Have you looked into LiveScribe? My son is starting college in the fall. A live scribe pen records the lecture as you write. Later when you go over your notes, you can tap on a place and hear the lecture pick up right where you place your pen. It’S my understanding that this is a useful accomodation in high school as well. I am seriously considering getting one for my son. I teach high school chemistry and am thinking about using this to put my lectures online so my students can access them at any time.

You may already know this but through the disabilities office at your son’s school, he should get the scribe pen as part of his accommodations (or at your son’s request) as long as he is registered with them.

My college students with ADHD love it!

Kari

There are tons of apps to help. It really depends on what issues he needs to deal with and the kind of classes he is taking.
Here are some standard categories, some programs overlap

Web Site Blockers
Time Tracking
Organization / Scheduling / Collaboration
Sounds
Medication Management

I have a set of resources here: http://addsherpa.com/resources/
and I recommend http://adhdapps.blogspot.com/

Good Luck
Augie
http://addsherpa.com

Reply posted to a duplicate conversation thread:

Hey! This isn’t necessarily computer software, but it’s a website that tracks your habits.  It’s called DailyFeats ( http://dailyfeats.com/explore ) and it’s helping me SO much.  There are basic habits which I know if I kept up with, I would be more productive like prioritizing, sleeping early, waking early, getting enough vitamins, exercise, going to the library to study, etc. There’s even a “Write” feat which I used to write my thesis. I checked in every time I wrote 250 words. (Also, http://writtenkitten.net/ helped me with that too.  This site gives you a picture of a new kitten every time you write a set amount of words). DailyFeats lets you choose which “feats” you want to accomplish, and every time you complete a feat you can check in for points.  These points are actually redeemable.  For example, I got a year’s subscription to Oprah magazine for 200 points and Tommy Hilfiger donated $20 to the Millennium Project on my behalf.  It’s like a game and that’s why it keeps me engaged. I need immediate rewards to finish things and these sites provided me with that which kept me on track for the big picture.  I finished writing my entire thesis (around 100 pages) in 3 weeks.  Good luck with college and I wish you all the best!

-Posted by leeleenat

Hi,
My biggest problem in college was not having enough time to read all the assigned readings and then being lost in lecture because I did not have the background down. In addition, I would try to write notes in class and get lost too… it just was too fast. There are two things that helped me most: First, I bought a program that would read for me, Claro Read. There are provably better versions now, this was almost ten years ago. The point is that if I read while I listened, I was able to focus and actually finish my readings. Without it I just kept getting to the end of the page just to realize that I had not comprehended a thing I had just read because my mind had been somewhere else. The second thing that helped me was a digital recorder. You might have the same capabilities with your phone or your lap top now days. I would go straight home after the lecture and listen and take down notes from the recording, Santo Remedio! as we say in Spanish. I took more effort but I was able to graduate with very good grades and be accepted to four of the five graduate programs I applied to.

Good luck

I tend to use as many calendar systems as I can find - google calendar, a few assignment trackers, time timer, and a kitchen timer, to keep me on track. Every time there’s something I have to remember to do, 5 or 6 reminders buzz, beep, and siren at me.

Also, something I’ve found very helpful is an app that silences my phone during class, as I always forget! Of course, I can’t remember the name of it either, so it’s not very helpful, but look around.

My other piece of (unsolicited) advice is definitely check in with your school’s accommodations! The first time I went off to college, I refused them, thinking that I would be just fine without it, but I really wasn’t, and ended up leaving there.

Now, I have a notetaker and weekly meetings with my specialist/point person at school, where we sort out the mess my bag inevitably becomes and make sure all of my assignments are written somewhere I can find them. I’ve slowly gotten better at organizing my stuff. I also take tests in distraction free rooms, which helps a lot.

If you have a Mac, you’re in luck… Presenting… SELF CONTROL. Yes, this app exists. It blocks your favorite websites for a time interval of your choosing (the ones that you blacklist) and there is NO WAY to override the block, not even by killing the app or rebooting it. The trouble is, of course, having the heart to start the app in the first place… It’s a terrifying app.

http://visitsteve.com/made/selfcontrol/

What do you need help with, in particular? If it’s staying organized, I’m a huge fan of good old Microsoft Outlook (Google Calendar has several similar features). This is especially helpful when it integrates with a smartphone. You can set reminders in your calendar to alert you a few days ahead of tests, use tasks to set intermediate deadlines and reminders on large assignments, attach professor and study group contact info to assignments, and use the journal to keep track of how long you’ve been working on a certain document (and if you’re like me, remember where you saved it).

It helps me greatly to use only one productivity suite. If I know I have everything in only one place, I can keep track of it that much more easily. MS Outlook worked so well for me that I was able to give my co-workers tips on productivity. I suggest giving it a try.