How to tackle the reduced attention span of kids

Young children and teens can struggle with short attention spans for a variety of reasons, including young age, disinterest in what is happening, ADHD, autism, and/or intellectual or developmental disabilities. It can also be a result of being exposed to bite sized learning and entertainment modules all the time. Being a parent with a child who struggles to stay focused can be discouraging, especially when you know they have the potential to accomplish much more. Here is a list of suggestions to help you increase the attention span of your child.   

Allow sufficient breaks  

Short breaks help kids to refresh themselves and come back to the material with a more focused perspective. Monitor your child’s level of interest to gauge how long their attention lasts. Then, when you see their attention wandering, give them that break. An ideal break at home should not be less than ten minutes and not more than half an hour long for school students of any standard.  

Change the topic after a break or as a study break  

If your child is bored with Math, breaking off to do a bit of crafts is a good idea. The crafts lesson is a break in itself, but keeps the child’s brain engaged. For teens, if you find your kid dozing over history, give them a coffee break, and then get them to do a subject they like more. But they should come back to complete the history lesson that day itself.  

Build focus with age-appropriate activities

The subjects kids are studying can all be brought to life. Introduce your kids to experiments and make science fun; there are a lot of resources on the web. History is living all around us – India does not lack in monuments. The same applies to geography, nature studies, Math and all subjects. Choose a favourite activity – singing, dancing, yoga, games – and get your child to concentrate deeply in it. This will be easy. Now explain other activities in terms of this one. For example, a kid who loves cricket must learn about physics and biology to play better. This helps them connect subjects to activities, and increases attention in both.