"Please Sit Still" May Not Be the Best Advice to Students With ADHD

Children with an Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often have difficulty with attention and working memory.  We have all seen those students who just cannot manage to keep from squirming or fidgeting in their seats, no matter how hard they may try.

An article describing recent research from Florida State University suggests that trying to sit still when you're driven to move may actually work against your ability to use working memory to solve problems.  Although this study was on a fairly small group of students (25), the findings were consistent with previous research showing that students diagnosed with an Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) "did better on working memory tests when they were able to move around, suggesting that these kids may benefit cognitively from behaviors like squirming or fidgeting."

Article on Fidgeting and Students with ADHD

Here is a link to another blog we posted on this topic:

http://schoolpsychws.blogspot.com/2015/09/letting-adhd-kids-fidget-in-class.html


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