ADHD folks: Wrangling with reading troubles? Cast out the spell.

Mystical, magical ways to improve reading?  Think big.  It’s metacognition.

Metacognition helps readers to become comfortable in learning tasks.  It assists students with ADHD focus their attention on the task at hand as well.  The process facilitates making adjustments in errors as soon as they occur.

Looking back in time…

Yea!  I’ve been invited to evaluate technology and reading research projects for the International Reading Association.  EdieLovesMath, but she loves reading too.  

My students just laugh.  At least the technology speaks to my geeky-ness.

Now, what to do?  Research and collaborate with colleagues.  The answer was the same the whole way around.  It’s not enough to have technology, students have to use it.

It’s not just about using technology, students have to think.

It’s not technology and education.  It’s education and technology.

Both rock…

Students with ADHD often receive reading interventions based on phonological awareness and reading aloud.  The outcomes don’t necessarily result in creating fluent readers.  In contrast, reading skills combined with metacognitive strategies enhance fluency and comprehension.

Using metacognitive reading strategies provides multifaceted processes to monitor understanding.  Students with ADHD benefit from sequential steps that include summarizing through think-aloud.  Verbalization takes them to a higher level of thinking, developing a deeper understanding of texts.

• Understands what is needed to know for a specific task.
• Integrates skills developed over time.
• Steers students into adulthood (transfer skills).
• Develops strategic thinking (process information).
• Monitors understanding.

Teens and young adults with ADHD require reading comprehension for academic achievement.  The major goal is to identify the correct appreciation of learning tasks and what knowledge and skills they require.  Metacognitive reading provides a systematic process to understand complex issues, through strategic thinking.

“Our kids” in high school and college focus on content area reading.  Improve comprehension, vocabulary, and attentiveness:  Begin by thinking about thinking.

What strategies do you use when you don’t understand what you’re reading?