Part 2: Benefits of Homeschooling a Child with ADHD

So, say someone has a kiddo with ADHD. They have tried traditional school. Being in traditional school with ADHD symptoms can lead to a lot of time after school spent on work. Perhaps it is make-up work that didn't get done during the day. Perhaps it is homework, but doing the homework is like pulling teeth. The kid is tired and stressed. That kid might spend hours (and you along with them) doing this work, plus studying sight words or multiplication tables. Now, by the time that kid goes to bed, they have put in a full day at school, then multiple hours at night. The child and the parent may get exhausted very quickly.

If that child begins homeschooling, something magical might happen. The child can go at his or her own pace. That child can take breaks when frustrated. That child can get individualized attention from the parent for help with tough problems. That child can learn in ways s/he learns best, whether that is documentaries, museums, audiobooks, academic kits, art, nature hikes, educational cartoons or even automated computerized curriculum. Because a typical traditional school day only entails fewer than four hours of actual learning, a homeschool day can be shorter than the seven or so hours of a traditional school day. Homeschools don't have to shuffle kids from class to class. Homeschools don't lose time taking attendance or dealing with behavioral issues from large classrooms. The child gets to sleep in longer. The child gets to play outside more. (Sometimes children still get their recess taken away as punishment, so they lose time outside at traditional school, see https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/teachers-cancel-recess-punishment-state-laws-rcna27531). The child can eat when he is hungry, and easily get better quality food than from a cafeteria or what can easily be put in a lunchbox. The child can wiggle freely.

In the end, the child and family may feel less stressed rather than more.

In the end, the child might be able to receive more research-based interventions that have nothing to do with traditional school or medication. Some of the things in the above paragraphs have actually been studied and found to help kids with ADHD! For example, a lack of sleep can mimic or sometimes play a causal factor in ADHD (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4340974/). Contact with nature can reduce ADHD symptoms (https://cedar.wwu.edu/wwuet/763/). Increased vitamin D (in this case, from the sun at home) might help ADHD symptoms, though the research is still not completely clear yet. A healthier diet, (more achievable at home with fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator and a more relaxed schedule), can reduce ADHD symptoms (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9608000/). More time and opportunity to exercise might reduce symptoms and might even help the child have better long-term outcomes (https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12640-011-9260-0?inline-read-more).

Does homeschooling cure ADHD? NOPE. Is homeschooling for every child with ADHD? Absolutely not. However, is it an option that might work for some families and might result in a better quality of life for the child and perhaps the family? My opinion is YES.