Summer Plans for Children with Attention Deficit Disorders (continued)

Step #1: Who is my child?

Your first step is to realistically assess your child's strengths, interests, and behavioral limitations. Write these down and review this list with the other caring and concerned people in your child's life, such as teachers, therapists, and recreational leaders. Think of specific situations and techniques when things have gone well. What were the characteristics of these situations? Who supervised the child? What did they do to calm him down or return him to the activity? What wastheir level of training? What were the characteristics of situations that did not work out?

Step #2: Researching programs

There are many resources for initially identifying programs. Your ultimate choice will require work on your part to track people down, get references, and follow-through on applications for much sought-after spots. Top quality programs fill early in the season! For starters, try contacting the local chapter of C.H.A.D.D. (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder), your local SEPTA Chapter (Special Education PTA), and the American Camping Association to inquire about appropriate programs in your area. Specialty magazines, such as Attention! ® Magazine also offer listings of ADHD specialty programs. There are also private referral services, some of which are "for-profit" services that have a financial arrangement with the camps they refer you to, while some do not. In the New York metropolitan area, the New York University Child Study Center runs the NYU Summer Program for Kids with ADHD.

Step #3: Questions & choices

The first question is "Should my child be in any program this summer?" This answer, almost certainly, is YES! You may feel guilty wanting "a break". You may feel overprotective of your child. But frankly, you probably need it and you deserve it. At the same time, a well run, structured program affords your child growth opportunities.

Perhaps the next questions will be "Does my child need a specialty camp or is a mainstreamed experience called for?" The decision will be based not only on your assessment of your child but the resources and flexibility of the program you are considering. There are several good programs that do not advertise being specifically "for ADHD children" but are more than happy to accommodate them and do so quite well. Open and honest communication with the program's directors about their actual past experiences with children similar to yours is essential. If your child has a history of utilizing time-outs, ask if they utilize this technique. If your child chooses not to participate in activities ask how they handle that. While some directors will be at ease with these inquiries, others may seem awkward, hesitant, and unsure, which should be a warning sign that they may not be geared up for children with ADHD.

Pay attention to your gut reactions. If you have a hyperactive, energetic, tree-climbing, impatient, low frustration tolerant child, the local museum's art appreciation and computer graphics workshop, with one adult, one high school aide and twenty-two children indoors, with only a once-a-week pool session may not work out. If you have a child who loves sports and active things, but can not tolerate competition, does not take instruction well, and has difficulty staying with one thing too long, the town tennis program led by well-intentioned high school tennis stars, with little or no experience in behavior management, is a recipe for disaster.

You may be considering sleepaway camp. Take into account your child's history with new situations and with separations in particular. How does the camp prepare first timers? How do they deal with homesickness and separation problems? Especially at overnight camp, find out how much time the child will be in unstructured situations. Children with ADHD and other issues fare much better in highly structured situations, with supervision by mature staff, specially trained in behavior modification techniques. Camps that are committed to integrating children with ADHD will be able to describe specifics, such as professionals who do staff training and ongoing consultation during the summer, or perhaps describe a Daily Behavior Report Card they used with a child.