ADHD Personal Statement
I am an unlikely English teacher. In kindergarten, I was diagnosed with Visual Dyslexia and Hyperactivity Disorder (now called ADHD). I grew up in poverty, and my only means to a Bachelor’s degree was a federal Pell Grant. Learning has been a lifelong passion of mine, thanks to the adult influences in my life, but my path has been a rocky one. I needed special intervention in school. I was unorganized, struggled with graphic learning (maps, math, Social Studies), and worked extra hours to attain the skills I needed to survive in school. None of the influential adults in my life attended college, but a set of encyclopedias taught me that they valued education tremendously. My mother used these encyclopedias as a child, so when we moved, my
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Reading stories my mother was my favorite activity, and I couldn’t wait to learn to read to her – she became the first academic influence in my life. When I began Kindergarten, we found out that I would face some serious challenges. The staff at my first elementary school discovered my dyslexia and “hyperactivity disorder” (the prior clinical title for today’s ADHD) in the first week of initial assessments. Before I started school, my mother made sure I knew my alphabet, my numbers to 100, and my colors. I knew how to write my full name and read short words, so when the school responded to my learning disability by tracking me in the remedial reading group, I was devastated. My mother went to the school to find out what our options were. Deeply concerned about the school’s practice of pulling me from classes like math and social studies, she asked what home activities might help. From then on, my IEP was waived and my mother became my intervention director. At home, I brought in the groceries, did needlepoint, and completed connect-the-dot puzzles to improve my hand/eye coordination. At each new school, we faced the same struggle. Indomitable, my mother advocated for me every time. She never failed to ensure I was in the right place, and as a result, I never let my learning disabilities stand in the way of my
Reading stories my mother was my favorite activity, and I couldn’t wait to learn to read to her – she became the first academic influence in my life. When I began Kindergarten, we found out that I would face some serious challenges. The staff at my first elementary school discovered my dyslexia and “hyperactivity disorder” (the prior clinical title for today’s ADHD) in the first week of initial assessments. Before I started school, my mother made sure I knew my alphabet, my numbers to 100, and my colors. I knew how to write my full name and read short words, so when the school responded to my learning disability by tracking me in the remedial reading group, I was devastated. My mother went to the school to find out what our options were. Deeply concerned about the school’s practice of pulling me from classes like math and social studies, she asked what home activities might help. From then on, my IEP was waived and my mother became my intervention director. At home, I brought in the groceries, did needlepoint, and completed connect-the-dot puzzles to improve my hand/eye coordination. At each new school, we faced the same struggle. Indomitable, my mother advocated for me every time. She never failed to ensure I was in the right place, and as a result, I never let my learning disabilities stand in the way of my