How To Make Your Children Be More Attentive In School

Many parents are worried that their kids are not paying enough attention and that this may affect their studies. Technological advancements are also contributing heavily to this issue. Researchers of University of Washington have proved beyond doubt that there is a strong link between distractions caused by these technological advancements and the attention span of children. Similarly, a study conducted by UCLA has also proved that kids who frequently use technology have less reflective thoughts.

But ironically, these kids seem to possess much better visual-spatial skills. This means that these advancements seem to have created new and unique sets of cognitive strengths as well as weaknesses in children. In this context, how can you, as a parent, help your kids surmount this issue? The following suggestions may help.

It is not enough if you preach; You should practice also

Children imitate what their parents do. If you watch television for longer hours or spend considerable time on your mobile phones, your children will also learn the habit. You should therefore spend your time usefully so your kids will also follow suit soon.

A healthy lifestyle will do wonders

Ensure to provide your children with good and nutritious foods. Also, make sure that they get sufficient sleep. These two factors greatly influence the attention span of children.

“Blind” exercises may help

Experts advise that you can improve the attention span of your children through "blind" exercises. Ask your children to close their eyes so they can focus on their other sensory organs. If you introduce a game in which your blind-folded children have to identity various types of sounds, smells, etc., they will gradually get rid of their habit of getting distracted by what they see. This is a proven game and children who have been trained with this game could achieve improved concentration and they could finish the tasks on hand with more efficiency. You can play this game two times a week for about 3 months. You can certainly see positive results.

Try to change their seating position

If the teachers of your children's school complain about their lack of focus, discuss with them and try changing their seating positions. They should particularly sit far away from those kids who have similar problems. This is likely to improve their concentration in the classroom.

Split their homework into smaller chunks

If you observe that your children are struggling with their homework assignments, split the assignments into smaller chunks. Since the kids will have more breaks, they will be able to focus better on the assignments. But you should be careful not to overdo this because there are chances of this strategy worsening the problem.

Try the magic of active mornings

One of the best ways to ensure that your children are attentive in their classroom is make them have active mornings. This means you should allow them to play actively with their peers during mornings and before the classes start. Not only you, even teachers can follow this strategy to enhance the focus in students. It has been proved that physical activity improves blood flow, strengthen the muscles and the organs like the heart, bones and lungs of kids and give their brain a boost. This fact has been corroborated by Ewunike Akpan, a certified personal trainer and associate manager for "Build Our Kids' Success", a fitness program in which nearly 2,000 schools have enrolled.

In the BOKS program, students are asked to reach the school an hour before the scheduled start. They will be allowed to play for 45 minutes and a trainer will supervise them closely. The children will then have their breakfast and be ready for their classes. The play session will consist of four or five activities of about ten minutes each. Most of the games will be running-related and so, they are good cardio exercises that boost the blood circulation. Another benefit of the program is that children learn to socialize also.

Parents can try the strategy of active mornings at home also before they send their kids to school.

Check if there are any physical problems

If the above steps do not work, you must consult a paediatrician to ensure that there are no physical problems in your children. Some of the physical issues that may affect the attention span of children are over-eating, especially certain specific foods, lack of adequate sleep, worries, etc.

Understand that you need not apply all the tips because children are asymmetrical. You should therefore apply only those ideas that may be suitable for your children.