How I’m Pushing Past the Boredom

Here’s our latest guest blog post from a student at Bridges Middle School. Thanks Brynn!

~ jeff

Similar to the blog that Jeff wrote about being bored, I too have some struggles with boredom.

I have ADHD and boredom seems to come with it. It is hard for me to learn new and hard topics that I don’t have an interest in.

I learn quickly when I’m interested in something. For example, I love horseback riding. I learned how to ride horses really fast because I’m interested.

But when I try to learn something such as math, that I don’t necessarily like, I would put myself down a lot. I say things to myself such as “I hate this” and “I’m so dumb.” I would wish that I was somewhere else. That’s when I get bored.

Some of the things I used to do to try to eliminate boredom were throwing paper airplanes around the classroom, doing Origami, and just acting silly! As you would imagine that didn’t work for me too well at school.

I know now I don’t have to freak out, but it’s really hard. Here are my top strategies for dealing with boredom.

I know I don’t have to do things that disrupt the class or that get attention. I can make choices that push past the boredom.

My ADHD Boredom Strategies

1. Taking Notes: When I think I’m drifting off into boredom, I like to take notes because it makes me listen and focus. It also makes me move when I’m jittery.

2. Ask Questions to Engage My Brain: Another strategy I do is ask questions to engage myself in what we are talking about because my boring thoughts might be caused by not understanding the topic.

3. Use a Growth Mindset: If I am just not interested in the subject, I think about my growth mindset and say to myself this is gonna help me in the long run or I add “yet” to a sentence like “I can’t do this, yet!”  This reminds me to stick with it.

The more I learn and the more I practice my strategies when I’m bored, the “hard” will turn into “easy.”

~ Brynn
A Student at Bridges Middle School

Bridges Middle School is an independent nonprofit school in Portland, Oregon that provides a highly creative and focused school setting for 5th – 8th grade students with learning differences.