Smart, but not paying attention

"I just had parent/teacher conferences, and the teachers all told me that my son is very smart, but he really struggles with paying attention. Is there anything that I can do at home to help him?"

I hear this question probably on a daily basis. The answer is yes, there are some fun and simple things that you can do at home.

First of all, you need to realize that because your son is bright, the thoughts that are going on in his head, are far more interesting to him than what the teacher is saying. His brain may also move at a faster pace and therefore, a long lecture is almost impossible for him to focus in on. That being said, there are some things that you can teach him to make school a little easier for him.

1. Play the list game at the table during supper, or even in the car while driving. Here is how you play. Begin by saying, "I am going to say something that I want you to repeat back to me, are you ready?" Then say, "I am going to the store to buy potatoes, bread and milk." Have him repeat back what you just said to him. Most of the time, students with attention or focus problems cannot repeat more than two items back. Explain that the definition of listening is to be able to repeat back that which the messenger has said. Practice lists of three for awhile and then slowly move on to longer lists. This will slowly increase his ability to focus on longer messages. Allow him to make messages for you as well. (You may be surprised to see that your attention isn't that long either.)

2. When you give your child a list of tasks to do, always have him repeat them back to you. For example, when you tell him to brush his teeth, put his pajamas on, and layout his clothes for tomorrow; you may find that he'll complete one of these if you are lucky. Again, usually lists of three are too long. ALWAYS have him repeat it back to you by saying, "Ok, now repeat back to me what I asked you to do." If he can't, you know that your list was too long.

3. If you have the opportunity to talk to your child's teacher, you will want to let him/her know that you are working on these things at home. The teacher will probably be willing to follow through with some of these ideas as well.

Just remember that your child wants to pay attention. This will help you to stay positive as you help him work through staying focussed on what others are saying.

Why the Worksheet?

I woke up this morning wondering, "Who invented the worksheet anyway?" These monotonous tools are used over and over not only in the classroom, but in our homes as well. When exactly did we decide that passively filling in blank lines is better than the art of discovery? No wonder children are bored in school today!

Gone is the ability to ask questions and then seek the answers. Curriculum is spoon fed to students and they are expected just to "download" this information into their minds. After a long lecture, they are then given a long worksheet to fill out. Are we seriously questioning the drop-out rate?

I was at a teacher's meeting the other day. Each teacher went around and shared the flaws of a student, who in their minds, just wasn't staying on task and paying attention. One teacher piped up, "Well, I'm so lucky that Simon likes my class because I don't have any of these troubles." I smiled as the teacher was so humble, but the reality was that she was an exceptional teacher. Her students feel valued in her classroom. They know that she not only wants to hear their thoughts and questions, but is excited about them. She sets up projects and labs to help them discover their world, and all the while she creates a passion for learning. Does she use worksheets occasionally? I'm sure that she does, but she is not the teacher whose principal has put a limit on the amount of paper being copied each week.

What are your thoughts on the worksheet?

Naughty or just plain smart?

Daniel Pink has written a wonderful book for the business sector entitled A Whole New Mind. In this book, he discusses how the world's leaders are changing. They are no longer the "linear" left-brained thinkers, but are the "think outside of the box" right-brainers.

I share this because America's schools are going to have to catch up with this as well. Other countries, such as Italy, have already begun to change how they teach children. We no longer want children to be "the sheep that follow the herd" sitting in nice, neat rows. Instead, we want them to be independent thinkers able to problem solve and question.

In our traditional schools, these wonderful right-brained thinkers are often thought to be "naughty" because they question and probe to find out the "why" and to have it make sense on a larger scale. They are able to look at a rule such as "you must show your work." and ask "Why, if it is so much easier to do in my head?" These kids are often accused of daydreaming because quite frankly, what is going on in their minds is far more interesting!

So, how do you teach these wonderful children? There are beginning to be books written on the subject. One of my favorite's is Jeffery Freed's book, Right-Brained Children in a Left-Brained World. In this book, he not only helps parents and teachers to understand these thinkers, but provides wonderful strategies to make learning easy and fun for them.

Some basics to follow with these children are:

1. Provide the "why" for each academic situation and connect it to real life.
2. Give these children time to process. They are deep thinkers and often times, when given enough "wait-time", they come up with the best answers.
3. Build relationships with them. "Connect before you correct."
4. Stay positive and believe that they will perform above and beyond your wildest expectation.
5. Keep things moving! These kids cannot focus on long lecture.
6. Projects vs. worksheets work best.
7. Help them to discover their strengths.