Help 2e Students Finish What They Start

I have worked with twice-exceptional (2e) populations for over 10 years as a learning coach. I am also a 2e adult, which helps me relate to my students. One of the things I have noticed about them, particularly those who have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), is that they tend to do really well on the first half of a project, but then fall apart or lose interest during the second half. By project, I mean a complex, multi-part, time-intensive engagement such as writing a research paper, designing a video game, or making an architectural model. These kinds of assignments require multiple steps, long-term planning, and shifts back and forth between the big picture and the small details — all of which can be difficult for 2e students. This article provides a practical guide for helping students follow through and produce authentic and original high-quality projects. I have found that project completion requires simultaneously balancing two critical aspects: the external-organizational and the internal-psychological.

First of all, it is very important for a student to have external structures in place. For some students, the actual subject material can provide initial structure. Most 2e students I work with benefit from a coach who can help them break the project down into daily or weekly benchmarks. The student should commit to near-term milestones and be open to revising them as the demands of a project change.