ADHD and Executive Function Skills for Success: Note Taking- Annotation for Neurodivergent Teens

In this one time class teens will learn and practice annotation, a simple way to improve working memory by highlighting and reflecting upon key elements of written material so that it can be better understood and reviewed. By using annotation strategies, learners can access the information more easily when reviewing for assessments.  It also allows students to find references that they can use as evidence when working on projects, essays, and reports.

Annotation, a key tool for academic success,  requires students to focus on, analyze, and respond to what they are reading by highlighting key ideas and facts, unfamiliar vocabulary, and important ideas.  Teens with ADHD and other students with special needs and learning disabilities  often find reading comprehension, focus, and working memory challenging.   It is vital that students with ADHD and other neurodiverse learners use strategies like annotation to support their reading comprehension and ability to review and analyze text.

Students will receive a simple annotation guide that shares information on how to use annotation to close read and interact with text. If students use this close reading strategy, they will have a record and analysis of key points and personal responses to information that they have read that can be reviewed before a test or used as evidence in projects, essays, and reports.

In this class students will learn annotation and how it  can be used to strengthen their working memory and to review and recall what they have learned.  As a group the students will work together to annotate a teacher read passage or article.  Possible topics may include animal facts, interesting careers, cool scientific topics, excerpts about pop culture topics etc.  Students will then participate in a Kahoot! review to see how well they retained the information that they annotated and reviewed.