Abby Russell, Associate Professor in Child and Adolescent Mental Health, University of Exeter
Context
Many children and young people show patterns of challenge in paying attention, regulating activity and impulse control that are commonly described as ADHD, and large-scale studies suggest that in a typical classroom at least one or two students would meet criteria for medically diagnosable ADHD, with many more experiencing these traits to a lesser degree or at particular times (Fabiano et al., 2024).
From a social model of disability perspective, these traits only become disabling when classroom routines, expectations and physical environments are built around a narrow idea of how children should concentrate, sit still and organise themselves, rather than accommodating a wider range of ways of thinking and learning (Russell et al., 2026; Fabiano et al., 2024).
A growing body of school-based research, including dozens of evaluated programmes internationally, shows that practical changes in teaching, task design and classroom structures can reduce barriers and improve engagement and outcomes for students who experience ADHD (DuPaul et al., 2022; Moore et al., 2018; Staff et al., 2021). Many of these changes can be done at class level, rather than having to target individual children specifically.
Even where a young person has a formal ADHD diagnosis and may use medication, supportive relationships, predictable routines, opportunities for movement and teaching that harnesses strengths such as creativity, energy and problem-solving remain essential. Families may also have their own experiences of ADHD and of schooling, so adopting a strengths-based, compassionate and collaborative stance with parents and carers helps to ensure that support focuses on unlocking participation and success, rather than blaming the child or the family for difficulties that arise in a mismatched environment (Russell et al., 2023; Sibley and Yeguez, 2018).
Action points for teachers
Engaging with hobbies and interests
Tailoring learning and activities to tap into the topics and formats that you know interest the student can be very powerful. This might be as simple as adding some pictures of sharks to a worksheet or allowing students to do a project in a format they really like. This will help them to feel enthusiastic and motivated (Russell et al., 2026).
Use specific, labelled praise
Students with ADHD can often experience negative feedback in school. We recommend that you work hard to ‘catch them out being good’ – pointing out all the good things they are doing, even if they are tiny, and being specific about what it is they are doing right and what that shows you about them. You can make this a whole-class activity, and have students ‘picking up the positives’ about one another, or do this individually (Russell et al., 2026; Staff et al., 2021).
Build movement into the lesson and day
Sitting still for long periods of time is a struggle for all humans, and students with ADHD are no exception. In fact, some will struggle to sit still for even a couple of minutes, and may be hyper-sensitive to all the small noises around them, meaning that staying focused can be difficult. Building in opportunities for students to move around throughout lessons is really important. You could ask them to help with classroom tasks, such as getting up to shut the door or handing out materials, or have the whole class stand up, stretch up to the sky, turn around three times, touch the floor and sit down. This only takes seconds. You could ask students to swap seats if doing think-pair-share or group activities, rather than staying still and talking to the person next to them, and build in larger movement breaks where possible (Russell et al., 2026).
Time isn’t a tangible thing
Many students with ADHD struggle with time. They might not know how much time has passed or how long they have left to complete an activity. Use timekeeping devices and reminders to help your students orient themselves in time, and don’t blame them if they get lost in a daydream or activity; just gently bring them back to where they should be and remind them of exactly what you want them to do next (Russell et al., 2026).
Top tips
- Work on helping students to recognise and label their emotions, to help students with ADHD understand and articulate how they are feeling to others.
- Chunk tasks and instructions into manageable bites.
- Use a visual timetable and check off what you’ve already completed that day.
- Discuss with students what helps them focus (who is around them, what room they are in and where they should sit, noise-cancelling headphones, etc.).
- Have students identify adults in the school whom they know and trust. Let these adults know they are trusted adults for the student.
- Where possible, allocate professional development and protected time to adults to enable them to learn how to effectively support students with ADHD.
- If you are frustrated or annoyed by a student’s behaviour or challenges (we are all human!), discuss this confidentially with appropriate staff (such as the SENDCo) – general staffroom conversations can cause others to assume the worst about the student before they even know them (Russell et al., 2026).
Want to know more?
- The Oxford Textbook of ADHD, 2nd ed. (coming 2026): Chapters on ADHD and education, including one by me with a summary of the evidence of school-based support for ADHD, split by school stage.
- All About ADHD: The Complete Practical Guide for Classroom Teachers by Linda Pfiffner. Linda is one of the leading academics in ADHD school-based research, and her collaborative life skills programme is the best that’s out there. This book is a handy reference guide for school staff, easy to digest and use.
- The Flex toolkit (toolsforschools.info) and the IN-hub website (toolsforschools.info/inhub) have been developed by my team. Flex is available through an annual subscription for schools and is a personalisable toolkit of strategies to support students with ADHD (particularly in primary school), based on the best research evidence. IN-hub is a searchable index of neurodiversity resources for schools that links you to evidence-informed programmes and activities you can use.
The author is the developer of both the Flex and IN-hub websites.
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