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Does this mean that there is something wrong with my child's brain? Yes, and no.

Why can't he behave? Why can't he try harder and concentrate on his school work? Have you ever considered that perhaps your child doesn't sit still, concentrate and focus because he can't .not because he won't.

He did poorly academically, and his self-esteem was in shreds.

Your child's brain does operate a bit differently from the brain of a ca....

Through all of this I wasn't willing to put my son on Ritalin or any other mind-altering drug.

To try and protect him and rebuild his self-esteem I began homeschooling him.

Then I married a man who has ADHD, who literally cannot sit still for even a minute.

"Why does he do that?" I asked myself that question at least a dozen times each day, and I'm sure you have too.

Recent scientific research has uncovered that hyperactive, fidgety, unfocused children are that way because their brains operate differently from those of a more normal, calm and focused person.

Relatives soon labeled him a terror, and me a poor parent who couldn't even control her child despite all her academic qualifications.

And a few years later, I had my son who, like his father, is a textbook case of ADHD.

Many days he came home in tears, because the teacher had called him slow or stupid or the other kids had laughed at him.

As he grew older and went to school the problem worsened.

I was introduced to the idea of Attention Deficit Disorder when studying for my diploma in child psychology, and I dealt with kids with ADD ADHD when I began teaching.

Telling him to 'concentrate' and 'sit still' is worthless and punishing him for his inability to do so is counterproductive.

Believe me when I tell you that your child's short attention span and need for constant motion is not something within his control.

But being ADD myself it was a challenge.