ADHD And Learning Disabilities

Do ADHD and learning disabilities always go together? Is ADHD a learning disability? To the contrary, for most children with ADHD, learning is not difficult. As a matter of fact, most ADHD children are extremely smart and have great potential.

When referring to ADHD, people generally see it as being a learning disability. This is due to the fact that there is the perception that a child's education and intelligence is affected by attention deficit disorder. Other disabilities such as autism, dyslexia and other visual or auditory disabilities are also commonly linked to ADHD.

Nonetheless, individuals dealing with ADHD and ADD are capable of understanding even more difficult concepts and think in the same way an individual who does not have ADHD does. If you are wondering, is ADHD a learning disability, you can see they are not. This is an important distinction

Learning Disabilities And ADHD

ADD does not address the process of learning because those suffering from it are perfectly capable to record information and obtain results from what they see, hear and process it in a timely fashion, as others do. The problem that individuals with ADD face is that they often have difficulty focusing on a problem. Otherwise, they are perfectly capable of solving it.

For instance, say a child has problems with academic performance. After the treatment for ADD starts, the performance academically speaking rises in a staggering rate. In some cases, ADD children are even smarter than the other children around. In other cases, this may not happen, but this simply means there is no common relationship between learning and ADD and ADHD.

Small children who aren't yet old enough for school have problems in hearing, understanding and processing information but this shouldn't be necessarily seen as a link to the ADD. Any child at some point can experience writing, reading or spelling trouble which is perfectly normal.

Dyslexia and ADHD often seem to go together. However, if a child has dyslexia, it doesn't mean he has ADD or a related disorder.

Childhood ADHD Learning Characteristics

While ADD and learning disabilities may seem to be linked, they are separate issues that will need to be addressed. Many difficulties may arise for children suffering from ADD but that doesn't mean they won't be able to cope with them or find the necessary and effective approaches to their problems.

Some children will be greatly helped by  fixed schedules, to be reminded what needs to be done and what time which activities are scheduled for a particular day. If they have problems remembering things, then the fact that they will have a schedule in front of their eyes will help them greatly.

Also, by having things posted somewhere, you can be constantly reminded what needs to be done at that point. Binders or planners might also help you review the activities that need to be performed in a certain day. Therefore, the strategy will help you keep things organized.

Often ADHD and learning disabilities seem to go together at school. This is often due to an ineffective teaching style, rather than a disability.

If at school, the teacher interacts with children and teaches with style that involves the student rather than by giving lectures the child will be more interested and thus devote more attention to what is being taught in the classroom. Through this method, the child would be able to concentrate more on a given activity. They would be less likely to want to switch to several activities at the same time as a result of impatience and restlessness.

Is ADHD a learning disability? Absolutely not. Expect these children to perform at as high a standard as any other child. If your child struggles with learning disabilities, ADHD is not the cause. It should, however be addressed at as young an age as possible.

If you are concerned about ADD and learning disabilities, you may want to consider herbal treatments. Herbal supplements have been shown to provide substantial help with a child's lack of focus in the classroom as well as helping with anxiety and other issues associated with attention deficit disorder. Visit NativeRemedies.com to learn about herbal formulas that help calm and improve focus in children with ADD and ADHD.

More than the-myth-of-the-learning-disability-in-adhd on our introduction to ADHD page.