If your child is struggling with learning lessons and making them stick, they may need a little bit of help. Many kids today struggle with keeping focus and attention on learning, and can often easily forget something they were just told. In the age of ADHD and other learning disadvantages, remembering the power of focusing can have a highly positive effect on your child.
Constant Info
It can also be hard to remember that we now live in a world where there is constant information being presented to us. There are TVs telling us info, as well as tablets, smart phones, video games, laptops, teachers, parents, friends, and family. Kids today are in a constant swarm of information being broadcast 24/7. This is in addition to having all of life’s answers available at a click of a button, as well as a plethora of people’s opinions and insights on just about everyone and everything on the planet.
This constant stream of information can make a child’s memory go haywire sometimes, as they are constantly absorbing and brining in new info all day long. Their brain may not know the difference between what’s worth keeping at the forefront of their mind and what’s worth tossing after reading it once. A child’s brain is still growing well into (and beyond) high school, so they don’t have the capacity to retain everything they hear on a daily basis.
Keeping Them Focused
If your child is having a hard time retaining information or simply focusing on the right information, be sure to help guide them. If it’s school topics and subjects that they are having a hard time focusing on, be sure to give them pointers on trying to focus correctly. Talk with their teachers on how they are struggling exactly, and try to formulate a plan to better focus their energy. If they get too distracted by everything in the classroom, maybe try them in the front row so they can’t see their peers and more of the room. Have them seated further away from windows so they don’t see as much activity out there.
If they are having a hard time focusing at home and their chores or homework, keep it as focused as possible for them. If you have an extra room in the house, or even a little corner, make it their Study Area, and have as few distractions as possible. Just a desk and chair, their studies, and some writing utensils for them. Don’t include tablets or anything that they can access other items, so they can only focus on their schoolwork. Keeping the focus to just school can help your child complete the task faster and smoother and then can celebrate with having their phone or tablet back!
Katie Kyzivat