Inattention
Children with
ADD symptoms of inattention:
- Often do not give close attention to details or make careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities
- Often have trouble keeping attention on tasks or play activities
- Often do not seem to listen when spoken to directly
- Often do not follow instructions and fail to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (not due to rebellious behavior or failure to understand instructions)
- Often have trouble organizing activities
- Often avoid, dislike, or don't want to do things that take a lot of mental effort for a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework)
- Often lose things needed for tasks and activities (e.g., toys, school assignments, pencils, books, or tools)
- Are often easily distracted
- Are often forgetful in daily activities.
Children with inattentive ADD symptoms have a hard time keeping their minds on any one thing and may get bored with a task after only a few minutes. If they are doing something they really enjoy, they usually have no trouble paying attention. However, focusing deliberate, conscious attention to organizing and completing a task or learning something new is difficult.
Homework is particularly hard for children with inattentive ADD symptoms. They will forget to write down an assignment or leave it at school. They will forget to bring a book home or bring the wrong one. The homework, if finally finished, is full of errors and erasures. Homework is often accompanied by frustration for both the parent and the child.
Hyperactivity and Impulsivity
As defined today, ADD does not have a hyperactive or impulsivity component. For more information about these symptoms, see the full eMedTV article on
ADHD Symptoms.
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