If You Give a Boy With ADHD a Compass

The book “When You Give a Pig a Pancake”, written by Laura Numeroff and Illustrated by Felicia Bond, was the inspiration for me to write the following. Laura Numeroff’s books were some of my children’s favorites. If you haven’t read them, I encourage you to, and maybe you’ll enjoy them so much that you’ll want to share them with a special child in your life.

If you give a boy with ADHD a compass, he’s going to want to go on an adventure. He decides that you need to take him to a sporting goods store to get a map.

While he’s looking at the maps at the sporting goods store, he notices all the books about the adventure he has decided to go on, so he wants to read all of the books. So you buy two books for him.

While driving home, the boy starts to read the books and decides to research every single aspect about the adventure, and once home, searches the internet about the adventure.

While searching the adventure on the internet, he realizes that he needs special clothes and equipment for the adventure, which means that you have to take him back to the sporting goods store to get all of the equipment and clothes.

As he is getting ready to go back to the store, he says he can’t find one of the books that he just got, so you have to help him find the book, so that he can take it with him in the car to read on the way back to the store.

On the drive back to the store, the boy notices a very cool car which reminds him of a transformer. He has to tell you all about the car and the transformer.

While he’s talking about the transformer, he notices that he has left a Legos toy on the seat next to him, which makes him want to get another Legos set. He asks you to get him another set, and you tell him that he’ll have to wait for a new set until after his adventure.

On the second trip to the sporting goods store, the boy finds all of the extra equipment that he needs for his adventure, plus five other things that he wants that have nothing to do with the Adventure. You explain that you’re only getting what’s needed for the trip.

As you are checking out, the boy sees trail mix and snack bars, which reminds him that he is hungry. He asks for the trail mix, and you tell him that you will stop for lunch on the way home.

After you pick up the food for lunch, you take the food to a park, and while the boy is eating, he sees the climbing structure and decides he needs to climb it.

Climbing reminds him of the adventure he was given and says he needs to go home and pack.

As you help the boy pack for his adventure, he can’t seem to remember where the most important thing is. And chances are, if the boy has ADHD, he’s going to need another compass.