Tips for Creating an ADHD Friendly Environment
ADHD can often make it difficult for children to organize their thoughts and behaviors, especially when there are many different things that are vying for their attention. Lists and calendars are great ways to keep track of general tasks and events, but they are still fairly abstract. Children with ADHD benefit from environments that support them in creating routines, keep things clear and visual, and allow for tasks to be easily started. Here are some simple tips for creating an ADHD friendly environment!
Cultivate routines, particularly supporting self-care tasks, sleep, and exercise. Adding some structure to the day can help take mental stress off your child. Consider choosing a few simple activities that help define different parts of the day. For example, you may go on a morning walk together to help your child start the day, or read together before bed to unwind. Mapping out every moment would be stressful for everyone, but building routines together can help encourage the formation of independent and healthy habits.
Make important and useful items visible! It can be difficult for anyone to mentally keep track of belongings, homework, projects, etc., and this can be especially true for children with ADHD. Your child may want to start working on a school project for example. The rubric may be buried in a folder, the assigned book in another room, and notes somewhere else! Make it easier for your child to start activities. Setting up items in a way that is easy to find and use can help your child start an activity almost as soon as they’ve decided on the task. This can help minimize the time and stress that comes with trying to get their thoughts and environment ready. Important items that are going to be used regularly could be stored visually on a shelf or desk instead of in a drawer or otherwise tucked away.
It might be tempting to have most things put away and out of sight with the goal of minimizing distractions but it is important to make sure tasks and activities are easy to remember and access without taking too much time or stress to begin. Building positive routines with your child will help them cultivate healthy habits as well as provide clearer expectations and structure to each day. Each child is different and it is important to build on your child’s individual strengths!