of points the child
has to spend. The student is free to spend the points any
way he/she wishes.
Though these plans seem simple and straightforward,
human behavior and its management are very complex topics.
Even when behaviors are learned, generalization of the behaviors
has been difficult to achieve without additional intervention
such as the technique Swanson and his colleagues (Swanson,
Kotkin, Pfiffner & McBurnett, 1992) have successfully developed.
The trainer was used as an effective generalization cue by
having the trainer actually be present in the new setting
to act as a stimulus to generalize the new behavior.
Organizational Strategy Training
Teachers need to tell students with atttention
disorders 'how to learn" as well as what to learn without
using complicated, step-by-step strategies that do not accommodate
the characteristics of students with attention disorders and
are not flexible enough to generalize easily to a variety
of situations. Appropriate interventions need to:
1. Be systematic so judgement and organizational
demands are minimized.
2. Be simple and dependable.
3. Be manipulative (active involvement).
4. Build the necessary base of information (not activate prior
knowledge).
5. Identify missing skills.
6. Force conceptual understanding or recognition of instructional
needs.
7. Be concrete and visual.
8. Provide advance organization so multiple passes through
material is not required.
9. Help break down processes into manageable units.
10. Guide the learning process.
11. Force attention to critical detail.
12. Result in review systems comprised of the critical pieces
of information.
If interventions do not meet these criteria,
the effectiveness of the approach will be diminished by the
interaction of the characteristics of attention disorders
and the characteristics of the situation or the academic task.
The following strategies taken from the program "Independent
Strategies for Efficient Study" (Rooney, 1990) are examples
of strategies that support attention, guide information processing
and facilitate memory storage/retrieval and were designed
to accommodate the cognitive and behavioral characteristics
of Attention Deficit Disorder identified in the literature.
Content Area Reading
For students with ADD, certain concerns
related to content reading need to be addressed. These students
have difficulty with the accuracy of prior knowledge and the
compilation of the critical detail that successful students
attend to automatically.
In order to do this, strategies that guide
the selection of the appropriate detail must be taught as
opposed to approaches that define the process after the selection
of the important detail has taken place. In order to accomplish
this , the student
1. Reads the subtitle and the section
under the subtitle. As the student is reading, he or she writes
the NAMES of people and places, important NUMBERS and TERMS
on separate index cards. One, two or three words will be the
most that will be written on a card. Only the word or number
by itself should be on a card. For example, if the words Ireland,
2500 B.C. and Urquhart Castle were in a passage, each would
appear on a separate card.
2. Returns to the subtitle and turns it
into the best test question possible. He or she makes the
question as hard as possible and writes the question on one
side of an index card and answers the question on the back
of the same card so that there is a main idea question and
answer in the study system.
3. Repeats steps 1 and 2 on all the sections
to be covered so that a set of cards based on all the details
and main ideas is produced.
4. Studies the cards by looking at the
cards one by one. For the detail cards, the student asks the
question "How is this related to the material?" or "What does
this have to do with the material?". On the main idea cards,
the student tries to answer the question from memory. If the
student is not sure of an answer for any of the cards, the
card is placed in one pile.
If the student is sure of the answer,
the card is placed in a second pile. The cards will be sorted
into two piles, one called "not sure" and the other called
"sure". The student sets the "sure" pile aside and continues
working with the pile called "not sure". For the unknown detail
cards, he/she goes back into the material or asks someone
for the answer and writes the answer on the back of the card.
The student reviews the detail cards as well as the main idea
cards (which already have the answer on the back) until all
cards are in the "sure" pile.
For a comprehensive review for examinations,
all the cards are reviewed since the system has automatically
accumulated all the details and main ideas that were presented
during the semester. The cumulative process and the card sort
manipulative supports the review and study process which is
even more problematic for students with ADD if there is a
long delay between learning and the evaluation. A student
sample is follows:
THE LOCH NESS MONSTER
Over the years, people in all countries
have been fascinated by reportings of monsters that seem to
date from prehistoric times or the age of the dinosaurs. Sightings
of the Abominable Snowman, Big Foot and the Loch Ness Monster
have intrigued journalists, explorers and scientists for many
years. Recently, new scientific equipment has focused renewed
interest in the legend of the Loch Ness Monster.
A DESCRIPTION OF LOCH NESS
In Scotland lies a very famous lake called
Loch Ness. The lake is about 24 miles long, about a mile wide
and approximately 650 feet deep. Overlooking the lake are
several local castles such as the famous Urquhart Castle and
the Aldourie Castle. The presence of the castles adds a mystique
to the area which increases interest in the area. However,
the main attraction of Loch Ness is the reported presence
of a huge, serpent-like monster named "Nessie".
"NESSIE"
The Loch Ness Monster may be the most
famous sea serpent in the world. It is described as being
40 to 60 feet long with a head about the size of a horse's
head. Its thin neck is about six feet long and is attached
to a fat body with an eight foot long tail. The description
is similar to a dinosaur known as the plesiosaurus. Scientists
think that Nessie is a plesiosaurus who has survived since
prehistoric times.
Insert Figure 1 about here
Visual Organizers for Reading
The strategy called "Wheels for Reading"
uses the wheel, which is simply an oval, as the base of organization
for tracking main ideas and details in a visual format. The
approach is very simple. While reading the material, the student
puts the main ideas in the wheel and attaches the details
in a spoke-like fashion around the wheel. The details that
have to be attached are names of people and places, important
numbers and terms. Any other important material can be attached
as well. The wheels will always be placed one under the other
to produce a linear pattern so that no organizational decisions
are required.
The wheels are developed as the student
reads so that a visual organizer for efficient review is produced
as soon as the reading is completed. For some students with
good visualization skills, the visual format of the wheel
and spokes makes it easier to recall the information from
memory. For example:
THE LOCH NESS MONSTER
In Scotland lies a very famous lake called
Loch Ness. The lake is about 24 miles long, a mile wide and
approximately 650 feet deep. Overlooking the lake are several
local castles including the famous Urquhart Castle and the
Aldourie Castle which adds to the mystique of the area. However,
the main attraction is the presence of a large, serpent-like
monster named "Nessie".
Nessie is a plesiosaurus and is 40-60
feet long, with a 6 foot neck and an 8 foot tail. His head
is about the size of a horse's head. It is unknown if there
is one Nessie or many monsters in the depth of the lake.
Insert Figure 2 about here
Wheels for Literature
The wheel (oval) described previously
under general reading can provide a concise summary of the
details and main ideas so that the student knows in advance
the type of information to track during the story. The wheel
set-up depends on the type of literature being read.
The basic organization of the literature
provides the format for the wheels and any additional wheels
can be added according to the particular class assignment.
For example, a poem may have four ovals representing stanza
I, stanza II, stanza III and theme. Details and main ideas
are attached to the oval so the result is a short, visual
summary of the important information.
Advance visual organizers for literature
may also be as simple as putting the assigned topic/question
that must be tracked (such as examples of good verses evil)
in a wheel while reading a piece of literature and attaching
ideas or page numbers that relate to the question. When the
reading is done, all the information related to the assigned
topic will be readily available for use in discussion or essay
answers.
Insert Figure 3 about here
Writing Strategy
Students with ADD find the writing process
very difficult because there are so many different components
to attend to when writing (divided attention, selective attention,
sequential attention, attention to detail and organization).
Traditional outlining makes heavy demands on the attentional
processing and can be overwhelming for the student with ADD.
In order to facilitate the process and bypass excessive demands
on memory and sequential processing, advance visual organizers
can be used to break the writing process down into manageable
units. Furthermore, many prewriting strategies often deplete
the student's energy during the pre-writing stage. Then, the
process can be very laborious and may not result in an improved
product but in increased task avoidance. To avoid this, advance
visual organizers can be used very effectively as exemplified
by the writing strategy (Rooney, 1990).
This strategy involves the use of wheels
but the number of wheels depends on the assignment. The basic
strategy is presented below but is adjusted for use with essay
questions, paragraphs, compositions and term papers. The student:
1. Places the title at the top of a sheet
of paper.
2. Draws 5 oval shapes (wheels) on the
first sheet. Marks the first oval with the word START and
the last oval with the word END or THEREFORE. Places a word,
a phrase or a sentence in the first wheel to identify the
idea/ideas that will be used to start the paper (Introduction).
3. Writes one main idea to be developed
inside each of the three middle wheels.
4. In the last wheel marked END or THEREFORE,
writes a word, phrase or sentence to identify the conclusion.
5. Reproduces each oval on a separate
sheet of paper. Around each oval, attaches all possible details,
ideas or thoughts that are related to the idea within the
wheel in a spoke-like fashion around the wheel.
6. When all the ideas are around the wheels,
goes back and numbers the ideas in the order that he/she will
write about them.
The strategy results in a set of six pages.
The first page has the five wheel overview and the other pages
have the individual wheels on them. The wheels can be used
to develop an outline or write a rough draft.
The wheels provide structure to brainstorm
ideas, organize information and sequence ideas before the
student actually produces the written language. Therefore,
the student can work on the material section by section without
losing the organization. The number of wheels will vary to
meet the demands of the assignment:
Test Essay - One wheel with the question
in the center and ideas to be developed attached around the
wheel.
Paragraph - Three wheels with the topic
sentence in the first, the main body with attached numbered
ideas in the second and the clincher sentence in the third.
Composition - Five wheels for introduction,
three main ideas and conclusion.
Research Paper - Five basic wheels but
additional sets of wheels in groups of 3 can be added off
the three main topics to be developed to result in a more
elaborate organizational structure for a very long paper.
Insert Figure 4 about here
Mathematics
Attentional deficits impact math performance
in three basic ways. Students have difficulty attending to
the sequential processing demands, have trouble with the specific
application of the concept or have a hard time handling the
detail (such as sign of operation) involved. To accommodate
these weaknesses, the student should make study cards from
the math textbook which will use the information at the beginning
of the section or chapter to identify the concept that is
being explained. The student should takes notes on the instruction
in the book and make a record of any facts, rules or statements
so that a cumulative system reviewing all the instruction
results. An original example of each type of example, concept,
rule or fact should then be produced on the card. A teacher
or tutor can then check the student's original example for
accuracy.
If an error has occurred in the example,
the error should be highlighted and corrected so the study
cards draw the student's attention to the "careless errors"
that have a high possibility of occurrence. The procedure
will support conceptual understanding, specific application
and attention to detail. The cards can be used for frequent
review and repetition to build prior knowledge before new
learning occurs as well as to promote automaticity.
Insert Figure 5 about here
Vocabulary
Vocabulary weaknesses can result from
a lack of conceptual understanding or the absence of visual
images behind the words. In order to provide a visual base
to a verbal concept, students should write the vocabulary
word to be learned on one side of an index card, write the
definition on the back of the card and immediately draw a
picture of the first association made after reading the word
and the definition. For example, belligerent means argumentative
and may pull up the image of two children fighting (see example
below).
Insert Figure 6 about here
Spelling
The spelling strategy does not replace
spelling instruction but does provide a structured way of
processing words using a variety of encoding approaches (multisensory).
The strategy should be used to learn spelling words, content
area terms or the spelling of vocabulary words. As with the
vocabulary strategy, the spelling strategy uses index cards
so that a cumulative spelling file can be maintained. On the
front of the card, the student:
1. writes the correct spelling of the
word,
2. spells the word out loud,
3. spells and writes the word in its parts,
4. marks visual clues such as small words within the word.
Turns the card over and
5. writes the word from memory,
6. marks the visual clues again,
7. and writes the word with eyes closed.
Insert Figure 7 about here
The process supports sequential processing
as well as attention to detail and provides multisensory processing
utilizing global associative strengths. Words misspelled in
when writing should be emphasized rather than low frequency
words from lists.
Conclusion
Working with students with attention disorders
can be challenging but can also be extremely rewarding when
interventions enable the students to improve their behavior
and academic performance. In order to be successful, adults
need to look at the characteristics of the disorder in the
individual student and be knowledgeable about the impact of
these characteristics on both behavior and performance.
The observation and behavioral analysis
will identify who needs to be included in the intervention
and what issues need to be addressed. The academic interventions
described take into account the characteristics of students
with attention disorders and should be utilized when traditional
approaches are not successful because there is no "goodness
of fit" between the student and the strategy. In order to
achieve this "goodness of fit", it is important for teachers
to present the models of organizational strategy training
but also allow students to adjust the learned models.
The use of techniques such as observation
and behavioral analysis will allow the teacher to gain the
necessary knowledge base about the student and the tools of
behavior management and organizational training will facilitate
intervention planning to successfully meet the needs of individual
students with attention disorders.
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