RUNNING HEAD: Case Scenario 1
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Focus Assignment
Case Scenario 1
Case Scenario 1
Sarah Maine
Liberty University
Case Scenario 1
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The Tanya’s behaviors that I would like to see improved are as follows: not being able to
focus on one task at a time, “bouncing off the walls” or wandering around the room, not being
able to stay seated for more than a short period, and not being able to complete a task without
being distracted by one thing or another.
The two behaviors that I believe should be focused on first are being able to focus on one
task at a time and being able to sit in her seat for more than a short period of time. I believe these
are very important to focus on first and foremost because it creates a foundation to build on for
the future. Kirk, Gallagher, and Coleman tell us
Keeping students….engaged and on task is the first order of business….we can expect
off-task behavior if the tasks are too long, too hard, too boring, too repetitive, too vague,
or if they require more skill than the student has (2015, pp. 234).
This means that teachers need to make their assignments fun and interesting while also being
educational and instructionally appropriate for the students.
Self-Evaluation
I have known several people in my life with ADHD including my own brother, so I have
seen firsthand how this and similar disorders can affect a student’s learning. My brother always
has trouble focusing on his homework and easily gets distracted by anything and everything. It
takes my dad several attempts to get my brother to start - let alone finish - his homework, and I
see how frustrating it is for both of them.
This is why I believe getting students to stay focused on tasks and in their seat as much as
possible are the behaviors that need to be improved before all the others. “Movement and
kinesthetic activity has also been shown to help children with ADHD remain engaged in
learning” (Kirk et al., 2015, pp. 233). They recommend including a moderately intense physical
Case Scenario 1
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activity in the student’s school day to help the child focus more when in the classroom setting. In
my future classroom, I plan to do this by getting the students’ whole bodies involved in them
learning their music. We could add choreography to some of our songs or include physical
movement in our warm-ups.
References
Kirk, S., Gallagher, J., & Coleman, M. (2015). Educating exceptional children. Stamford, CT:
Cengage Learning.
