27: ADHD Superpowers with April Tierney

There are hidden advantages of ADHD, and it’s a subject most people don’t talk about. On this week’s episode of Soaring Child, we connect with April Tierney, a lifelong educator who specializes in teaching students with ADHD. April shares how kids with ADHD can embrace their superpowers and do better at school.

April cites eight superpowers of ADHD, which include high physical, mental, and verbal energy, as well as huge amounts of creativity. Many ADHD kids are wonderful artists, musicians, gamers, and comedians. People with ADHD are three times more likely to start their own business, and many have a heightened sense of adventure.

Other ADHD superpowers are multitasking and being empathetic, which makes some ADHD children pursue helping professions. But perhaps the biggest superpower is hyper focus, the ability to focus on something really hard for a long time.  

So how do parents help their kids to use their superpowers for good? Pay attention to your child’s interests and try new things, offering your child different choices to see what they really like to do. Integrate things they enjoy into everyday tasks like schoolwork. Be sure to incorporate movement into learning or habit reinforcement.  

If you can get your child involved in the task or subject you’re teaching with something they already love, that’s going to go a long way.

 

Key Takeaways:

[6:12] What www.outschool.com is

[7:27] Eight superpowers of ADHD children

[10:14] Why variety of choices is important for kids with ADHD

[24:54] Why physical exercise is so important for kids with ADHD

[26:20] How to bring in the student voice

[26:57] Problem-solving versus punishment

[28:55] How to stack new habits next to old habits

 

How To Connect With April Tierney:

https://www.outschool.com/

https://outschool.com/teachers/April-Tierney#abl8ewgdy0

 

Memorable Quotes:

 “These students need more confidence being thrown their way because I think sometimes our world doesn't appreciate all the gifts that they have.”

“My favorite ADHD superpower is hyper focus, that ability to focus for a really long time on something you love. It tends to go against what people think ADHD is. So many people think, well, if you have ADHD, you just spend the whole day like squirrels, right?”

“I think choice boards are becoming more popular where there's many ways to show what a student knows about a subject – it could be their writing, making a brochure, gaming, or shooting a video.”

“Somehow working movement into everyday classroom life with something as mundane as answering questions, maybe they stand up when they answer a question, maybe they do a certain movement for a different answer but bringing movement into the classroom in any way that you can benefits all students.”

“Without motivation, it's really difficult for a student who has ADHD to concentrate. So connecting whatever it is they're learning to something they already love or something new they might love is really important.”

“Physical exercise is one of the most effective, natural ways to reduce the not-so-great parts of ADHD. So when we take away recess, that creates more behavior issues.”

 

 

Dana Kay Resources: 

Website - https://adhdthriveinstitute.com/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/adhdthriveinstitute 

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/adhdthriveinstitute/ 

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/ADHDThriveInstitute 

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/74302454/ 

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/adhdthriveinstitute/

Tiktok - https://www.tiktok.com/@adhd_thriveinstitute  

 

International Best Selling Book, Thriving with ADHD - https://adhdthriveinstitute.com/book/ 

 

Free Reduce ADHD Symptoms Naturally Masterclass – https://bit.ly/3GAbFQl  

 

ADHD Parenting Course – https://info.adhdthriveinstitute.com/parentingadhd

 

ADHD Thrive Method 4 Kids Program - https://adhdthriveinstitute.com/packages/