Aug09 Head Start Champion

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I was at a point in my lie when I elt I needed a change. I had

worked in womens health throughout most o my proessional

career. My ather had recently passed away, and I ound mysel

re-examining my lie. An opportunity to become certifed as aParent to Parent teacher came my way. I had a grandson with

AD/HD and thought it would be good to know more and give

back to my community.

Soon I was teaching my frst group o parents, sponsoredby the CHADD chapter in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and

assisted by the PTA o my local public school in Lambertville,

New Jersey. It was a great group o parents, some o whom

drove seventy miles to and rom the workshop each week orseven weeks. They came rom both sides o the Delaware River,

which separates the two states.

The parents in my frst P2P class taught me that teachers in

the public school systems did not understand AD/HD very well.My son had taught my grandsons teachers about AD/HD. I had

considered this an isolated event, but I learned rom my P2P

parents that it was a airly common experience. Working with

their schools to get adequate accommodations and educationalplans required countless hours o time spent with teachers, child

study teams, doctors, psychiatristsand sometimes,

lawyers. I began to see the enormous need or more

inormation or teachers o children with AD/HD.

te road o head sar

Energized and ready to make some changes, I realized

I had begun a journey. The need or more proession-

als in the AD/HD ield was very clear. I quit my job.I began to read: Barkley, Brown, Bussing, Greene, Hallowell,

Illes, Rie, Snyder, Solden, Tuckman, Zeigler, and more.

I listened at conerences. I enrolled in the ADD Coach

Academy. I learned everything I could and continueto learn every day.

The most emotionally difcult thing to learn was

that the majority o children in our juvenile justice

programs and adults in our correctional acilitieshave undiagnosed mental health disorders, mainly

undiagnosed AD/HD. My frst experience as a social

worker ater graduate school had been in criminal

justice, working with women in correctional acilities.I knew that minorities rom underserved communi-

ties were the majority popula-

tion in my states prisons, and

I remembered the low rates

o diagnosis among AricanAmericans and Hispanics.

I learned that AD/HD is not

understood by judges, lawyers, probation and pa-role ofcers, and others in the correctional system,

including the special education teachers working

with adjudicated children.

Where to begin? I knew that early diagnosisand treatment were critical. My grandson had

been diagnosed at three. I the little ones could

be identifed early, there was hope that they

could get the help they needed. Without

diagnosis and treatment, they mightenter an uninormed public school

system to be labeled a bad kid.

I identifed and treated early,they might avoid spending

I wAnt to tell you A story,one that I hope will resonate with manyparents o children with AD/HD. Its about the need or more support services or all o our

children with AD/HD. And it is about how CHADDs Parent to Parent teacher certifcation

program can give you a oundation o knowledge to help provide that support. Its about

curiosity, passion and creation. This is my story, but it could be yours.

lARgEphOTO:MOnkEybUSinESSiMAgES/dREAMSTiME

AllOThERphOTOSCOURTESybCCAp

by Judith chapion, msW

Judith chpion, msw, is a certied Parent to Parent teacher and family coach based

in Lambertville, New Jersey. She also trains early childhood educators in teaching strategies

to maximize the learning potential and socialization of children with AD/HD. Champion

has worked in the healing artsspecically in womens health, prenatal care, and

AD/HDfor more than fteen years. Contact her at [email protected].

bere Coutys

hea Start roram

rovies services

to aroximately400 cilre a

teir families.


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their school years eeling like they were

stupid and unable to learn. They might

not be called lazy and eventually havetheir sel-esteem reduced so low that

they drop out o school because being

there makes them eel so terrible. Once

on the streets, they might not sel-medicate, turn to substance abuse, or

engage in illegal behavior. I realized

that children with unaddressed needs

rom AD/HD were being unneledinto ourjuvenile justice programs andeventually into our prisons.

The real crime in this cycle o undi-

agnosed AD/HD is that children with AD/HD can be helped, i

identifed and treated. Multimodal treatment works, and we arelearning more every day. Give a child structure, exercise, good

nutrition, medication i needed, behavior modifcation, appro-

priate school accommodations and lots o love, and he or shecan be successul.

And then it came to me: Head Start was the next place or

me to go on my journey.

Wa can you do for 400 cildren?

The director o New Jerseys Community Action Programs,

many o which run Head Start programs with unding rom

the U.S. Department o Health and Human Services, allowed

me to make a presentation to its local directors in June 2008.Allan DeGiulio, PhD, director o the Bergen County Commu-

nity Action Partnership, immediately asked what I could do or

the 400 children in his countys Head Start. I told him I couldtrain his early childhood educators about AD/HD, teach them

how to identiy an at-risk child, and provide them with strate-

gies designed to modiy inappropriate behaviors and increase

a childs ability to learn. He said, Send me a contract.With 21 classrooms at our sites, Bergen Countys Head

Start program provides services to approximately 400 low-in-

come three- to fve-year-olds and their amilies. Most classes

run rom 8:45 AM to 3:45 PM, September through June. Each

class is comprised o a maximum o 18preschool children, an early childhood

educator, and a teaching assistant. The

children receive a ull range o educa-

tional, medical, nutritional, and socialservices. The program is ree to amilies

who can demonstrate fnancial eligibil-

ity, as defned by ederal poverty guide-

lines. Parents are expected to take anactive part in their childs education.

I began to work with Bergen Coun-

ty Head Start director Nancy Griner.

In September 2008, I trained all o thecountys Head Start sta. Many not

only knew o children who might be

at risk, but also recognized AD/HD

in their own amilies. When we werefnished, they knew how to identiy a

child at risk o AD/HD.

how cae conferencing workI developed an observation orm or

teachers to document and rate a childs

behavior compared to other children in

the classroom in fve areas: activity level,attention span, emotional control, excit-

ability, and aggressiveness. Ater the initial

observation, the teacher meets with di-

rector o disabilities Ellen DeCarlo, whothen axes me the observation orms.

Each month, I visit the classroom

and observe a set o three or our chil-

dren. My recorded observations include both active and quiet

periods: when children are receiving and responding to direc-tions, participating in group activities, engaging in circle time,

waiting in line to brush their teeth, or eating lunch at the table

with their riends.Later that day, I hold a case conerence with the teacher,

assistant teacher, director o disabilities Ellen DeCarlo, and as-

sistant director o disabilities Suzanne Steeleman. We discuss

the childs classroom behavior, home environment, amily re-lationships and support systems, as well as any other services

the child is receiving. While it is a challenge to discriminate

between appropriate and inappropriate behaviors in a group

o three- to fve-year-olds, I fnd that the children at risk or

AD/HD stand out airly well among their classmates.During the case conerence I coach the teachers in the ap-

propriate way to give directions to a child with AD/HD, the

importance o requent positive reinorcement, and otherteaching strategies specifc to each child. I speak to them about

how inappropriate behavior can be made worse by how adults

respond to the child. We are part o the behavior equation and

it is oolish to believe that a child is exhibiting inappropriatebehavior in isolation rom the response we are giving him or

the stimuli he is receiving rom the environment.

The case conerence is a wonderul opportunity to present

more in-depth inormation and to coach the sta in best-

Every head sar i operaed

by people wo wan

o do more for e cildren

in eir program.

Every head sar ould

ave an AD/hD program.

A rou of cilre

ose for a otora

wit bCCAp irector

of isailities Elle

deCarlo, keeli;

assistat irector of

isailities Suzae

Steelema; autor

a Ad/hd case

coferece creatorJuit Camio,

keeli; bCCAp

irector Alla degiulio,

pd; a hea Start

irector nacy grier.


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21Augut 2009

practice teaching and response strategies. But when the dayis done, I always fnd that the educators have taught me as

well. Conerences are ollowed up by a written case report

and teaching plan or each child.

Wen more i neededThere are times when a child may not respond to a behavior

modifcation strategy. When this occurs, the parent is usually

asked to come in to discuss the childs behavior and determinei there are ways to improve consistency and communication

between us and reinorce behavior strategies at home. Many

parents are happy to learn that behavior modifcation strate-

gies used successully in school transer well to the home.Teachers also use a behavior measurement orm when it

appears that a child is not responding to a new intervention or

teaching strategy. Behaviors that disrupt the classroom or in-

terere with learning are identifed and targeted. The requency

and intensity o the behavior is then measured over fve days.Oten, children with AD/HD modiy their behavior

more slowly that other children. It is thereore important

to look or and reward change in the intensity and re-quency o the target behaviors, instead o simply whether

the behaviors are occurring or not. The child may still be

exhibiting the behavior, but at a less intense level and less

oten, and this can be a signifcant improvement.

succe and expanion

In March 2009, Ellen DeCarlo and I organized a case

conerence with everyone I had worked with during the

school yeareight teachers with twelve challenging chil-drenso the teachers could share successes and ailures.

We met or our hours. Each teacher spoke about how

the strategies they learned had changed students rom

disruptive to cooperative. They spoke o responding to

the children with a new knowledge o the unique brainwiring that AD/HD brings. The teachers accepted the ac-

commodations and teaching strategies as being good or

the whole class.I lived on the energy rom that case conerence or a

week. I was humbled by how hard these Head Start teachers

work with their students. Next school year, Bergen County

Head Start and I have agreed to expand my work to includetraining classes or parents, a much needed component o

an AD/HD Head Start program.

This important work, which started with CHADD P2P

certifcation and passion to make lie better or amilies with

AD/HD, can be created in other places. It takes passion and per-sistence and connection with people who want to help children.

Every Head Start is operated by people who want to do more or

the children in their programs. Every Head Start should have anAD/HD program.

I this is something you eel passionate about, take your

experience with AD/HD, combine it with knowledge rom

CHADD through P2P training, and create something inyour community. The need or support or amilies with

AD/HD is vast. Create something that is ed by your passion

and expands our AD/HD support network. There are so

many children and amilies who need our help.

A teacer Perpeciveby Michele Steinmetz

a irle tie leon in progre t one of bergen county four Hed strt ite.

en my tudent rt arrved n my claroom,

i wa amazed at all of g energy and

druptve beavor. i felt tat i ad to top te

leon frequently jut to ettle m down and avod

temper tantrum. i wa tryng to eek anwer on ow to elpm te bet i could from artcle, te nternet and lterature.

But notng gave me te wonderful ngt on cldren wt

callengng beavor lke te AD/hD tranng.

My teacer ade and i ceduled a team meetng to dcu

t tudent beavor. i learned ow AD/hD tudent need

tmulaton trougout te day, weter t playng at te

water table, queezng a tre ball durng crcle tme, ttng on

an energy pllow, or elpng te teacer a muc a poble to

keep buy. i learned many dfferent teacng tecnque and

creatve dea to reac t cld becaue e ddnt tnk lke

everyone ele. he wa pecal n very own way.

A i ued tee tratege, beavor cangeddramatcally. Now my tudent can t troug an entre

crcle tme leon, expre emoton n word, follow

cla rule and routne muc better, and repect

teacer and frend. he a become my wonderful lttle

elper, my toryteller, my artt, and my explorer. i nevergave up on m becaue i aw potental; i jut couldnt

ave done t wtout te knowledge and undertandng

i ganed troug te AD/hD head start program. i credt

te program for magncent progre!

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Aug09 Head Start Champion