Saturday, July 18, 2009

Sue Scheff: 17 Ways Parents Can Help ADHD Children Make Friends




Children with ADHD sometimes struggle with social skills, and making friends can be tough. But parents can help! Learn how to guide your child through sticky social situations and make lasting friendships.




Sometimes, ADHD children need help making and keeping friends. Parents can make a big difference without stepping on toes by helping an ADD child start a conversation or by "supervising from the window."

Find out other ways to become your child's ADHD friendship coach and guide his social development here.

Observe the Situation

Get to the root of the problem. ADHD children often have little sense of how they're perceived by their peers, and will commit social blunders without realizing it. Help them by discussing what went wrong, why it happened, and what your child could (not should) do differently next time. Be as sensitive with your attention deficit child as you would be with a close adult friend -- too much negative feedback can hurt your child's self-esteem.

On the flip side, when your child has a successful interaction, congratulate him.
Watch your child closely. Whenever he's playing with other kids, make sure you can see and hear what's going on. Be ready to intervene if he picks a fight, starts telling fibs, or does something dangerous in an effort to impress others.