How to Recognize ADD in a Five Year Old
- 1). Watch your child, taking note of how often he is in motion. Children who suffer from ADD are often nearly constantly in motion. If your 5-year-old seems to be bouncing in his chair, fidgeting or rocking from side to side without cease, it could be an indication of ADD.
- 2). Pay attention to how often your child talks. Because 5-year-olds are always learning about the world around them, they can tend to be chatter boxes. However, if your child's talking is borderline incessant, there may be an attention deficit.
- 3). Consider his distractability. Children who suffer from ADD are often easily distracted. If your child seems to be unable to dedicate his attention to one task, he might be suffering from the effects of this disorder. To test your child's distractability, watch how he plays with his toys. If in the span of 10 minutes he starts to color a picture, begins to build a tower, starts to lay out his cars and turns on his favorite TV show, it may indicate ADD.
- 4). Watch for tasks to go uncompleted. Because children with ADD are easily distracted before a task is completed, they often fail to see things through to their conclusion. You may particularly start to notice this as a problem once your preschool- or kindergarten-attending 5-year-old begins to make attempts at homework, as getting a child with ADD to complete work of this type is often quite taxing.
- 5). Speak to your child's teacher about your concerns. For a child to be diagnosed with ADD, he must exhibit symptoms in more than one setting. At your parent-teacher conference, voice your concerns and ask your child's teacher if she thinks he may have an issue.
- 6). Voice your concerns to his doctor. If you suspect your child has ADD, seeking a medical diagnosis is quite important. Share your worries with your child's doctor to ensure that if your child is a sufferer he is diagnosed and his issues dealt with as quickly as possible.
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