Organising skills training helped children keep track of schoolwork, their parents said

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   59 children aged 8 to 12 in the United States who struggled to stay organised were put into two groups. 51 had results at the end. Most had ADHD and a little over half were boys.

2. 02

   What they did

   Children and a parent had ten weekly 1-hour video sessions with a therapist, plus ten 30-minute top-up sessions. They learned to track homework, keep school things in order and plan their time. Parents gave praise and rewards, and teachers sent home a daily checklist. The other group waited 10 to 12 weeks with no help.

3. 03

   What happened

   Parents rated their children's organising problems as much lower at the end, while the waiting group barely changed. Planning, getting things done in order and keeping track of things all improved. Only parents rated the children, and the study ended up smaller than planned because of COVID-19.

What the study found

1. Helped

   Children who learned to track homework, sort their things and plan their time got more organised than the waiting group.

   • Action: Organise your materialstested
   • Action: Plan your weektested
   • Rule: Have someone help you set it uptested
   • Rule: With a coach or therapistused

   Small randomised trial of 51 children who struggled to stay organised · vs children still waiting for the training · they rated themselves

Source