What Does "Pay Attention" Mean?

Have you ever told your child to “pay attention?”  I know I have?  What’s wrong with that statement?  First, if your child is more literal in his  understanding of language, he may not “get” what “pay” attention means?  Even if he understands what this phrase means he may not have any idea how to do it or when he must do it.  So how do I quit wasting my breath and help my child to increase his attention?

First, I need to understand what activates attention.  Here are some things that attention includes

1.Sustain attention and filter:  maintain alertness, filter out distractions that compete for attention, resist distractions.

2.Shift attention:  if attention is shifted too quickly, distraction occurs,  if attention is shifted too slowly, inattention occurs, if individual is unable to shift attention, he   perseverates and is rigid thinker.

Strategies to try:

 Use fill in blank with in conversation, worksheets and reading to help the child narrow down what he must listen and pay attention in order to get the answer.

·       Explicit teaching about ignoring: when, how, who and when not to.  Ignoring takes perspective taking, social filter and frustration skills. Practice ignoring.  Teach self- monitoring.

·      For difficulty in shifting attention, give a warnings-we will have to transition to the next station in 3 minutes.  Use a timer that gives a visual and auditory cue when it’s time to transition.  A transition card or object helps some children especially if they are young.

Attention is an executive functioning skill.  I’ve probably frustrated my son many times by attempting to help him in ways that “don’t help.”  These ideas are just a few to get you started with strategies that may be more effective than “Can’t you pay attention to what you are doing?” 

Overload

Have you ever felt like your child was doing ok considering all that was going on around him?   Then the “bliss” came to a screeching halt.  The meltdown or shutdown started and there was nothing you could do to stop it.  Why do certain things overload some children and what can we do to help them before overload occurs.  Over the next four Tuesdays, we’ll look over some areas that can cause overload and some strategies that might help.

1.     Noise

2.    Tactile/Texture

3.    Verbal Processing

4.    Visual

Let me know if you have other areas that cause overload in the form of a meltdown or shutdown.  Let’s explore them and see if we can find some solutions.

 

Calendars and Visual Schedules

When we talk about visuals, here are some things to remember. 

  CLEARLY DEFINE WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE. If your child is young then this will be much easier to do.   The older the child is, the more finesse is needed.  We need to look at this from a big picture and a small picture standpoint.  I could help by looking at your child’s  schedule and homework for the week and/or month and developing a calendar.  If his learning style is more visual, a calendar is much more important.  This will help him “see” what is coming up and that he has 2 tests, an English paper and a social studies project due during the week before spring break.  If he “sees it”  it is amazing how much easier it is to get many children to comply.  If he’s not “buying,” little progress will be made.     This is something an adult may need to do for him for a while.  The goal will be to transfer it to him to maintain eventually but that probably isn’t realistic in the beginning.    

TIME EACH ACTIVITY including preparation (when do I need to start getting ready for soccer if I leave at 5:00.)    This helps the child to stay on track and learn how long typical activities take.  This will bring lots of benefit including less conflict.

 USE WEEKLY SCHEDULE during a planning time once a week.  This planning time is essential to make sure everything on the schedule for the coming week has been adequately communicated or changed.  This time will help the schedule to work and cut conflicts down if everyone is on the same page and understands the expectations associated with the schedule.

Structure and Predictability: People

Last week we looked at structuring the home environment to help a child predict what will happen next.  Structure and predictability must be found in people that the child inacts as well as the physical structure of a room or home.  People will never be as predictable as “things” can be.  There are a few ways that will help individuals become more predictable to others. 

 It’s important to remember that the result of structure is to enable others to predict how we will respond and act in common situations. This is achieved through adults that have a calm demeanor. The adult must be organized enough to have the margins to be flexible.  I can’t stress this enough. Flexibility comes through maintaining some margins in your schedule and responsibilities.  If the adult is stressed, no flexibility will occur.  Flexibility with consistency in patience, calmness and follow through is necessary. Organization and flexibility:  together, a winning combination.

 

Structure and Predictability Part 1

 Today, we will begin to set the stage for accommodations and strategies for many diverse learners.

We want to look at structure and prectability. Structure is the manner something is built or arranged.  Predictability is the ability to know what will come next.   Learning different children need a framework to give them the ability to predict what will happen. Why? It lessens anxiety, increases productivity and helps fill in the gaps with any deficits in organizational and executive skills.

Structure and predictability are achieved through various ways but we will consider the first today; organization of the physical environment. A schedule that is visually displayed helps a child predict what will happen and when. It takes away the anxiety of "what do I have to do?" It communicates information in a way that is a lasting reminder of what to do.

   For free resources online, check out my pinterest boards of visuals.

http://pinterest.com/rsonepiece/visual-supports/
http://pinterest.com/rsonepiece/labels-visual-directions/  http://pinterest.com/rsonepiece/sharing-the-agenda/

Verbal instructions often get lost as the instructions "evaporate in the thin air" with no lasting reminder of what is coming. Other visuals can help communicate expectations, rewards and consequences in a way that brings understanding. 

Designated work areas also provide a structure of what will be done in a certain location. This will decrease negative behavior once the structure is learned. The structure provides a framework were learning happens easily. Think of it as when we teach the "structure," the child is learning "how to learn.'  He must learn the structure before he can learn skills.