I am watching Kashish having a hard time finishing these exercises.
Not sure what's wrong with Rohan's concentration.
Is Ishita doing okay, she can't even read a page!
Well, now that we are addressing the concentration, let's start fresh from scratch.
What exactly is concentration?
Concentration is basically the mental effort we put into completing a task or learning a particular concept. It is not the attention span, but attention span refers to the length of time you can concentrate on something. And while your kid is having a hard time with concentration issues, never, I repeat, never go frustrating them by yelling or complaining about it. As this will bring anxiety, stress, and irritation to the tween's or teen’s brain which acts as a repeller for concentration.
How about relooking and redefining concentration booster activities? Let's directly jump to the fixers.
To-do list: Make sure that whatever activities are planned for your little one for the day, it is always listed in their to-do. Try to let your kid make the to-do in their written form, rather than typing. As when you write things that you need to do, the brain records it for its own processing function, and somewhere in the mind until you complete them, it keeps sending reminders. And to complete a task we put more energy and concentration in order to complete a task. Writing always helps in remembering.
Timers: Setting up time for specific tasks can help teenagers to focus on one thing at a time, making it interesting for them. This lowers the risk of distractions. Unless the work is completed the brain will be indulged in the activity along with the willingness to put in the effort. This also drives the energy toward the task. This is the very reason why our brain loves to take challenges like the flashcards
Brain workout: Our body needs a workout and physical exercises to remain fit, and get rid of toxins and calories, similar to that our mind also needs some activities which boost the overall health of the brain. There are some super interesting concentration workouts that for sure will help children to get into focusing. These games do require consistent attention to the activities and some of them are:
Flashcard challenges
Doodles
Sudoku
Find the way
Solving the puzzle
Crosswords
Doodle for 10 minutes
Board game such as chess
Find the 5 differences and many more!
Once your little one has completed the task do ask them about their experience. Kids do love to share their experiences. If for some reason they are unable to win the game or complete the tasks ask them where they got distracted or what challenges they faced. This can help you to understand how they need to refocus the next time they will be doing these activities.
4. Meditating: Many times people confuse meditation with simply the act of closing their legs and sitting in a cross-legged position. Meditation is way beyond that. Meditation is mostly focusing all the attention on the way you breathe and doing the breathing exercises regulating the thoughts and simply following on calming the body and mind down. Meditation is one of the best ways of getting away from distractions. Meditation sometimes works as magic. This practice actually helps you to regulate your emotional responses and understand better what is one thing you subconsciously also think about. You can ask your juvenile to count the numbers from backward (100 to 1) in a relaxed position or how about giving them a tongue twister to recite 10 times?
5. Sleeping enough: Are your teens/tweens catching enough sleep? Sometimes due to sleep deprivation concentration seems distant and we all usually face a hard time memorizing and paying attention. If the sleep cycle is affected you will have a constant mood swing which also hinders your performance. You may feel tired as well. It is recommended to have at least 8 hours of sleep to say hi-five to a happy and productive state of mind.
Here is what you can do to make the sleep pattern normal:
Turn off the TV
Put your mobile phone away
Make your room comfortable and clean your bed.
Make sure your room is ventilated.
How about a warm bath
Read a book to sleep.
Exercise regularly
6. Food for the brain? Big deal. Crack it: Apricot, almond, brain, and Mom? Yes, my mom used to put reminders every day in my ears to eat almonds and apricots daily. As these help the brain to increase concentration and memory span. Not only almonds and apricot but there are also foods like:
Broccoli - Contain vitamin K functioning as a booster for better memory
Fatty fish - contain omega-3 fatty acids and DHA that improve concentration and memory.
Blueberries - full of antioxidants that act as stress and inflammation resistance.
Eggs - Have nutrients like vitamins B6 and B12, folate, and choline promoting better memory and mental function
7. Active listening: Active listening requires full concentration, good body language and an empathetic side. If you want your kid to have good concentration skills. How about reading them a lesson or research and then asking them questions in between? Asking the questions in between assures you if they are involved fully or not. If they are answering back this means they are on the way to getting into concepts and understanding what you are talking about. If in case, they are the ones initiating questions regarding the topic you are reading out to them, they are absolutely on the right track.
8. Walking in nature: There is no bigger fixer than nature. No kindest healer than nature. Nature has all the answers. Isn't it? Get the concentration issues fixed naturally. Let me whisper a secret in your ears, take your tween along on a short walk in a park. According to science, a positive impact has been observed on both physical and mental health.
Research from 2014Trusted Source states that including plants in study space can increase concentration and productivity. This also promotes satisfaction and air quality. A lot of studies suggest that natural environments benefit brain development as well. Benefits that spending nature can bring are:
boost their mood
help them think more clearly
increase their social interactions
reduce symptoms of ADHD
You never know what works well for your little one. Do give the above approaches a try. Also doing a lot of trials can also worsen the situation so let your teen respond to one activity properly and see if there is any progress.
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