Study Finds ADHD Symptoms Can Affect Children's School Readiness

According to a study in the August 2019 issue of Pediatrics, children who have Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) symptoms are 21 times more likely to have impaired school readiness compared to children without ADHD symptoms. Researchers for the study “School Readiness in Preschoolers with Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder” (published online July 22) compared school readiness of children age 4-5 years with and without ADHD symptoms, using direct assessments and parent questionnaires. The goal was to see how each group of children fared within the five areas used to determine school readiness: physical health and motor skills, social and emotional skills, approaches to learning, language development, and cognition and general knowledge. They found that children with ADHD symptoms had significantly higher odds of impaired school readiness in four out of five areas. The area where the ADHD group did not have significantly increased odds of impairment was in cognition (IQ) and general knowledge (letter and number knowledge). Researchers say these results show the importance of considering all areas of child development when determining school readiness and not relying solely on cognition and general knowledge skills. They also say that considering other areas of school readiness can help identify students who may need additional assistance as they enter the school setting so that they can make a successful transition to the school setting.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults. For more information, visit www.aap.org and follow us on Twitter @AmerAcadPeds