4 Games for Children with ADHD

4 minutes

Today, we want to tell you about 4 games for children with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). Keep reading!

Written and verified by the teacher Samanta Ruiz.

Last update: 16 November, 2022

Games for children with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) are effective tools that are easy to integrate into interdisciplinary treatments and school or recreational activities. If you have a child with this condition or you’re a teacher and you have students diagnosed with ADHD, these resources can be very useful to support them in their daily lives.

ADHD is a chronic brain disease that makes it difficult for children to control their behavior.
– American Pediatric Association –

The objective of games for children with ADHD is to reduce the manifestations of ADHD that make it difficult for children to advance in their learning and interact with other people, including impulsivity, hyperactivity, a lack of concentration, and attention deficit. We’re going to help you discover some games for children with ADHD that are very popular and easy to do at home, as well as innovative technological proposals.

Games for children with ADHD: A complement to train skills

Games are a valuable tool when it comes to activating learning processes, as they create relaxed environments, reduce tension, and enable children to be creative, imaginative, and social. These effects are doubly exploited by children with ADHD because, in addition to facilitating their learning process, they train them in skills that are very difficult for them to master, such as achieving a good level of attention and improving their relationship with their peers.

A child drawing a star differrent colored pencils. — Drawing or painting mandalas helps children with ADHD to concentrate on shapes and colors and to express their emotions.

1. Creative games

There are studies that indicate that children diagnosed with ADHD are more creative. For this reason, art is a great resource for them, especially if it’s planned as a game. Here are a couple of examples to do at home or in the classroom:

Coloring mandalas: Thi is an activity that helps children concentrate on shapes and colors.
Drawing: This allows children to express their emotions and enhance their attention.

2. Mind games

Word searches and crossword puzzles are traditional resources used to train memory. They’re also very useful for children with ADHD to learn to concentrate and focus their attention on a task. Looking for mind games that have themes related to the age of each child is very beneficial. For example, if they’re very young, you can opt for a word search where you have to find names of colors. If you use a crossword puzzle, use fruit or animal names.

3. Board games

There are commercial games specially designed to stimulate concentration and attention. According to the Fundación Cantabria Ayuda al Deficit de Atención e Hiperactividad, using these pastimes is beneficial for children with ADHD.

Swish Jr. – Thinkfun

The game consists of concentrating and activating the mind to create shapes within a pre-established outline. The competition is about making as many Swish as possible in a fun visual challenge.

Halli Galli – Last Level

With a simple dynamic, the objective is to show cards until five of the same fruit appear. At that point, a buzzer will have to be sounded. Learning self-control and paying attention are the skills developed with this simple game.

Rush Hour – Thinkfun

The challenge of this game, which can be played in teams or alone, is to free a truck stuck on a board with other vehicles. It’s ideal for learning to concentrate, think, plan, and be very persistent, as well as to talk, agree on strategies, and relate to others.

Camelot Junior – Smart Games

It’s a building game with wooden blocks, which includes cards with challenges and solutions to solve how the prince can get to his beloved. It comes in three levels of difficulty for advanced, master, and junior. With this playful challenge, concentration is stimulated and attention is trained.

A child sitting on the floor playing a video game. — There are video games that are very useful to help children with ADHD, as well as others created especially for that purpose, so they’re restricted for therapeutic purposes.

4. Video games for therapeutic purposes

In 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized the use of a video game in the treatment of children diagnosed with ADHD. EndeavorRx was created by neuroscientists and is focused on getting the child to concentrate and ignore distractions. This allows attention training and the idea is that this ability is transferable to other learning. It’s even possible to access the game only with a prescription, as its use is restricted to therapeutic purposes.

The game is very fun for children and they’re the protagonists, as they have to manage an alien in his travels through different worlds in which he collects objects according to what he needs at each stage of his itinerary.

ADHD: Always under the care of professionals

Although it seems that this is very repetitive, it’s always necessary to remember that it’s imperative to follow the indications of the medical team. These games are simple and very practical tools to use at home, at school, or in sessions with specialists, but in no way replace treatment.

Take advantage of these games and support your child in their progress so that they’ll feel more confident to overcome the most difficult moments!