Listings Technology Staff Technology Request Form Local Weather Developing Attention Skills Attention is a skill that develops over time and is influenced by different factors such as what the child is asked to do, where he is asked to do it, and what other things are going on around him at that time. Because of the fast paced media which envelops our culture, it is rare to find a child content to ponder his own thoughts without external stimulation. Yet in school and life that ability to focus is a necessity. To develop management skills, parents can help their children by establishing routines, providing attention building activities, and modeling attending skills. Sometimes when a child is not paying attention he is confused about what he is supposed to do and most often this desired behavior is an unpredictable one.
Routines help remove uncertainty from a child's life.
By teaching children routines for the repetitive parts of the day, they can free up time for more interesting and challenging things. For school aged children a morning routine is very helpful. Waking to an alarm, getting dressed, eating breakfast, brushing teeth, and completing other essential tasks help children establish predictable behavior routines. An after school routine is also helpful to establish homework, play, and of course after school snacks. Younger children may need prompts to keep the process moving where older children can use checklists.