Reply to How to motivate 6th grader who is disinterested in school and careless about his assignments?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Thanks everyone. I will take your advice to heart, and I'm trying to get smarter about inattentive ADHD.

But I gotta say, I am pretty skeptical - and even more so about the idea of medicating him. I do believe that inattentive ADHD is real and really does do a number on some kids. I wish there had been more awareness when my brother was young; he really suffered in school (but is a happy successful adult fwiw.)

But my son isn't unfocused from what I can tell. He's disinterested and immature. I have no doubt I could get someone to diagnose him with something. But this really bothers me:

[quote]medication is a revelation for the kids and families of ADHD/ADD kids. Suddenly, kids are good at sports, have focus to be good at a musical instrument, and best of all are able to shine at schoolwork.[/quote] "

Please don't take offense at this comparison, but it sounds like performance enhancing drugs for athletes, or the high-achieving HS kids I read about who steal Ritalin to help them manage their homework. I'm really averse to going that route, even if it's not uncommon around here.

Like I said, I've got to get smarter about inattentive ADHD. If I can actually see symptoms in my son, I'd be more persuaded. But this idea that any kid who is floundering in school must by definition have a learning disability strikes me as deterministic. I've got a kid who can absorb incredible depths of trivia about Star Wars, but somehow his brain needs meds to punctuate properly? He can focus on legos but not on schoolwork?[/quote]

Most kids with ADHD can hyperfocus on some things--do some research.  There is a difference between a high performing athlete taking drugs to be even better and a kid who struggles to bring his grade up from a 41.  I'm not saying your child has ADHD or ADD, but it is offensive for you to compare kids taking ADHD medication with athletes who take steroids to cheat.  Good luck in resolving the issues your son is having, but try not to be so judgmental while you go down that path.[/quote]

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