Tips to Increase Concentration Power in Kids

Do you feel stressed when you have to get your child to do their homework? Do they look for opportunities or distractions that can prevent them from completing the work on hand?

A lot of parents have been through the same situation. If the child finds a particular task too difficult, they will find a way not to do it. If the TV is in the same room, they will want to watch it, instead of completing that one task.

After wading through millions of strategies, you do finally get it done. However, getting the child to focus on a simple problem seems like a task to you. Some parents ignore this as sheer laziness. That’s not true! Your child might have core focus issues.

Parents! There is good news in store. You can help kids improve their concentration power.

Before we know the tips to increase concentration power in kids, let’s take a look at the problem.

Why is your child fidgety?

1. Insufficient Sleep

Every child needs to sleep for a fixed number of hours during the day. However, sleep patterns are often disturbed, which can cause restlessness in the child. If they have not slept enough, they can be irritable. You must pay special attention to their sleep patterns and ensure they get the kind of sleep they need.

2. Improper Nutrition

Do you give them their favourite snack just before they sit to study? It could be sleep-inducing. Which is why they find it more difficult to concentrate. Similarly, if their daily food lacks the nutrition they need to stay healthy, they may not be able to focus well. To increase their concentration power in studies, plan a diet that gives them their daily dose of nutrition. Make sure to introduce meal times that do not interfere with their homework or school hours.

3. Distractions

If they find many distractions where they work, there is a high chance that the child might pick on one of them. If a toy is lying around the table, they will begin playing with it. This specifically happens when you want them to work on some heavy tasks.

4. Complete a difficult task

If your child is required to finish a difficult task, they might find the distraction more attractive. To escape completing the chore, your child will look at possible ways to not work on it. They may become restless being overwhelmed due to the task. As a parent, we suggest you breakdown the activity.

Now that we have looked at some reasons why your child is restless, let’s take a look at how to increase concentration in kids.

Tips to Improve Child's Concentration

#1 Watch Your Child’s Behavior

When posed with the question how to develop concentration in kids, the first action should be to analyze them. Note how they react to the different situations.

While getting the homework done seems essential, knowing how to work around with your child is equally crucial.
Check what keeps them engaged, and what makes them lose interest in the work. If you closely observe, you will also know how they react to the different tasks handed over to them. They would readily take up some while, let the others lie around.
The teacher would also help understand your child better as they can give you inputs into their classroom behavior.
Once you have the points, working with them becomes easy. Instead of fighting your child, you can help them focus better by identifying and resolving the issues.

#2 Breakdown the Difficult Tasks

We briefly discussed this part earlier. Let's discuss it in detail. If your kid finds the task challenging, they will not try and attempt it.

What can you do about it?

You need to choose tasks that are appropriate for them. For instance, solving complex mathematical questions for a child who’s yet to master the basics is not a good idea. It will make them lose interest.
Instead of working with them on a single big task, break it down into simpler tasks. Your child will realize that the simpler tasks won't take up long to complete. This is a scientifically proven study method that is effective.
As a result, they will finish these tasks, and the actual work will be performed in the process.
The work is not only completed flawlessly but also done without any reluctance from your child.

#3 Set Timer for the Tasks

Every task should have a deadline, which will help them focus and complete it on time. This will help improve kids' concentration.

Allot a time for the task and set the timer when the task starts.
When setting the timer, always check how long your child can work without losing focus.
Gradually, you can begin increasing the time in the timer, which will allow them to sit for a long while.

#4 Avoid Distractions

When you sit to work with your child, there is always that one toy or remote that attracts their attention. As a result, the hours spent in driving them to work are more compared to the actual time spent on completing the task. How to improve concentration in kids amidst distractions?

Try working at a place with minimal distractions. For instance, if the room has a TV, go to another place where you can work.
If you are in the same room, then you should avoid starting the TV, or looking at the phone when your child is completing their task.
Pay complete attention to your child’s work during those few minutes, and your work is done in minutes.

#5 Set Realistic Goals

Help them set goals for the day. With your observation, you can assess their abilities, the number of hours they can focus on a task, and the kind of tasks that interest them.

You can get them to study in different blocks of time. This way they will stay interested and will be more focused on the task at hand.
Introduce playtime as well as other hobby time in the timetable to improve the child’s concentration.
Motivate them by introducing a timeline for the specific tasks.

#6 Keep them Engaged

Children who have focus issues also have a lot of energy. The question then is how to engage kids? You need to keep them physically active and ensure that their minds are alert.

Construction toys that induce curiosity and introduce kids to STEAM-based education can prove helpful. They are essentially like brain development games excellent for engagement.
The activities not only engage them but also help them focus better. They build their creativity and ensure alertness.
Apart from these toys, you can also introduce lots of physical play. It will keep them active and allow them better sleep and good nutrition.

#7 Practice Breathing Exercises

Breathing exercises are scientifically proven to help increase concentration power. Yoga asana and breathing exercises can together improve the physical and mental agility of your child.

Start with 10 minutes of breathing exercises and a few minutes of yoga asana. Introduce variations in the exercises to keep them engaged in the activity.
● To make sure they are interested in the breathing exercises, you can ask them to keep a toy on their tummy. When they breathe in, the toy will go up. If it moves up high, then they have filled their lungs with a sufficient amount of air.
Asanas such as Tadasana, Vrikshasana, and Ustrasana can improve their posture along with their concentration.
It will also help the child relax and be stress-free, which can enable better learning.

#8 Introduce Gaming Methods

You can use games to build their focus. STEAM-based Educational toys can induce thinking abilities into the child, thus ensuring they are engaged with the task. Head scratcher questions as well as logic puzzles for kids with answers can also help induce engagement, thus increasing focus levels.

Jigsaw puzzles are excellent for creating focus and engaging the children. You require a lot of focus to complete these puzzles. Start with smaller ones, and keep challenging your child to do more of these puzzles.
Sequencing is another activity that improves focus. Ask your child to set the table or introduce certain daily tasks into their routine. This will help improve focus.
Tongue twisters can help improve focus through gaming techniques.

Conclusion

Every parent goes through highs and lows. Some days are easy while others may be very testing. But, who says parenting comes easy? After all, there is no book guiding you through this phase. Trust me, it does get better each day.

With the right support system and techniques, you can ace the day and pull up your socks for the next day. I hope these tips and tricks will help you get your children to and complete their tasks with more agility.

Share it with other parents who you feel need these tips. I would love to hear from you, which of these tips helped you with your child. And if you have more tips to share, please let us know in the comments section.