Tips for being productive with ADD?

I had to find a way to overcompensate for not being able to stay focused on things like reading. I could pay attention in class if it required physical movent..in other words I learned only when I had to do something...take notes is physical. Writing vocabulary and definitions over and over. Forcing myself to make a game of something to recall...ie an appointment on Tuesday at two is a tutu( ha ha but that game is over compensation and helps). I learned to disguise my symptoms because I knew something was wrong with me. I believe too that just as a blind person hears better, a deaf person has better vision, an adhd develops something. Medication really works better than all the time spent for overcompensating.

I use fidgets to pay attention in class

I constantly use my reminders app on my phone/computer to ping me to get certain things done. As for paying attention, maybe you could try finding a small fidget—I know fidgeting helps a lot of people, myself included. The memory thing is a lot of practice. I did it through colour coding. Each coloured pen/highlighter/sticker/etc. was given a labelled meaning. EX: red - important test info; blue - vocabulary; pink - my opinion; green - questions/ask about later.