Distractable Children Improving Focus

Distractable Children Improving Focus, Ever wondered why there are so many more kids with attention deficit issues today than there were 10, 20 years ago? One of the reasons is today's children have few opportunities to practice paying attention. Remember playing old school board games like Monopoly, Trouble, Sorry or even Candyland where you had to take the time to read the directions, distribute the playing pieces, learn to wait your turn, control impulses and you had to sit on the floor or at the table and pay attention while waiting. You also learned to build frustration tolerance when you lost a turn, and you learned to organize your thoughts to anticipate the other player's move. These are critical social skills that are transferable skills in just about every facet of life.

Distractable Children Improving Focus High Tech

However, with the advent of high tech games, iTunes and the Wii, many kids are so media-fed that if their attention isn't captured instantaneously, within the first few minutes, they tend to tune out. Technological advancement is a good thing, but like anything, everything has its place. And when it comes to our children, high-tech items should be utilized in moderation.

Distractable Children Improving Focus Board Games

Here are some board games that I am utilizing in my homeschool program with my son you will find useful if you are raising and, or educating a highly-distractible child.

The Memory Game by Milton Bradley: This simple game helps increase concentration skills and memory. Players are required to match their cards with others that are turned face down. If your child turns a card face up and it doesn't match your card, your child has to put the card back face down. The challenge for your child is to remember the cards that have been put back down, so he/she can pair them with your tickets when matches come up. Whoever gets the most matching cards wins the game.
Checkers: Checkers works well for highly-distractible children. The game is relatively simple, yet it calls for one's decision-making skills, impulse control skills and focuses. The difficulty is to get your people from your end of the board to your opponent's end. What children learn over time is that if they pay attention and think ahead about where they want to go while anticipating the roadblocks, they will eventually get their men to the other side.
Simon Says: Although not a board game Simon Says is the ultimate follow directions and pay attention game. One child is Simon, and the other children stand in a line facing Simon. Then 'Simon' calls out instructions like this, "Simon says Shake your head." Everyone else has to shake their head. If the 'Simon' yells out a direction without saying "Simon says" then all the players should ignore the command, if you don't follow a Simon states guidance, you are out. If you do follow an instruction that doesn't have Simon says on it you are also out, it allows children to move their bodies.
Mother May I: Although not a board game either, this favorite playground game helps kids learn to ask permission, control impulses and follow directions. In this game, one person is chosen to be "Mother." You can use the term "Father" as well. Everyone else must stand in a line facing the person a short distance away. The object of the game is for players to get near enough to touch Mother. But players can only move following the instructions are given by Mother. If you fail to say "Mother May I?" or don't follow the directions as instructed you must go back to the start. The first child to touch Mother becomes the next Mother.

Distractable Children Improving Focus Summary

If you use these simple games with your children, you will soon find that they will begin to focus on the activity. There are many other games that children will have fun playing while learning to focus their attention on the activity. Find simple activities around the house that will help your child practice paying attention. Household chore such as cooking and washing dishes are other tasks to use to enforce attention skills.