Child ADHD and homeschooling during the coronavirus pandemic

Written by: Professor Debora Elijah
Published: | Updated: 10/03/2021
Edited by: Laura Burgess

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues*, many parents may be struggling whilst homeschooling their child who has ADHD. We were fortunate enough to talk to one of London’s leading neuropsychologists, Dr Debora Elijah about her top tips for parents during this time, including what techniques they can use to help keep their child focused on their schoolwork.

 

Mother and little girl working on laptop


How is homeschooling a child with ADHD different to a child without?

Children with ADHD can be especially frustrating to parents because while they can perform certain tasks just fine, they can’t do them all of the time. A child with ADHD will find it hard to concentrate and difficult to self-regulate. They may also struggle to sustain their attention on the screen for online sessions or a Zoom class.
 

What might a typical homeschooling day be like for children with ADHD?

Parents may be stressed as they might be trying to work at the same time. Their child might not be able to sit on a chair and concentrate on their virtual learning. Many children might be running around or ‘misbehaving’. This is a result of the child not being able to sustain their attention on one certain task and they often get easily distracted.
 

Is maintaining a routine important?

Maintaining a routine is important. Creating daily and weekly routines can help build good habits and may ease some ADHD symptoms. Structure and routine, for example, can help reduce stress and uncertainty.

Creating a routine can include:
 

  • Scheduling regular times for sleeping, eating, and physical activities.
  • Setting aside time for work, homework, physical activity, relaxation, and hobbies.
  • Spending a few minutes in the evening to come up with a shortlist of tasks to complete the following day.
  • Scheduling chores, grocery shopping, and other household activities ahead of time.
     

How often should children with ADHD take breaks?

Your child should have a movement break every 20 minutes. It is important to liaise with the school in order to accommodate frequent movement breaks.
 

How can I ensure my child focuses and achieves their full potential?

To help your child to focus, I recommend the following:
 

  1. Have a box with sensory toys next to them - once they complete three activities, they can have a five-minute break (use a timer).
  2. Use counters - every time they complete one activity, they put a counter in a jar, every three counters they have a movement break.
  3. Important to communicate with the school – to accommodate and understand and implement helpful strategies.
     

Is remote learning during the pandemic more challenging for children with ADHD?

Yes, remote learning can be very difficult for children with ADHD. People with ADHD may be facing disruptive changes in their life due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These changes may trigger new or worsening symptoms of ADHD or other mental health conditions, such as anxiety or depression.

Practising preventive measures, creating a routine and a calm environment, exercising often, and socialising digitally may help all relieve these symptoms.


Dr Elijah specialises in working with children who live with ADHD. If you would like to discuss whether she could help your child, book an appointment with her via her Top Doctor’s profile here. Can’t make the appointment in person? She is also available for a video call using our e-Consultation tool, which can be found on her profile too.

**The information in this article about the COVID-19 pandemic is relevant to what is happening in March 2021 and is subject to change**

By Professor Debora Elijah
Psychology

Professor Debora Elijah is a highly esteemed cognitive neuropsychologist, practising privately at the Elijah Social Cognitive Skills Centre in North London. Professor Elijah attends to a range of age groups from 20 months old to young adults, specialising in building social communication skills, ASD, ADHD, self-regulation and anxiety. She is renowned for her holistic approach, treating everyone as an individual, offering treatment that is tailored specifically to that individual.

Professor Elijah graduated with a degree in neuropsychology from University Louvain La Nueve before studying and completing her PhD in Clinical Cognitive Psychology, Social Psychology and Educational Psychology at Fernando Pessoa University. She was trained by Theo Peeters, a Belgian neurolinguist at the Centre for Training in Autism in Antwerp, Belgium. In Antwerp, she was the Joint Director of Tikvatenu, a centre for social communication skills. She also spent time in Brazil conducting research into structured and non-structured environments for autistic children and children with communication disorders, which was supported by the Brazilian Government. At the same time, she was a founder of CIAPEMA, a centre of research and intervention for young high functioning children with autism and related communication disorders.
She was also a lead researcher in the Process Cognitive Psychology group at the Pontifical Catholic University in Rio Grande do Sul.

Professor Elijah returned to the UK in 2000 and has since worked in her own private practice and for two different charities. She developed a programme called PROSCIG©​, an intervention programme dealing with social perception, self-regulation and social problem-solving. She also works at Harley Street Family Centre as a cognitive neuropsychologist and HCPC registered educational consultant. 

Her work has been globally recognised and she has appeared in numerous news articles. Her book The Social Cognitive Mind in Promoting Psychosocial Competences in the Peer Group was published in Portugal in 2014. Professor Elijah also received special mention in the book Autism: How To Raise A Happy Autistic Child by award-winning The Times journalist Jessie Hewitson.

Professor Elijah was appointed as Professor in 2020 of Autism Spectrum and Alternative Communication, as well as being a social sciences coordinator, delivering lectures in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Increased Alternative Communication Module at the Fernando Pessoa University.

The graduatecourse at The Fernando Pessoa University enables trainees to deepen and practice specific knowledge, allowing the development of competencies that favour effective and quality care to this population and their families, according to the international guidelines of evidence-based practice.

Registration number: PYL32792

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