Can't hold a 3 years old attention (con't)?

Question

I wrote the other part but was booted off. I was asking what can I do to keep her busy? Everything that I give her she fly through it then laughs. Its like she get mad when you try to teach her but she will watch you and copy things you say and do. She picked up what she knows now from her 7 years old sister and me. She is a problem in school because she gets bord really fast. But she is too young for public school. What can I do to keep her out of troouble and not slow her down?

Answer 1

I think it depends on the child. My daughter is very focused in what every she is doing and pays attention to what is going on around her. Now my nephew on the other hand is always bouncing off the walls and does not pay attention to anything unless it is food.

Answer 2

My 3 year old is the same way. She loves to do hand on activites like apinting and drawing. She loves the aquadoodle and finger paints the ones that only show up on certain paper of course. She also likes to pretend...dress up and computer games. I got her the Dora game and it teaches her colors and numbers etc she will play that for a few minutes but then just go to something else. Ive learned that if i let her go and play from spot to spot she does better. Their minds go faster then they can walk but as long as she has a structured atmosphere let her go. She will slow down eventually. Try to teach her by doing it over and over again and when she gets angry be patient she sounds strong willed like my daughter i tell her she needs to see it first and then try but it doesnt always work the first time just keep trying.

Answer 3

Attention is usually not a strength for any child at age 3. They can be drawn to learning by observation as you have noticed.

If she is getting in "trouble" at her school for becoming bored easily, I would communicate with the staff at the school about their teaching/discipline practices. It is not uncommon for 3 year old children to be easily distracted, and a good school should know how to handle it positively.

As for slowing her down, don't worry, you won't. Her little brain is absorbing tons of new material each day, much of which you may not realize. Offer her many fun, positive opportunities to learn without forcing her.

Answer 4

Typically, 3 year olds do not have long attention spans. It is frustrating to her as well as you to require her to pay attention longer than she is physically capable of. It is not necessary to do much in the way of formalized, structured instruction. This is an age of exploration. Do not focus on academics. Do lots of things WITH her instead of giving her things to do. Read books, draw, take walks, go to the park, plant a garden, visit a nursing home, let her help you cook, give her play-doh, let her create what she wants with scissors and glue, get her a sandbox, let her play outside in water. There are so many things that you can do with a 3 year old. Think about the 5 senses (hearing, seeing, touch, smell, and taste) and try to do things with her that she needs to use those senses for. 3 year olds can not think in the abstract yet, so concepts such as addition and reading can be taught by rote (repetition), but most 3 year olds are not ready to become proficient in these things. She should be able to entertain herself for a period of time so do not do EVERYTHING with her. If she is in preschool, it is important to discuss your concerns with her teachers so you can develop a consistent plan for both home and school. Ease up on intentionally teaching and have more fun with her. My extensive experience with children has taught me that all children respond positively to consistency and clear boundries. As her parent, you must run the show and not allow her to do so. Children who are given too much control end up pushing the boundries to extreme limits because they do NOT want to be in control and are seeking how far do they have to go before an adult will step in and take over.

Answer 5

i have the same problems with my 3 year old. he was just denied an entrance to pre-k because of his test scores. so here is what i do.......

first he has language dvd's for kids that teach other languages. we use spanish and french. so we watch those daily and he gets to practice and build on his foreign language skills. this i think is a must with the current state of our nation that my kids know other languages.

second we have tons of pc learning games that he plays. some are even geared towards 1st and second grade and he is progressing great with them.

so my suggestion is to think outside the box and give her things that will not only stimulate her intelectual side but be fun and entertaining also. teach her to use the mouse and you have hours of learning potential at your fingertips. you can also try sites like pbskids.org or other major kids channels websites as they usually have lots of entertaining and stimulating games and activities for children. she will learn how to work a pc in kindergarden, so if she doesn't already get a head start and kill 2 birds with one stone now.

Answer 6

I have twins, and they both approach learning differently. Both are quick learners, but with one child I have to find more action-based ways of learning (hand him a frog to count the legs, let him touch a dead butterfly's wings to understand how fragile they are). He likes to hear a story but usually can't sit still for long, so we act them out or do other games with the stories. The real trick to having him learn things is to engage his interest and not push the studying or book learning. He picks up a lot more than I ever teach him just by listening to what's going on around him, even when you don't think he is paying attention. I also talk to both boys constantly and try to answer their never-ending questions in an age-appropriate way (example: today I was trying to explain why I couldn't start a song on the radio over at the beginning, even though we can from a CD). Wonderful way to keep active toddlers interested: go for a walk, and just casually point things out as you go. Tell them a little about each thing, as their interests lie, and then let them tell you about the thing (bug, rock, plant, etc). I try really hard not to lecture, but just to keep it conversational. I also praise observations they make on their own, or conclusions they derive from their own experiences.
My other son, however, would be happiest if he could sit on your lap and read book after book all day long. He loves flashcards too, and though I don't push these things, just have them available, he gets them out and asks me to sit with him while he "drills" himself. We also do not spend a lot of time in front of the TV, even if they are bored, which forces them to think for themselves and actively seek out experiences.

Answer 7

My son just turned 3 too, and he is advanced for his age. So his day care offered him to skip preschool and go straight to kindergarden (provided he gets potty trained first though, which is where my challenge is.. lol). If you have a computer, I'd find some interesting educational games (you dno't even have to buy software, a lot of web site have fun games that you learn a lot from). He can't spell yet, but he recognize words already. ALso, I think Motessori schools let kids progress at their own pace, but you still have to find something she is interested in.

Answer 8

Get her some of the teaching games, like Leapfrog, if you can afford it. If your computer is at home get some teaching games for it. I was a bright kid too, many years ago. My mother read to me as much as she could. I ending up learning to sight read over her shoulder, and was reading at 5th grade level in the 1st grade. I read to my younger sisters and brother.

Have her sister read to her, it will be good for both of them. Keep her engaged with things other than the television.

If all else fails, find a private school, like Montesorri (sp?) with programs for children that young.

Answer 9

What type of preschool is she in now? My 3 year old had a similar problem she was ahead of alot of the other children in her school and got bored and distracted very easily, but they also we just focused on teaching her instead of doing creative things to boot, i switched preschools who took and different approach like taking them to aquriums and museums to give them a different perspective of learning, but they also did alot of funt hings giving their brains a rest. I think at this age anything that is to regimented is not good they need to have a variety of activities to keep them occupied.

Answer 10

Ther are places that have pre-school for children 3 years and up see if there any places in your area. we actually work in a college that has a early childhood program and students there do student teaching which off course is better done in front of children so they have a preschool setup. we sent our kids through their program every summer it was both economical andf beneficial to all involved. good luck