This summer, Darlington teachers PK-12 are reading Blake Taylor's book, "ADHD and Me: What I Learned from Lighting Fires at the Dinner Table." Read Upper School math teacher Christie Atkins' insights below.
Blake Taylor's courage to share painful events and raw emotion is most impressive. His description of ADHD is very close to our family's experiences with autism; this book hit very close to home! I could write pages about Taylor's thoughts. His suggestions to alleviate symptoms were right on the mark. Blake's perspective about how interventions have positively changed his world is a gift to the modern day teacher!
If I had to identify one impression from "ADHD and Me" that cut me to the core, it would be the stories Blake shared about teachers who did not believe his condition is real. There is a ton of disillusion and betrayal on page 13 where an exasperated Blake states, "My teacher doesn't even believe me!" He expands on pages 112 and 113 with, "This condition is frequently misunderstood and misdiagnosed. In fact, many people still doubt it is a real thing, believing ADHD is not a legitimate condition but instead, an excuse for a badly behaved child or for poor parenting."
Chapter 10, however, brought my emotions to a boil with the story of first-grade teacher Mrs. Perril. It would be cold-hearted and unprofessional to expect a child with a broken arm to turn in the same level of penmanship as a child with no injury. It would border on criminal to take a child's glasses from him before he takes an exam so that he is not given an "advantage." An abnormality in brain chemistry is no less of a challenge to a student with ADHD.
Professional educators should, in my opinion, not only understand, but also encourage interventions that allow children like Blake the opportunities they deserve and need to learn. Unfortunately, there will always be teachers like Mrs. Perril who put having personal power above the goal of the child's learning. May it not be so at Darlington School!
Click here for more information about Darlington's Teaching and Learning Center. Others who have read the book are encouraged to share their thoughts in the comments below.
