Why is reading so hard for kids with ADHD?

What makes reading hard for a child with ADHD?

The signs of ADHD in children include trouble holding attention on tasks, being easily distracted, losing track of things, fidgeting and finding it hard to stay seated. (CDC) Independent reading asks for almost all of them at once: sit still, keep your eyes on the line, hold what happened two pages ago, and do it without anyone else in the room.

Comprehension also depends on executive functions such as working memory and planning, which ADHD commonly affects. A child may decode every word correctly and still not be able to tell you what happened, because the story never got held long enough to make sense. (CHADD)

Could it be more than ADHD?

Sometimes. Reading disabilities and ADHD occur together more often than chance would predict. A large study found that young people with a reading disability were more likely than those without one to meet the criteria for ADHD, and that the link was stronger for inattention than for hyperactivity. (Willcutt and Pennington, 2000) If your child struggles to sound out words, guesses at words from the first letter, or reads aloud much more slowly than classmates, ask the school or your doctor about a reading assessment as well. We are a reading journal, not clinicians; see our medical disclaimer.

What helps at home

Shorter, more often

Ten minutes a day beats forty minutes on Sunday. End while it is still going well, so the next session is easy to start.

Let them choose

Interest drives ADHD attention. Comics, graphic novels, joke books, books about a game they love: all of it is reading. The goal at this stage is a child who wants to read, not a child who has read the right books.

Let them move

Reading on a beanbag, lying on the floor, standing at the counter or bouncing on a ball all count. Some research suggests movement can go along with better working memory performance in children with ADHD. See reading with hyperactive ADHD.

Audio counts

Listening to stories builds vocabulary and a love of books, and it gives a child access to stories above their decoding level. Listening along with the printed book, called immersion reading, joins the two. See do audiobooks count.

Read together and talk

Take turns reading pages, or you read while they follow. Stop at the end of a chapter and ask one easy question: what do you think happens next? Saying the story back is a gentle form of the retrieval practice that helps memory in research with students. (Roediger and Karpicke, 2006)

Make progress visible, without streaks

A paper chart with a sticker per session works. Avoid streaks that a missed day breaks; a broken streak teaches a child that they failed. Our reading log has no streaks for that reason.

Family reading apps

Some families use an app to keep a shared routine. Yomu Inc., the company behind the Magic Bookmark recap app, also publishes YOMU - Family Reading Habits, an app aimed at families building a reading routine with children. (yomu.com) Magic Bookmark itself is rated 13+ on the App Store, so it suits teenagers reading on their own rather than younger children. (App Store) We have not reviewed either app hands-on.