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Show 83-83009.00 Utah Press Assoc. 307 West S 00 South 85S05 Salt Lake City, UT S4101 SJiaring uic Bo Lakeridge jrJliglt Reported its largest ever canned food drive, Approxhna tely 22,000 items were collected for donation to the Food and Shelter Coalition mm by REVA BOWEN City Editor Part 2 of a 2-part series Students with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), an estimated es-timated 5 of the school population, popula-tion, struggle every day with the condition's accompanying problems of difficulty in focusing and easy distractibility. Sometimes Some-times hyperactivity may complicate compli-cate the condition as well, but some ADD students sit quietly in class and never cause a problem All of these students need help from teachers who can be firm and loving; consistent, yet flexible; creative, but structured at the same time, according to Jana Christensen-Bliss, Ph.D., a licensed psychologist with the state of Utah and a school psychologist in the Provo School District The exact cause of ADD is not known, she said, but researchers believe it has a biological basis. "We need to honor diversity, make accommodations, and realize that we all learn differently." STRATEGIES NEEDED Christensen-Bliss continued, "Although most learners can succeed suc-ceed without being taught strategies, most children with ADD cannot survive without them" The 20-year veteran of the public schools teaches in-service workshops on dealing with ADD students, and encourages n V I - t I I I Chauntenettes officers Marilyn Cowley, Marcia Braithwaite, and Doris Hansen (left to right) will lead the women's chorus as they go into the Christmas perf ormin g season. CiEunsUcu rontSy for Clirisfmos psrfoniiig ssesosi Chauntenettes officers Marcia Mar-cia Braithwaite, president; Marilyn Cowley, presidentelect; president-elect; and Doris Hansen, secretary, are finalizing plans for the Chauntenettes Christmas performing season. The popular ladies chorus will be singing for many groups around Utah County. They bring cheer to senior groups and will also be performing for church groups. Presenting a special spe-cial program for the students at the Dan Peterson School in fiUPncniDE td UV.VH V7 t ii parents, principals, and teachers to all meet together to plan what she terms "accommodations" "accom-modations" and strategies to help these students succeed. On the senior high school level, this might involve such things as vocational training internships, study skills classes, a shortened day, parental involvement, modified grading systems, the opportunity op-portunity to retake quizzes, etc. Conflicts with students who might claim such interventions are "not fair" can usually be easily handled, the psychologist said, by tactfully explaining that students with disabilities need the accommodations accom-modations in order for their educational situation to be more ''"fair"."-' r-v:7 ---' "Kids are sensitive if they understand un-derstand why," Christensen-Bliss said. "But we must be careful. We don't want to stigmatize a student or make them stand out Most situations can be handled delicately." deli-cately." FLEXIBILITY One of the ways teachers can be flexible is in allowing ADD children to sit up on their knees, if necessary, without having to always have both feet on the floor at their desk. Mike Pratt, principal of Valley View Elementary in Pleasant Grove, said his school once had a girl diagnosed with ADD who "couldn't sit still to even eat lunch." An accommodation made to help her was per American Fork is especially gratifying to the members of the chorus. Each Christmas season the ladies help to bring happiness into lives through music. They invite all who enjoy music to circle December 11th on their calendar. The Chauntenettes will present a special Christmas concert on that date at Mountain Moun-tain View High School. The concert con-cert is free and all are welcome. 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"The schools can be aware that it's a condition some may have, and it can be handled, like others, with accommodations," Pratt said. Some of the ADD or ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Hy-peractivity Disorder) behavior can be ignored if it is not too distracting or detrimental. Teachers can allow movement, move-ment, where a child can get up and sharpen a pencil, or stand, sit, or kneel on a chair, Pratt said. "This flies in the face of ordinary classroom management, manage-ment, but accommodating can 'be a simple strategy." ' OTHER TECHNIQUES Pratt said some children "take a while to process information". infor-mation". They can be taken aside and given advance warning warn-ing of what to study, so that when the time comes, they will know some of the answers. ' "This ties learning together and helps them to focus," he said. Teachers can also ask questions, ques-tions, then wait long enough for students to formulate an answer, perhaps five to ten seconds rather than the average 1.5 seconds. This gives more children the opportunity to think about the question and to respond, and the strategy helps all children. Half the class may be ready to answer,' Madsen as director and Irene Jenkins as accompanist. Nedra Sorenson will write the narration narra-tion to tie the music into a wonderful program for the: whole family. V rather than just a few students. IN THE CLASSROOM Christensen-Bliss also had suggestions for classroom management to help ADD students. stu-dents. Rules should be posted and frequently reviewed. There ; should be a structured environment environ-ment so the students don't feel "out of control". Outlining a schedule for the day helps students stu-dents anticipate what is coming next. They should be informed ahead of time when transitions are coming, such as an assembly, assemb-ly, so they can prepare themsel-ves. themsel-ves. : iry. - Task completions can be reinforced with a point on a cnrd or a happy face. Students can Tarn points toward extra computer time or time with a friend. Such a reward system calls attention to the positive. ' Teachers can use "cuing" an agreed-upon gesture such as a tap to the chin to remind a student to listen or get back on task without embarrassing him or her. Study carrels can be put up on a desk to screen out extraneous ex-traneous stimuli. . Even earplugs can be used for the same purpose. ; Students can be assigned as helpers, tutors for younger children, or classroom monitors. Computer use can be encouraged so students learn word processing and keyboard skills. Cherry Hill Elementary students and faculty proudly formed the number 30 on the soccer fields at the school to celebrate the landmark birthday. (Photograph by Rick Nye) liorry Oteiaaniary cclofirates llio.Wg 30 by REVA BOWEN City Editor Orem's Cherry Hill Elementary Elemen-tary School, located at 250 East 1650 South, capped a week of exciting activities intended to celebrate the school's landmark 30th birthday with an open galling 225-1340 DNjjjjl1" per YearSI RESPONDING Participative learning gives students the opportunity to respond verbally, to meet with a group, and talk through concepts. con-cepts. These experiences are good for ADD students, who are usually quite verbal and able to respond well. Organizational skills are difficult for many ADD students. stu-dents. They can learn to use a planning calendar with instructions instruc-tions and reminders to help them. Another student can be assigned as a partner so they can check each other's work and ' supplies. Colored folders help with organization. Rather than writing a long report on a topic, which can be laborious for an ADD student, other options or learning projects can be offered. Students Stu-dents love the "discovery" approach ap-proach to teaching, where they try to guess what a teacher is talking about as their thoughts are guided. Verbal tests, instead in-stead of just written, might be given. Technology aids such as computers, calculators, spell checks, etc. anything available avail-able in the "real world" should be allowed to help students. "It doesn't make sense to not use them," Christensen-Bliss said. MEDICATION Medication can sometimes be part of the picture, the psychologist said, noting that r 1 1 : $ - ; i ' f house held at the school Monday evening, November 20. Current students, faculty, staff, PTA members, and their families at-. tended, as well as alumni and former associates of the school. A colorful historical timeline, created from scrap- it is helpful in about 75 of cases, but it should not be used indiscriminately. indis-criminately. She described medication as "just a piece of the puzzle" that gives some students the "space to learn and be successful suc-cessful with strategies and accommodation". ac-commodation". Medication is not needed, she said, for mild ADD cases. There must be a case by case examination, and medication medica-tion must be monitored very closely by a physician. "It can be a very effective means of intervention," inter-vention," Christensen-Bliss asserted. as-serted. The diagnosis of ADD is also made by a physician, although al-though school psychologists like Christejisen-Bliss assist -with assessments, observations, observa-tions, and testing. "We need to make sure we identify what is ADD and what is normal childhood activity," she said. "There is a difference." Pratt confirmed that the strategies suggested by Christensen-Bliss do work. "Absolutely," "Ab-solutely," he said. "I have seen these techniques applied and they help." One of the keys for teachers, Pratt said, is to "keep your perspective. Don't lose your cool." More information on ADD and ADHD is available from the Parent Education Resource Center (PERC) in the Orem Library, and from Knowledge Gain in Orem. book pages documenting the school's history, lined the walls of the lunchroom and received considerable attention from young and old alike. Students Cent. Cn pegs 4 V |