Five sentence summaryStudying requires several executive function skills plus focusing for extended periods of time, so ADHD folks often have trouble. There are general best practices that will help you regardless of whether or not you have ADHD and ones that are designed specifically for ADHD folks separated into organizing, focusing, and motivating. Finally, active studying is much more effective than passive studying, and the chances of feeling bored are much lower. General best practices ADHD brains are different but in some ways we are very much the same. Sleep improves our memory just like everyone else. Exercising regularly also is shown to improve our memory and overall well-being. Dehydrated brains don't work well, including dehydrated ADHD brains. Making personal connections to the material we need to study helps us but it also helps everyone else. These are the tips that are almost guaranteed to apply no matter what you are trying to study.
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Five sentence summary Focusing for hours on end, especially when the topic is boring or repetitive, does not come easily to folks with ADHD. There are some steps you can take all own your own, like finding a note-taking buddy or recording the lecture (see my warnings!) and there are other steps you can take that require asking for an adjustment but not making any disability obvious, like asking for an outline of the talk in advance or asking for a break after 45 minutes. Our focus depends on a variety of factors, like hunger, ability to fidget, proximity to distractions, and it's worth thinking critically about how you focus. Identifying patterns can help us decide which tips and tricks will be most effective under which circumstances. Listening to someone talk for three hours, whether as an undergraduate student or as part of a workshop, can be daunting for those with ADHD. There are some things you can do to make focusing for extended periods of time easier, and some don't even require disclosing you have trouble focusing. Having a straight-forward, honest conversation about your needs is obviously ideal, but not every instructor, conference organizer, or speaker is disability-friendly. For one-time events, it's probably not worth your time to investigate whether or not the session leader is knowledgeable about accessibility or holds any ableist views. For longer workshop series or courses, disclosing your access needs might make more sense. I personally don't recommend saying "ADHD" at all because it's so misunderstood. That said, I do recommend, "My brain is a little different, I have a disability, etc." if you think it's safe. Steps you can take without talking to the prof or speaker:
***Recording lectures, talks, and etc. should be done with the utmost care and respect. In some cases, recording without someone's permission isn't even legal. There are often serious concerns about privacy, intellectual property, and so forth. Recordings should be used only for your own learning, should not be shared without permission, should be stored securely, and should be deleted when you have completed taking any notes. Even if you determine it is legal to record a talk without the person's permission, I advise seriously considering the potential implications and exercising extreme restraint and caution. It is better to ask for permission and explain you are recording due to a disability. Five sentence summary:
Before the semester begins, determine add/drop dates, pick back-up classes, make sure you have your accommodations in place and potentially ask if there's anything new that might apply to you, and organize all of your sticky notes, calendars, highlighters, etc. Once the semester has begun, start feeling out your courses and potentially dropping ones that won't work and adding ones that show more promise. Set yourself up for success as much as possible by quitting classes with ableist instructors or ones that don't have the best overall design for your interests. Finally, once your schedule is finalized, add all the major deadlines for all classes to a calendar and identify if you'll need to book any tests with the disability office.
I almost always found the start of a new semester overwhelming when I was an undergraduate. There's so much to think of, so much new information, and our routines, our systems to stay on track all change. It's a lot. Honestly, the start of the semester is still overwhelming from the flip side, but I've learned a few things.
Before the semester starts
1. Determine your class registration dates and times. When can you register? Set alarms.
2. Determine when the add/drop period is. You can typically change courses for a week or two after the semester starts, but find out the date and find out any policies and procedures if you haven't done this before. 3. Pick your classes, your back-up classes, and balance your schedule. If you need to take five courses this term, find eight that you could take this semester. You'll want alternatives (keep reading to find out why). Don't take too many hard classes in a single semester. Hard may be hard in terms of they include a lab component, hard may be hard in that the classes bore you to death but are required. Make sure you have a good balance of classes that will be fun and exciting and classes that are boring and/or more work. You also want to make sure your week/days are balanced. If you don't do well with morning classes, don't expect this to suddenly change. 4. Register with the disability office (if new) or remind yourself of what the process is for notifying your professors of your accommodations. In some cases, the office handles it all for you. At other schools, you need to fill out an online form every semester. 5. Review what accommodations are available to you and ask your disability advisor if there is any new technology that you should consider. Yes, you may not have needed to record your lectures your first year, but you may find that one history lecture that is three hours long is harder to maintain your focus during. Schools also get new tools, so something unavailable last year might be offered this year. What are some potential accommodations for ADHD? 6. Buy your notebooks, pens, sticky notes, and etc. Organize all of it too so you're ready to go. Make sure to pack some snacks and some sort of drink in whatever bag you use for that first week. That break you have for lunch might be shorter than you thought or the class you planned to eat dinner during might not allow food. Throwing in a charger for your phone and any other electronics you rely on isn't a bad idea either. |
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AuthorThere's a reason theADHDAcademic is an anonymous account and there's a reason why this website will remain anonymous. That said, there are some basics it might be helpful to know about me: DISCLAIMER: I am not a medical professional or a lawyer of any kind. All text, graphics, and content on this website are for educational purposes only. Any and all content should not be substituted for medical or legal advice. Although I strive to provide the most accurate, current, and scientifically sound information, content should never be substituted for professional advice. Always consult a medical and/or legal professional before making any decisions. Links are provided only for reference and do not necessarily imply endorsement.
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