According to ADDitude, a leading media source for parents of children with ADHD, “exercise is an inexpensive, self-prescribed, and accessible supplemental treatment option for adults and children with ADHD”. Exercise stimulates “the attention system, [and] the so-called executive functions in the brain — sequencing, working memory, prioritizing, inhibiting, and sustaining attention,”.
Exercise is beneficial for improving attention, focus, moods, and learning self-discipline which are common challenges for students who have ADHD. According to Web MD, “people with ADHD often have less dopamine than usual in their brain”. Exercising releases this neurotransmitter which results in clearer thinking and improved attention.
According to Everyday Health, different forms of exercise can be beneficial for different ADHD challenges. For example, while aerobic activity releases neurotransmitters in the brain resulting in clear thinking and improved attention, a sport or activity that requires extreme attention may be most influential in helping kids learn to focus and build their attention span. Instead of picking one activity, like a sport, it would be most beneficial for the students to regularly switch up their activity and how they approach it. Or it would also be good to use an assortment of activities like aerobic paired with something that increases focus and attention like yoga or ballet. This will enable the student to get all of the benefits of exercise.
