Ten percent of American children are estimated to have Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Children with ADHD often struggle in school because they get distracted and have difficulty following through. Kids with ADHD also tend to LOVE screen technology. Not only do screens offer them a world of on-demand discovery, but they can also gain expertise over time and earn much-needed social capital that they may have difficulty earning in real life. To help your family make their way through the world with a fun, positive connection and better screen safety, access Dr. Tracy Bennett’s expert parent and family coaching videos through our GKIS Screen Safety Essentials Course. In today’s GKIS article, we will discuss the benefits of technology and app recommendation for children with ADHD.
What is ADHD?
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood. Children with ADHD have trouble paying attention, controlling their behavior, and can be very active as if driven by a motor.[1] ADHD can impact emotions, behaviors, and the ability to learn new things. It is usually diagnosed in childhood and often lasts into adulthood. About 60% to 85% of the children diagnosed with ADHD at a young age continue to have it as teens, although symptoms might change with age.[2]
The Three Types of ADHD
Inattentive Type
ADHD, Predominantly Inattentive Type is characterized by a daydreamer who has difficulty paying attention, listening, and following through with tasks. Children with this type of ADHD are often overlooked until late grade school because they are quiet and not disruptive. However, their ability to function to their true ability is impaired in all contexts of their lives. It has been shown that more girls are diagnosed with inattentive ADHD than boys.[3]
Symptoms of ADHD, Predominantly Inattentive Type
Often has trouble giving close attention to details and makes careless mistakes
Has difficulty sustaining attention to certain tasks or play activities
Frequently distracted and doesn’t seem to pay attention to those speaking directly to them
Often does not follow instructions and fails to complete tasks
Has difficulties organizing tasks and activities
Doesn’t enjoy and avoids activities that require them to use mental effort
Hyperactive-Impulsive Type
ADHD, Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Type is characterized by a child who fidgets, has trouble staying in their seat, and talks a lot. It is hard for them to stay still for long. They tend to be impulsive and interrupt others. It is more common for a child with hyperactivity to have more accidents and sustain frequent injuries. They also tend to be identified at younger ages because of their acting out potential.
Symptoms of ADHD, Predominantly Hyperactive-Impulsive Type
Frequently fidgets with or taps hands or feet
Leaves the seat in situations when remaining seated is expected
Runs or climbs in situations where it is inappropriate
Is “on the go” and doesn’t seem to get tired
Talks excessively
Answers questions before the person has time to finish it
ADHD Combined Type
ADHD, Combined Type is characterized by a child that has trouble paying attention and difficulty sitting still and staying quiet. This is the most common type of ADHD. It is characterized by the symptoms from both the inattentive criteria list and the hyperactive-impulsive criteria list.
How Technology Helps Children With ADHD
Children with ADHD commonly struggle with time management, organization, and failure to focus. Technology and apps can help children with ADHD stay organized, reach their goals, and fight the urge to get distracted.
GKIS-Recommended Apps for Kids With ADHD
Rescue Time
Rescue Time is a web-based time management and analytics tool that helps children be more efficient and productive. One of the symptoms of ADHD is “distraction.” This app aims to prevent distractions and any possibilities of children getting scattered. It allows you to rate each activity from “very distractive” to “very productive” and sets goals for children while tracking progress. With all of that rescued time, be sure to plan fun family activities. For great ideas, check out Dr. B’s GKIS article, #TogetherAtHome Family-Friendly Activity Ideas
Roblox
Roblox is available for iOS and Android. It is a video game that is reported to strengthen planning skills, organization, and working memory as children learn as they go. Roblox is a game where people come together to create and imagine as they play. It is a fun game where the whole family can have fun. To learn more about the risks and benefits of Roblox, check out our The GKIS Sensible Parent’s Guide to Roblox.
News-O-Matic
News-O-Matic is available for iOS. It is a captivating app that delivers news in small chunks which is useful for older children with ADHD. The stories vary from funny to serious and have a read-aloud option for kids who struggle with reading.
Mindnode
Mindnode is available for iOS and it is designed to help children focus and be organized. It is an app that uses mind maps to help children visualize their thoughts. The map can be color-coded and contains images. Children with ADHD tend to be energetic; this app can help make sure that they stay concentrated.
Relaxation and Mindfulness Apps
Headspace
Headspace is a mindfulness app that helps children exercise, meditate, and visualize. This is beneficial because it helps them take a moment to focus and stay calm.
Toonia Colorbook
Toonia Colorbook is an app where children use coloring activities to help them relax. It can help children concentrate, calm down, and keep their minds balanced. Keeping the brain busy with something simple as coloring can have a relaxing effect.
I’m a child of the ‘80’s. This essentially means six things shaped my understanding of the world: The Love Boat, Atari (Frogger!), Fast Times at Ridgemont High, being a latchkey kid, the birth of MTV, and the fear of nuclear holocaust. (And yes, as an Internet safety expert, it has not escaped me that four of those six things involved screen media).
Now back to nuclear bombing . . . It sucked being a kid and learning that I had an omnipotent and invisible enemy powerful enough to eradicate Earth. Thanks Cold War for ruining my childhood security.
And OMG, remember the television show The Day After? This lovely little drama depicted a full-scale nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union. Nearly 100 million Americans watched the first broadcast, the content of which reportedly inspired then President Reagan to note in his diary that the show was “very effective and left me greatly depressed.” This from the guy in charge of THE BUTTON, also known as THE NUCLEAR FOOTBALL*. Nuclear war made the 1980s super scary.
Flash forward. For research, and to get an idea of the current blood curdling fear tantamount to 1980s nuclear war, I just walked into the playroom and asked my 11 and 13 year olds, “What is your biggest fear?” Now keep in mind, my 13 year-old got second in her school on the super quiz test on ecology without even studying. In other words, I was all giddy for them to say global warming or Internet predators or some such so I could hop back to my computer and develop today’s nuclear football argument…
But true to form, messing up all of my pie-in-the-sky expectations, my children could only come up with was, and I quote, 1) “You” and 2) “Your dancing.” Seriously, that’s what they said.
So besides the fact that my kids are hilarious and wrong about many things (my reverse trailer dance move is unrivaled), I posit our smartphones have personal nuclear football capability. Not for blowing up the planet or whatever, but definitely for blowing up your life.
You’d be shocked, or maybe not, to hear all the ways my patients have ignited their lives with a push of the send button. I know that sounds hyperbolic, but it isn’t. And I’m not just talking about teenagers. I’m talking about sound-minded, responsible adults.
What kind of screen media bombs have I seen detonated?
I’ve seen every type of pathological relationship birthed and every type of secure attachment detonated. I’ve seen wives lose their husbands, husbands lose their wives, best friends betrayed, kids groomed, daters deceived, reputations ruined, jobs lost, car accidents triggered, parents infuriated, and drug deals executed. I even heard of a woman who fell on the escalator while she was texting, resulting in her hair getting tangled in the landing mechanism. I know, arrrggg! I’ve seen an epidemic of powerful destruction facilitated by an impulsive text, a compulsive iChat exchange, or a traumatic video.
Take a second and run a slide show in your imagination of the horrors you have witnessed online. I, for example, still cringe at the memory of videos I’ve seen of people jumping to their deaths from tall buildings, innocent people getting knocked unconscious by malicious pranksters, and spider babies crawling out of its unfortunate victim’s flesh. Shiver. Now imagine a six year-old enduring these images. Nightmare material, indeed!
As a clinical psychologist, we are taught how to nurture our emotional health despite being a daily witness to the ravage of our patient’s emotional safety. Like you, we strive to maintain a healthy lifestyle with solid supportive relationships. And in order to help us work through the pain that we carry as a result, we set up regular consults with our colleagues. During these lunch meetings we speak of our sadness, disgust, anger, fear, and other leftover ashes from the hardest psychotherapy sessions. In order to not burn out or become deeply cynical, we work to deliberately preserve our emotional fitness.
My challenge to you today is to consider what type of emotional fitness strategies do you engage in? Do you take steps to protect yourself from destructive messages, images, and videos? Do you enrich your inner world with healthy relationships and self-care strategies like imagery, mindfulness, and a heart full of compassion? And more specific to GetKidsInternetSafe, have you taught your kids just what they need to do in order to protect themselves and then heal if they take a misstep?
In addition to blocking, filtering, and setting screen media limits, I challenge you to take that extra step and teach them powerful health strategies like good nutrition, sleep hygiene, and exercise. And certainly don’t leave out psychological strategies like mindfulness, imagery, diaphragmatic breathing, and positive thinking. But most importantly, we all must be willing to filter out content that drains our hope, while feeding in content that inspires us like enriching passions and loving friendships.
I’m the mom psychologist who will help you GetYourKidsInternetSafe.
*What is the nuclear football? It is reported to be black briefcase carried by the president’s aid that contains everything necessary to launch a nuclear attack in minutes. According to Bill Gulley, former director of the White House Military Office, the briefcase contains two black books (one with retaliatory nuclear strike options and another classified shelter sites), a manila folder with instructions on how to operate the emergency broadcast system, and an index card with authentication codes. The nuclear football is always within reach of the acting president. Is your smartphone really much different?
