How can students with ADHD improve Organization? Understanding the importance of organizational skills and how to apply them is critical. Organizational skills refer to a set of cognitive abilities that facilitate goal-oriented behavior.
Disorganization causes a lot of personal frustration and wasted time. It can even frustrate those around you leading to stress and added anxiety around tasks that might already be daunting. Let us explore some ways in which we can improve this skill.
-Place
-Retrieve
-Return
Place- The starting point for organization is to make a place for everything. Pencils go in a case. Keys go on a hook. Paperwork goes in a folder. Designated spots should be well intentioned and within arm’s reach. See what placements work best for you!
Retrieve- When an item has a designated spot it only takes seconds to find it. Just get it!
Return- It is easy to just put an item down when you are actively working on a task, but then it becomes a moving target that needs to be found every time. When you have attention problems, too many items in one’s field of vision is overwhelming. Putting that Item back fortifies its place and reinforces this productive cycle.
Once you learn to use these three steps effectively, you are well on your way.
Here are some additional steps that can keep you organized!
Discard what you do not use! Is the stress of holding on to items that may never be used worth it? Letting go of useless items makes space for new useful items and reduces clutter. It may seem easier to just stuff old papers on the bottom of your school locker but taking only a few minutes at the end of a school day to throw those papers out will make it easier to find that pencil case underneath it all when you need it.
Compartmentalize! It may be a lot to start organizing a workspace. It does not have to be done all at once. Make a list and schedule. Break down the sections that need cleaning and tackle each section one at a time. Making a mental grid of the place and dedicating an allotted amount of time to each place on the grid could make it less daunting and doable. “I'll spend one hour organizing my desk space today” could prove to be more effective than saying “I'll organize the whole room today no matter how long it takes.”
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