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Symptoms of ADHD develop over the course of many months before they may become noticeable. Typically, impulsivity and hyperactivity appear before inattention and may occur early in the child's life, even as a preschooler. These behaviors also may be noticed earlier than inattention because they tend to draw the attention of people around them. For children with the combined form of ADHD, inattention may not be noticed as a problem for a year or more after the appearance of the other behaviors. The diagnosis of ADHD may be considered for these young children as for older children when the symptoms are severe enough to interfere with behavior at home, day-care, academic performance, and/or relationships with other children or friends.

The preschool child usually presents with hyperactivity which may be noticeable by the age of 4. Supervision is necessary at all times for these children. In addition to their ADHD-related behavior, the children tend to be:

• Quick in their movement
• Fearless in their activities
• Prone to more accidents than the average child without ADHD
• Frequently involved in aggressive behavior and physical fights

While girls with ADHD do not get involved typically in physical fights, they tend to exhibit more symptoms relating to emotional problems, such as fear, anxiety, depression, and mood swings. Hyperactivity may increase over the next few years and usually peaks in severity by age 7-8. From that point on, hyperactivity typically decreases as the child gets older and by the time they enter adulthood, it is no longer as problematic as before. Impulsivity may, however, remain a lifetime problem.

For the school age child with hyperactivity-impulsivity, impaired social interaction may present as a problem before there is an impact on academic achievement and classroom behavior. There may be many communications between the teacher and parent regarding the child's behavior, poor homework performance, and difficulty with concentration for tasks. Inattention may become most noticeable around the ages of 8-9 when the child exhibits some of the following signs:

• Disorganized
• Impulsive
• Easily distracted
• Fidgeting
• Loses things
• Exhibits poor attention to detail
• May be perceived as an underachiever
• Unable to remain seated
• Running or climbing in inappropriate settings
• Talking excessively
• Appears to be driven to endless activity

Typically, by the time the child with ADHD is an adolescent, they have already been diagnosed since it is uncommon for symptoms to emerge after childhood. In adolescence, ADHD is a more confusing condition since it may begin to overlap with other coexisting conditions, such as anxiety disorder. Symptoms of the adolescent with ADHD may include:

• More problems related to inattention than to hyperactivity
• Forgetfulness regarding homework and other assignments
• Memory problems
• Inconsistent performance of tasks resulting in careless errors or uncompleted tasks
• Poor academic performance
• Poor organizational skills
• Difficulty completing tasks
• More problems with authority figures
• More oppositional or confrontational conduct
• Difficulty transitioning into a stage where they need to begin to plan for the future
• Acting without considering that there are long-term consequences on future goals and plans for bad behavior or poor academic performance