When does your kid with ADHD do homework?

[Anonymous]

Have a 2e 4th grader with about 30 min of homework. Comes home and jumps on trampoline, has snack, timer for 30 min homework. Eventually we may work on getting completed homework into backpack or not checking it, but in meantime doing the executive function support over the act of completing the homework.

[Anonymous]

It’s not at all crazy to do homework in the morning if it works! Do that and see if you can get most of it done then.

[Anonymous]

My 2nd grader has math, reading, and spelling every night. Plus studying for math tests about every 3 weeks. We do some spelling practice in the morning and some in the evening to break it up. We do some of the math hw over the weekend to lighten the during the week but, even then, there is still math hw every night. Reading is the last thing before bed.

[Anonymous]

Walk home, 30 min downtime after school, then homework. If after school activities, then finish hw after dinner, with promise of screentime or playing a game as motivator if enough time left before shower time. Sometimes practicing spelling words or a few flashcards is a good thing to separate out as a morning thing.

My kid isn't on stimulants but does take one med in the am and another in the pm for continuous coverage.

[Anonymous]

We incentivize homework. My kid loves getting on video games right after school, but now he has to earn video game time by doing his homework. He comes home, does HW right away, and then gets video game. It is not always seamless, but it has helped.

[Anonymous]

OP here, appreciate all the responses. Part of the issue is that everything takes a long time. Showers even with a ton of prompting take at least 30 minutes ( long hair and other grooming is very important to them and also they get distracted). They have worked so hard to develop a social life I hate to turn away friends arriving at “home work time”. I think mornings might work but my husband is against it and I kind of understand. It would probably work out like 9 times out of ten but the other day would be a super unpleasant day. Also he handled/is around for mornings and doesn’t enjoy being responsible for enforcing it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We incentivize homework. My kid loves getting on video games right after school, but now he has to earn video game time by doing his homework. He comes home, does HW right away, and then gets video game. It is not always seamless, but it has helped.

It’s not lack of motivation. It’s that the physically can’t sit still at that time. Incentives are frustrating for everyone because they actually are a great self motivated learner and already feel terrible this is such a struggle.

[Anonymous]

OP, I can relate. HW for our 4th grader is a nightmare. It takes him 30 minutes to do a 1-page math sheet. We will add "no homework" to his 504 if this continues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is going to be a very unpopular stance. But we LITERALLY gave up homework in 3rd grade for the same reason. In elementary school, our DD just didn’t do it (and we spent some miserable hours trying). In middle school, we made sure she had a resource class during school hours to do it and she had reduced homework on her IEP. In public high school, she had two resource classes. She’s now a junior in a private school that doesn’t give homework. Thank goodness. She’ll have to go to a college that has really good supports for kids like her, and/or she can primarily take classes that really interest her. She sure does do a TON of homework in her areas of interest - she spends hours researching. They just happen to not align with anything related to the high school curriculum.

OP here. DC is in late elementary. We also never insisted on homework before because they are 2e and well ahead. But now they are in the advanced track and homework seems to be graded/collected so I am nervous about saying don’t do it. They don’t need the extra practice now but I think at some point they will. It’s only supposed to be like 15 minutes but when they are hyper it can take way longer because it’s like work for 2 minutes, talk for 5. We definitely need to insist they are in a room alone but they HATE that. Ahh.

They have all the meds the dr. will prescribe. Not against meds or more meds but the balance is pretty difficult so I am not looking for more.

I read your description of your kid and it’s very different than mine. So you’ll figure out what works for yours. Mine is not 2e (although I would describe her that way given her talent for non-academic things). She has a learning disability. And Autism. And AdHD. And all the things. So homework was just - NO.

[Anonymous]

Homework has been very hard for my kid, though I think inattentive ADHD is the least of it, honestly, the LDs and remote school learning loss were much more influential.

My kid usually doesn't want to do it until after dinner, but sometimes will start before if bribed properly

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We incentivize homework. My kid loves getting on video games right after school, but now he has to earn video game time by doing his homework. He comes home, does HW right away, and then gets video game. It is not always seamless, but it has helped.

It’s not lack of motivation. It’s that the physically can’t sit still at that time. Incentives are frustrating for everyone because they actually are a great self motivated learner and already feel terrible this is such a struggle.

Have you tried a Time Timer?
https://www.timetimer.com/?srsltid=AfmBOorTh0SuP_hMVT3zTy6x0cSK8_oPOmCzerd-k-Z0PBgdDVAfgtGT
They help kids with ADHD stay focused. It creates that feeling of urgency they need.

[Anonymous]

Homework in the AM is the ONLY way my ADHD/anxiety kid got stuff done in late elementary and most of middle school!

In late 7th grade, he figured out how to use the small windows of extra time during the school day to get little bits done. For 8th grade he almost never brought regular homework home, the only thing he did at home out of necessity was projects.

Sometimes he turned stuff in late. He still managed to get all B+ and above for grades.

He’s in 9th now and a major priority for us was going for a schedule with plenty of study hall options. He currently has 4 study halls and he uses them for homework, plus still homeroom sometimes Maybe this won’t work forever, but he’s so motivated to avoid evening work and he’s been able to do that since 9th grade started.

He really is so profoundly drained at the end of the school day. We tried a booster dose of meds after school during the last school year but it kept him awake too late. We’d try it again if needed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Homework in the AM is the ONLY way my ADHD/anxiety kid got stuff done in late elementary and most of middle school!

In late 7th grade, he figured out how to use the small windows of extra time during the school day to get little bits done. For 8th grade he almost never brought regular homework home, the only thing he did at home out of necessity was projects.

Sometimes he turned stuff in late. He still managed to get all B+ and above for grades.

He’s in 9th now and a major priority for us was going for a schedule with plenty of study hall options. He currently has 4 study halls and he uses them for homework, plus still homeroom sometimes Maybe this won’t work forever, but he’s so motivated to avoid evening work and he’s been able to do that since 9th grade started.

He really is so profoundly drained at the end of the school day. We tried a booster dose of meds after school during the last school year but it kept him awake too late. We’d try it again if needed.

Thanks for this. I honestly think it’s what makes the most sense. The school day is a lot for my kid. We are going to do half in the morning tomorrow.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I can relate. HW for our 4th grader is a nightmare. It takes him 30 minutes to do a 1-page math sheet. We will add "no homework" to his 504 if this continues.

Sorry you are going through this too

[Anonymous]

He has a booster dose if needed but he hates the idea of a booster dose so typically now does homework as soon as he gets home from school which luckily for us is before his meds wear off. (7th grade)