Free Activities for Children With ADHD

As of 2011, roughly 6.4 million children in the U.S. ages 4 through 17 have been given an ADHD diagnosis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Noted by the National Institute of Mental Health as a common childhood diagnosis that often persists into the teen and adult years, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is treatable under medical care with medication or counseling. Free activities offer a no-cost way to potentially mitigate symptoms and to work on the behaviors at home.

  1. Go Green

    • Spending time in nature can help children with ADHD build the concentration skills that they don't have innately, according to the article "A Comparison of Children with ADHD in a Natural and Built Setting" in the journal Child: Care, Health and Development. Asking a child who has attention focusing issues to concentrate on school projects or on similar tasks may have the opposite effect. Allowing your child to take a break and get in touch with nature is a way for him to re-focus and help him pay attention. Take a walk in the woods, have a backyard picnic or go to the park for an hour or two of outdoor play.

    Home Office

    • If homework is an issue in your house, set up a pint-sized office for your child, suggests the American Academy of Pediatrics on its HealthyChildren.org website. Instead of making school work an onerous task, create an activity that turns studying into play. For example, your child can sit at her special "work desk," take out her paper and pencil, and then clock in for her "office time." Making this activity playful and allowing her to act like an adult may help her focus and relax when she does homework.

    Chores Aren't a Bore

    • Give your child a sense of responsibility and get him engaged in a physical chore activity. Keep his body busy while he learns to concentrate on one task such as raking leaves, pulling weeds, sweeping or folding laundry. Pick one activity per day and create a chore chart. Have your child get active as he rakes, sweeps or engages in whatever activity you have chosen. The physical, repetitive nature of the activity may calm your child.

    Run for It

    • Exercise can trigger the same brain receptors that stimulant medications do, according to researchers at the University of California, Irvine in the Journal of Attention Disorders. You could join a gym, or you could save money and help your child focus by jogging with her. Go for a race around the neighborhood, jog for a set time or create a route you two can follow a few times a week.

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