A parent can increase their child's desirable behavior by providing positive consequences when such behavior occurs. For example, a promised weekend reward for good behavior during the week may not work because it is too far in the future to be effective. Instead, rewards generally need to be delivered on a daily basis, or even more frequently, to motivate good behavior. The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center offers a 14-week training program to help parents learn how to handle their ADHD child. It is called Parent Child Interactive Therapy.
Parents play with their child, while being monitored by a psychologist from behind a two-way mirror.
The parents wear a hearing aid device which allows the psychologist to make suggestions to help the parent reinforce positive behavior. Most experts agree that treatment for ADHD should address many aspects of the child's abilities and should not be limited to the use of just medications. There are 685,000 students in Oklahoma Schools. But that number has tripled in the last five years. Educators say it's not hard to accommodate ADHD kids now, but it could be if the numbers keep rising.