Improve Concentration with Reading Help A love of reading can open doors to imagination, discovery, and empathy. Many learners with ADHD don’t fall in love with reading right away—but with proper reading help, anyone can become a lifelong reader. How do you transform reading struggles into triumphs, especially when dealing with ADHD? While there’s no quick fix, it’s always useful to understand how this disorder may be causing challenges for you or your learner. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders in the United States. Often diagnosed in childhood, it can continue to affect individuals throughout adulthood, too. It’s most frequently characterized by restless thoughts or behavior, poor impulse control, and difficulties with focus. To make things more complicated, symptoms can appear differently based on subtype, biology, age, and many other factors. Some individuals struggle to stay focused on tasks, while others can spend hours or days deeply immersed. What does that mean for you? To deal with the challenges of this condition, you have to first understand how they may be presenting for you or your learner. With that in mind, let’s dig into how ADD can affect reading, reading help tips, and more. Overcoming Reading Challenges for You or Your Learner How ADHD can Affect Reading Reading isn’t just a matter of recognizing letters and vocabulary. It’s an incredibly intricate mental process that relies on many different skills working together. In order to read even a single page of a book, you have to shut out distractions, decode letters and letter combinations, retain key details, build mental pictures, and so much more. Unsurprisingly, this can be a tough ask for neurodivergent kids, teens, and adults. With attention deficit disorder in particular, here are a few big challenges: Focus. In today’s world especially, it’s difficult to ignore the many distractions vying for a reader’s attention—phone alerts, nearby conversations, and more. It’s also easy to skip a line of text by accident, making it even harder to follow along with a book. Energy. Reading means sitting still for long periods of time—sometimes hours. That can be a strain on someone with ADD, who may get tired or even doze off. For hyperactive types, it can be taxing in a different way, causing fidgeting or frustration. Working memory. Readers must store all kinds of details in their heads—details that help to process complex sentences, follow scenes, remember characters, and more. Since working memory is frequently impaired for those with ADD, that’s often a struggle. Self-control. Regulating emotions and interest are common challenges for individuals with ADHD, and that makes reading even more challenging. Readers are more likely to grow frustrated or dispirited when encountering difficulties, or otherwise lose interest. It’s always helpful to name the specific challenges you or your learner are encountering. Once you know what you’re dealing with, it’s easier to explore strategies for reading help! 5 Tips For Reading Help Struggling to read is a common experience—but it’s one that can be addressed with creativity, patience, and kindness. Let’s review a few top tips for reading help: Tap into their interests. Enthusiasm is half the battle with ADD! Let your child pick out a book that looks interesting to them. To discover your own literary tastes: ask a librarian for recommendations based on a book, movie, or TV show you already enjoy. Try different reading formats. There are many different ways to read, and all of them are valid. Try out audiobooks to see if you or your learner enjoys this format. An e-reader can also be great—especially when you’re at the doctor’s or waiting in a long line. Take breaks. Read in small chunks—15 or 25 minutes—and take breaks in between. For kids, use those breaks to get them moving around. These small chunks of time can make reading feel less daunting, and can also stimulate working memory. Talk about it. It’s easy to forget your place in a book, but small strategies help. After your learner has finished reading for the day, ask them questions about what they read. What did they enjoy or dislike? For yourself, jot a few notes down after reading. Celebrate victories. Reading can be an uphill battle for those who struggle, which is why it’s important to celebrate every victory. Instead of focusing on innate skills, focus on how you or your learner put in the hard work today! How Brain Training Offers Reading Help Encouragement, feedback, and structure can all be crucial for the ADHD brain. That’s why, if you or your learner needs reading help, you may want to consider one-on-one brain training from LearningRx! We personalize each training program based on the unique needs and abilities of each client. That way, students can focus on those skills they wish to improve on. We offer one-on-one training that’s specific to individuals with ADD, as well as personalized reading help programs to boost reading skills. Through intense, focused drills and exercises, clients can work on strengthening those cognitive skills needed for improved reading, learning, and thinking! For kids, teens, and adults with ADHD, it’s never too late to fall in love with reading. To discuss our reading help programs, visit LearningRx online or call 866-BRAIN-01.