Paul is a student in a New-York-based school that is located in the Bronx area of New York. It is a Jewish school whose administration, and therefore, structure, is fervently Jewish, and it is a comparatively new school, dealing with a majority of Russian immigrants. Paul is one of the few American-born students and, therefore, conspicuous in his self-contained co-ed. class of 5 other individuals 3 of whom are Russuan born, and one other Ethiopian. Paul is out of place in another way too. Aside from being the oldest in his class -- he is 8 years-old, the class is 2nd grade -- Paul's conduct is conspicuous and, with a record of teachers being unable to control him, Paul has spent his time being shuttled between teacher and principal.

The problem with Paul, according to his teacher's diagnosis, is that he has ADHD. ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder with symptoms that are characterized by hyperactivity, inattentivity, impulsivity either singly or as a combination of all three. Paul has them to a severe degree as combination. His behavior is certainly inconsistent with his developmental level.

I suspect that Paul's problems are aggravated by the fact that he comes from divorced parents, his father was an abuser with an alcoholic past, and he is currently raised by his mother who spends her energies trying to hold three jobs together. Paul, therefore, is also a latchkey child.

My observations of Paul told...

As far as I know he is not receiving it -- certainly not on the school premises. The school, ill equipped and struggling, has two teachers that teach Paul's class of six students. I observed the afternoon class that centered on 'secular' studies (i.e. science, history, geography, math, and English grammar / writing) and observed Paul for the duration of a week. I also observed Paul during his recess time and during gymnastics (basket ball) in order to be able to observe him during times of transitions. I noticed that Paul was a popular kid during recess time (he is naturally charming and a leader), but tends to take over during gymnastics at times grabbing the ball from others and ignoring the rules.
Ignoring the rules seems to be something that runs through Paul's conduct.

If I had known otherwise, I would have thought Paul to be on drugs. Shifting around almost ceaselessly in his chair and, otherwise, passing notes to others or throwing them as tossed balls or simply standing up and strolling around the classroom, Paul is a constant aggravation to his teacher who seems to be unable to control him. Repeatedly interrupting the class structure, Paul,…