A reader writes: "We have just moved, and my son will be attending a new school. He has ADHD, and with just a few weeks left in the school year, I'm considering not telling his teachers. He has been doing well, and I don't want to set up negative expectations. Should I tell his teachers?"
I can understand why you might be concerned that telling your child's teacher about the ADHD might make her expect a problem. I would suggest making an appointment with the principal or guidance counselor at your child's school before you enroll to discuss your child's ADHD. This is especially important if your child has an IEP or a Section 504 plan from his previous school. The principal knows the school staff and can place your child with a teacher who can best meet your child's needs. Working with the principal can take the guess work out of the situation. You won't have to worry about what an unknown teacher might think about your child if you get the right teacher in the beginning.
More on ADHD
We When given this option for our son, Alex, we instead hired an ADHD coach. He’s not medicated. Our coach advocated us telling the teacher to get the best possible placement. She also recommended restructuring our parenting approaches. She also had us use two different programs. We used Play Attention (www.playattention.com.) It’s a neat program that allows Alex to control their games like Harry Potter. He uses his mind to finish tasks and improve memory. We also used http://www.adhdnanny.com to help us schedule routines and to provide consequences when the routine wasn’t met. It’s definitely for younger kids, but it really helped us manage. It’s a long road, but we’re doing well. It’s good to have someone sort through the clutter to get help.