Advice needed to help ADHD DD through GCSEs

[ovaltable]

Not medicated as not yet formally diagnosed but suspected in the past few months. I'd wondered for a while but covid and lockdown-learning interrupted normal routine and it was hard to point to anything concrete to start the diagnosis ball rolling.

Mock GCSE results were not good, and especially not good in her favourite and usually best subjects.

She doesn't have trouble with concepts. Content is at times sketchy. Sometimes she revises the wrong thing. Or spends most of her revision time finding her notes or locating what she is supposed to be revising. What has become apparent is that she struggles with exam technique and she misreads the question, or speeds on ahead and writes what she wants to without fully absorbing the instructions or the type of question she is meant to be answering. There were no gaps on her papers but she lost easy marks on most questions. She still doesn't know how best to revise. She has been resistant to help in the past but now framing things around suspected ADHD she feels less blame and is receptive to letting us help.

Has anyone coached their ADHD teen through GCSEs and can advise optimum methods, techniques, resources? Especially girls with inattentive type ADHD. Flash cards are totally overwhelming to her and get easily lost and disorganised. With past papers, she happily does them but is not motivated to do anything about the gaps they identify. She has every CGP revision book available to her but she doesn't open them.

Marking my place here if you don't mind OP as I am in a similar boat!

Ok, we were you a couple of years ago, get on to school NOW, the deadline for concessions is rapidly approaching so an application for extra time, smaller exam room, prompter, rest breaks needs to be made by the senco this coming week. I believe deadline is approximately 15th Feb

Next get onto the Doctor responsible for the assessment, push for an urgent appointment/ take any dropped appointments and get medication started, it should make a big difference even on a starter dose

Help DC plan their revision, bite sized sessions 30 mins then break to refocus, try discreet fidget items, mine have spinner rings which help them focus

Both my DC are ADD and taking A levels this year (DH is also ADD) so I spend a lot of time organising them, making sure they have different types of study aids to support the condition so books, audio, flash cards and SENECA

Forgot to add DS likes to ‘teach’ me about his subjects, I encourage this because if positively reinforces his knowledge. Occasionally I’ll throw in a question to make him stop and think which also helps

DD likes to find past exam questions and their marking scheme so she can break down what they want and write model answers. DD and DH also often have a second screen running often with music videos which help them hyper focus which is a common strategy that helps

I have ADHD and when I was your DDs age, caffeine helped me. I might get slated for saying it but it did. I'm on Ritalin now - game changer!!

Other than that, she needs to set small goals, 15 min study, study in different places, fidget toys, she needs to get up and start doing something else when it becomes too much. I can't remember what else helps!! But also please tell her not to be so hard on herself! Good luck

My DD1 has dyspraxia and at that age was pretty disorganised and couldn't focus for herself on key information.

Most of her revision was done 1-1 with me, verbally. I also made the revision timetable with her input.
Then also some past papers with us marking together and identifying where marks were lost.

(ps Flash cards: punch a hole in them, and fix them together with treasury tabs. Keep in small see through plastic wallets, don't let her take them to school. Towards the end of revision we put coloured dots on the ones she 'knew' so we could identify those she didnt.)

I have a child with ADD and would agree with what @Tomnooktoldmeto and @YouCantTourniquetTheTaint have said:
apply for concessions/accommodations
get medication in place
a stiff cup of coffee just before studying can help focus.
take regular/timed rest breaks
active learning is much better than passive, so e.g. Seneca is good because it is interactive
sleep and routine are also important. no caffeine after 4pm. regular bedtimes. if she's a poor sleeper, look into melatonin/circadin.
doctors recommended a high protein, low sugar diet to us. regular exercise improves concentration.
After GCSE, important to focus on subjects that are strengths/interests - they won't do well at anything they're not interested in.

We are a way off GCSE’s, DS - adhd/Asc - is only 11 but these are great tips. What is Seneca - I haven’t come across this before? Thanks.

1. Help her write a revision table
2. Help her organise her folders/books
3. Revision cards for each topic for each subject will help
4. Ask her to do Lots of past papers- can get these online
5. Get her to highlight the key words in each question
6. You could ask teachers to run through what each exam equation is looking for- in RE which I teach there’s a real clear technique for every question
7. Encourage her to exercise and eat well
8. 20 min revision, have a break, another 20 min
9. Maybe record the content onto a podcasts which she can listen to

@Bolandsbiccies SENECA is a learning platform that covers most exam boards, you can access for free and there is a yearly paid subscription for more content. We’ve found it very helpful with both DC

Thank you. I am taking on board all of these recommendations.

The waiting lists for assessment are very long. It's doubtful we'd get her diagnosed before the exams begin. I'll start a separate thread about that though in the dedicated board.

Unfortunately if not assessed you’re looking at a minimum 2-3 year wait on the nhs if they even agree to assess. DS was declined 4 times even with a family history and in the end we went privately. 6 weeks start to finish and a month later we were transferred into the nhs clinic for continuing care

Although not the answer DD has on occasions used energy drinks for focus DS. won’t touch them

DS also struggles with impulse control and the lure of gaming so has packed up his gaming computer and asked to work in the living room with me as he knows that he will be kept on track by mum

The waiting times are awful. I'd consider private assessment but DH is less keen. He'd also need to be persuaded of the merits of medication. I don't know. I've read girls with inattentive adhd don't respond so well to medication and medication doesn't give as big an uplift in grades as thought. But perhaps that is kids who don't also have good home support because so many parents on here attest it has made a big difference.

Things might become more apparent in the next few weeks now she has been flagged up at school.

Does NHS/private assessment at age 16 require teachers to fill in a form about DD? That's where I would worry. She's seen as

Yes I did. He was failing at his mocks. Struggling with all the things you outline. He ended up with excellent GCSE results and got 100% in some of his papers. It was very labour intensive though for me!

I bought loads of revision books and put together a revision plan for him so that all subjects were covered. I planned in plenty of breaks including daily breaks for getting it side and exercising (aerobic exercise is fantastic for ADHD).

I made him do his revision in the kitchen with me. For most if it I was literally sat with him (I didn't do much else for the period!) . He needed that to ensure he revised and remained focussed.

I did all the sorting and organising for him so he had everything ready for the revision. To avoid issues like you describe when they can't find pens, paper, books, notes etc. Take that out of the equation, become their PA!

I printed off tons of past papers. Marked them, went through the answers with him. Got him to redo to them. I think this is what got his exam technique down.

I constantly reminded him to read and reread the question. And not to start until he was sure he had understood the question. For longer answer question I reminded him to go back to the question and check he hadn't gone off at a tangent. I reminded him of this repeatedly and as he went into each exam.

He was also helped however by the fact he had a prompter for his exams. And part of what they can do is help stop students getting distracted and prompt them to make sure they've read the question properly. He also got extra time in exams and was able to take beaks. Obviously with no diagnosis you may not be able to access any of that but ask the school and check if they can apply on the basis of her difficulties/needs. Do you have the means to access a private diagnosis prior to her exams?

Doing all this basically taught him that revision was important (he struggles with cause and effect) and how to revise.

He therefore did much more himself at A level and then did all his degree revision on his own.

There was lots of stress and tears at times (for both of us!!) as obviously he didn't want to be doing all that but he now tells me that looks back on that period as a really positive thing that I did for him.

The driver for me was that I couldn't bare to think about how he would feel if he opened his exam results and had failed everything. He is really bright and would have been devastated. I just couldn't let that happen.

I'll just add here that I also have ADHD so the above was super challenging for me too....but once I am hyper focussed on something....

Oh yes as others have said we also did coke for exams. The fuzzy kind kit the white powder lol! For the caffeine which helps me.

My DS is autistic and has ADHD and we didn't explore medication when he was younger. Looking back and knowing what I know now I think I would have tried that as it would likely have made everything so much easier for him.

I will be trying meds as soon as my chronic illness allows. I have inattentive ADHD and have not heard that it doesn't work where have you read that? Meds should help with loads of the inattentive symptoms.

I have however read that meds are highly effective for ADHD (the most effective "mental health" medication there is) but they don't work for everyone and are less likely to work when someone has both autism and ADHD together.

That should be fizzy and not, not fuzzy and kit!!!!

I have ADHD and only got 4 of my expected 13 O levels (thanks for walking out on the second day of exams Dad), but what would have got me through in normals times was the technique I used in all exams prior. I quizzed my friends who were swotting for the same test. I had the book, and I’d make up questions as I went a long. Never got boring, I think cos I was in charge and always got to be right. 😂

I discovered this worked by accident when I got A+ on a HARD history test I had done no actual personal revision for. I’d just tested all my friends for a week.

You don't have to convince him about medication. I'm not convinced for DD. But having accommodations, understanding and so on is invaluable.

Both DD and I are/were ADHD girls. I found mocks hard but the stress of real exams gives me focus. Cramming is good, working to stressy deadlines works. Studying is torture. I second the 'teaching' thing. I could gibber on for hours about subjects then stare at a page. My mum just let me gibber and then said, 'go and write down exactly that'. I edited later.

Learning to read the question is hard. We don't read instructions . So highlighting, copying it out once etc. so it goes in. Underlining every part.

BTW the 'higher' the exam the easier. Because with ADHD learning rote and regurgitating is terrible. Focusing on your passions and frantically learning everything is great. A Levels were easier and degree easier still. Because you work for your passions.

@ovaltable our experience with meds in a girl with ADD is very positive, DD takes a long acting form of methylphenidate and has 5 mg short acting boosters in the afternoon. Without she is literally a Zombie

If you are assessed on the NHS they will always involve teachers who really aren’t the best at spotting inattentive ADHD multiple times they couldn’t see either of my DC who are classed as severe

Privately DS was assessed without schools input after I explained their inability to see his symptoms.

DS was assessed by one of the people who developed the computer assessment (gold standard) and he just laughed because it was so obvious during the assessment, his feet never stop moving when concentrating but a teacher may miss this under a desk in a busy class

DS was assessed by one of the people who developed the computer assessment (gold standard) and he just laughed because it was so obvious during the assessment, his feet never stop moving when concentrating but a teacher may miss this under a desk in a busy class

When DD was diagnosed the doctor said, 'is this typical for her?' And when I said it was a good day, his eyebrow shot up and he made a note. Thankfully she's 'boy' presentation ADHD so we didn't struggle to get a diagnosis.

Marking my place here, OP, if you don’t mind as my Y9 DD (14) has just been diagnosed with ADHD and has started to take 18mg of Concerta XL daily (when does it start to kick in as I’m seeing no positive changes as yet?). DD is also registered blind and is currently awaiting an assessment for ASD/PDA. Her school actually funded her ADHD assessment as they reckon that once she is stabilised on medication, her ability to focus and learn should improve (she’s able - at a selective grammar - but struggling to succeed due to her lack of concentration.)

Thanks so much for the tips and experiences here.

These messages are all very useful. I agree it would be useful to have her diagnosed just so she has that element of support in place and so she can understand herself better to help protect her self esteem. I am pleased to read some stories of people with ADHD who have managed to study better as they have got older. I've mostly read negative stories and it is difficult to see a good future for DD in light of those.

Are there any negatives to getting a diagnosis. Driving Licence? Travel insurance? Passing a medical to move abroad? Do you have to disclose diagnosis of ADHD to a new employer?

My son has ADHD and is doing GCSE's this year.
He had some dissapointing mock results.

What I am doing
Like poster above I am his PA. I work out what he has to do and print off past papers etc
He can only manage a small amount of work after school so we are doing one hour a day broken in to 3 X 20 minutes. So set timer for 20 minutes - he works and has a break before his attention wanes.
He is doing for example 20 minutes of revision on line (Seneca) and then 2 X 20 minutes of a past paper.
I don't think he will make one revision note or one revision card for the whole time. It just won't work for him - even if he did them he would never read them again.
English and Maths tutor to take some of the load off me.

Fingers crossed this all works for him.

I've mostly read negative stories and it is difficult to see a good future for DD in light of those.

As a successful woman with ADHD I also facilitated with 'challenging youth' who often had it. I describe it to them as my super power. I have energy, can manage a room full of people. I'm good with risk and stress, great in emergencies. I am entertaining and think outside the box. I can manage 4 things at once.

I can't sit and read a boring book. Or follow through. Or so mundane tasks without forcing myself.

But you can find roles that are brilliant with ADHD.