how can i help my 11year old with lack of concentration in school?

Answer 1

i would use flash cards, there is less to concentrate on with a single card, so write, for instance, a vocabulary word on one side and the definition on the other, and it should seem to move much faster for the child, since s/he isn't trying to concentrate on a whole chapter, plus it cuts out all the stuff they really don't need and focuses in on the important stuff they will have to remember for their tests

Answer 2

These are all good sensible answers. Sugar, sleep and junk food are real suspects so is a games console/TV in the bedroom.

The first thing is are you sure it is just lack of concentration? Going to bed late, bullying all can surface this way. Is anything wrong? Can you find out?

Your child is most likely to be a boy, if it is then try to get him doing things out of school, if you can get involved yourself - great. If you can do things with him it helps and he is being monitored. It is a terrible thing to say, but as a male teacher I have always felt that schools fit girls better than boys. Does he like expressive arts?

If your child is a girl . . . . . well I found my own girls much harder to deal with than their brother so no advice. You could try horse riding maybe. Activities are interesting and tiring, thassthe point. Get them healthily tired and interested, but it is so easy to say and so hard to do.

Good luck

Answer 3

Talk to the teachers at parents evining/arrange an appointment with year head and find out where your child is having problems in concentrating. Is it certain subjects? Varying classroom activities often help, I don't know if the child is in primary or secondary, if in primary school the class teacher will notice patterns more easily than various teachers in a sec.school. you could also investigate the child's diet eg. what he/she is eating for break. Find out your child's preferred learning technique (visual/auditory/kinaesthetic) and try and enable him/her to use this to his/her advantage when at school. At this age the child probably has a lot of hormonal changes too though, going through puberty, so sometimes a lack of concentration can result as a temporary change of mood.

Answer 4

I dunno! I'll try though. When your child is reading make sure they can hear their own voice in their head when they read to themselves, also have a pen and paper ready this is for them to write down the first thing that comes into their head. Some words in a passage could trigger of an event that happend to them, that means that their mind tends to wander from time to time. It might help with concentrating. If this is the case slight background noise could help, like the radio or music. Concentration is important. Recently i had a flat tyre on my bicycle on the high st and it was about to rain, if i too any notice of the people looking at me i would never have been able to fix it and would have got soaked. Try to get them to focus on their own tasks and stop worrying about everyone else.

Answer 5

You should maybe talk to their teacher to see if there are particular issues: are they being given work that is at the right level for their ability? do they have any special needs eg sight/hearing problems? are they unhappy/bullied? but in general:

* Ensure they get enough sleep
* Avoid E numbers in foods and drinks
* Make sure they have a good breakfast with slow release carbohydrates (eg cereal, porridge or egg on brown bread toast)
* Give them water to drink during the day
* Give them a structured routine, with regular times for meals, bedtime, etc
* Encourage them to do activities outside school which will help their active concentration skills - things like crosswords, sudoku, crafts, team sports, board games - not just watching TV or computer games (which only require on passive concentration).

It may be an effort for you as well as your child, but it is worth it to give them skills that will be for life.

Good luck!

Answer 6

check his diet

cut out sugar and possibly gluten. Feed him lots of fresh veg, fish and fruit. If he is on school dinners check what he is eating.

If it's a big problem you might want to have him assesed, kids who are dyslexic often have problems with concentration. Is he in primary or secondary school? If he's in primary but ready for secondary he could be bored. If he's in secondary he could still be bored or he just may not be ready to cope with several subjects in a day.

Buy him a small diary and get his teacher to write in when he concentrated. when he gets a positive comment put a star in the diary on the day. when he gets 10 in a row he gets a gold star. when he gets 10 gold stars he gets to pick a treat.

you might think 11 is old for this kind of thing but kids like this kind of thing. If he is too grown up to ask the teacher for comments then he could write it himself.

Answer 7

Omega 3 supplements. They work wonders. My friend's nine year old has been remarkably attentive and his concentration has improved no end since he started taking it. She said there was a noticeable improvement within a month. You can find it added into milk and bread now too.

Answer 8

dont let him have as much sugar,and def.no energy drinks.Cut down on the amount of highly processed food you feed him,even if this means making him butties for lunch(Tuna perhaps?).Enforce early nights,not just on school nights.
Read school books with him

Answer 9

Bribe him. It's a thought if all else fails.

Answer 10

fish oil supplements