Another question.... has anyone had any luck with fidget toys?
Maybe I'm wrong but I struggle to see how DS wouldn't just make them a weapon of distraction - part of me thinks they would only work for children who are much less fidgety and disruptive than DS (ie if you gave him a fluffy ball he would play with it for 2 minutes then throw it..) but I'm open to suggestions so if they have worked for anyone with a very disruptive child I'd love to hear about it.
I'm thinking of getting him some of the chew jewelry just to save his clothes...
Do you think it could work with rules? So for example, give him the fluffy ball, but tell him he can't throw it, that if he no longer wants to play with it, he can just put it down.
The idea with the fidget toy is that because the neurotransmitters aren't firing at full strength some ad/hd kids need extra sensory stimulation and a fiddle toy on their lap or even a chew toy or in some cases sound can provide sensory input so they can concentrate better on their work because the need is satisfied.
Clear as mud?
I think I need to try all if this stuff at home before challenging the teacher. I'm not sure she copes well with the unusual.
Every time I see the term chew toy I think of my dog lol.
He does chew a lot. Lots of his clothes have holes gnawed in them and missing buttons.
I used to eat my books.....
My DS2 is very much a sensory seeker. He concentrates better when he is fidgeting with squishy toys, etc. We do have to be careful though as he can easily become over stimulated. He loves the big gym balls but more then 5 mins using them and he gets very over excited. He's the same with certain fluffy textures too. We have been told heavy work is great for kids like this. So getting them to do handstands, carry heavy things from one end of the yard to the other, etc. Also pressure works for calming. We wrap him in a big blanket sometimes for a few minutes really tightly. After doing this a few times he is significantly calmer - for a short while at least to complete homework Perhaps that is something you could try to see what effect it has?
Zazou, tell me more about the clothes chewing? My DS has destroyed most of his tops by chewing the collar and chews his tie at school! Drives me nuts, but I just thought it was one of those habits like chewing finger nails etc.
Not sure about fidget toys, but in Prep and G1 the school provided my DS with a special cushion to sit on when on the floor as he seemed unable to sit still. It was made from rubber and had hundreds of little poking finger things (clear on that?!) and the idea was to provide the sensory stimulation that he would otherwise get by rolling around the floor. It worked a treat and he no longer needs it (he's in G2 now).
I've only just started reading up on all this in the last week (I think I have every book in my local library lol) but as from what I've read the clothes chewers are often oral sensory seekers - they like an oral fix to stimulate the neurotransmitters in the frontal lobe. For some of them it can help them concentrate, for others it helps them stay calmer.
Some OT's have developed chew 'toys' and jewelry (chewelry) for them so they can satisfy the need to chew without destroying clothes etc. They can come on lanyards that they wear around their necks (with safety clips) or clips with extendable thingies so they can carry them in their pocket. There are a few different brands in the OT/sensory toy shops. There are also tubes they can chew and textured shapes that are more like traditional teethers and there are some that can go on the end of pencils for the pencil killers.
How interesting! I've learned lots of new stuff in the last 24 hours... Makes me miss teaching though - I'd love to have implemented some of these strategies with children I've taught.
The oral fixation is familiar, not just with ADD/ADHD kids though. I've used fidget toys with some kids, with moderate success. One issue is that there is always some other kid in the class who wants one as well, or thinks its 'not fair' that someone else is 'playing' when they get in trouble for having things in their hands. Pencil grips worked well and i seem to remember someone suggesting some 'finger fidgets' where they fidget with their own fingers rather than something actually in their hands. At the very least, it saves so many destroyed pencils and rubbers, and the parents from having to buy new stationery constantly... took me quite a while to 'get' that these kids weren't wanton destroyers and vandals, they just needed to be doing something with their hands or mouths!
The caffeine also intrigues me as its always been such a no no.
Yeah, DD2 had/has a weak pencil grip, so we used something fluffy or silky wrapped around the pencil. We just use normal pencil grips now, but they still help.
I'll be doing way more research on the caffeine theory when I have time. I suspect DD3 will be somewhere on the ADD lines & today let her have some of my coke from yesterday... Probably more likely coincidence, but she was so placid at work this morning. She usually plays up coz she's bored & doesn't have my attention, but this morning she was pretty chilled. Come lunch & she started playing up, so I gave her some of my iced coffee. And she was calmer again...
I was a coke (a-cola) addict. But I've cut right back recently. I still need a coffee in the mornings & will usually have one before bed as well, but the before bed one never affects my sleep. I've always thought I should've been dx ADD. I have all the symptoms as an adult & had them as a kid. I was the classic 'day dreamer'. I wish now that was more understood (still isn't).
I'll be reading more, & if caffeine helps out with DD at work, I might keep trialling it. Might even try it with DD2 for her homework. I've considered giving her that 3rd dose some days, but it just doesn't seem worth it. But she needs something to get her to settle & concentrate on what she's doing for more than 30 seconds at a time.
Just bought some spiky balls and tangly stuff at the $2 shop. We'll try them with homework over the weekend and if it helps I'll pass them on to his teacher.
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Perhaps that is something you could try to see what effect it has?
but she was so placid at work this morning. She usually plays up coz she's bored & doesn't have my attention, but this morning she was pretty chilled. Come lunch & she started playing up, so I gave her some of my iced coffee. And she was calmer again...
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