Concentration is an elusive quality for everyone; even the grown-ups who are more mindful find it harder to concentrate. When it comes to children, concentration is very hard to develop. Concentration can be considered as an ability or quality that permits creating close to any appearance of communication, creative mind, certainty, imagination or group work.
In the school atmosphere, concentration is very much important for paying attention to the teacher, for performing classroom tasks, parts of learning and understanding the concepts better. While in the home atmosphere achieving concentration is quite a task, especially in the children. Every parent struggles to ensure concentration in their children in the home and this can have a big impact on long term development in the children.
Tips to develop concentration in children
Many education experts have given some tips that are based on years of research and experience to develop concentration in the children. Some of them are given below:
Divide big tasks into small tasks
The big tasks require more time and too much concentration and discipline, so it would be a good idea to divide it into smaller tasks. The same strategy could be applied to schoolwork, housework and acquiring new abilities. By doing little errands which lead to the fruition of a significant undertaking, makes the task easier and simpler, and it likewise gives the sensation of progress and development, and this helps the children to develop the concentration gradually.
Proper Nutrition
Nutrition is very important for growing children, as it helps the overall development of the children. Poor nutrition leads to concentration problems, an unhealthy diet, high in sugar and unhealthy fats, affects the concentration skills of children. The loss of sodium and electrolytes causes acute changes in memory and attention.
Children should avoid junk food, caffeine and energy drinks. The children should consume lots of water. This helps in lowering the concentration levels in the children. Some of the healthy foods like milk, eggs, fish, meat, oats, etc. Omega-3 fatty acids etc also help in boosting concentration levels.
Avoid Gadgets
Gadgets are the main spoilers for children, excess exposure to gadgets is unhealthy and reduces concentration. It is not a good idea to watch TV while doing homework, since this distracts your attention. Phones and social media also interrupt concentration. Ensure that the children should not use cell phones while studying and doing homework.
Engage children in brainstorming games
Children love games and this can come handy for developing concentration. Encourage the children to have a good time and include them in conceptualising games and fun exercises. Encouraging them to brainstorming games like critical thinking, scientific abilities and decisive reasoning help in tending to youngsters' focus issues.
Encourage the children to play games like Uno, Jigsaw puzzles, crossword puzzles. Develop interest in the children in activities like assembling a table, and arranging things in alphabetical order, etc. All these are great activities to boost concentration in children.
Maintain specific time for study
Maintain a specific time for study in children and stick to that time regularly. This will help the children to prepare themselves for studying and this increases their concentration gradually. The child prepares its mind for studying and this helps it to concentrate well during that specific timeframe. The mind will know that an opportunity to study has shown up and will be willing to study and this further increases the concentration in the children.
Give some time to settle before taking up the task
When your child is busy with some activities, tell him/her what he/she has to do next and give a few minutes of rest. This trains the mind to take up the task and the child will develop concentration. Regular time intervals help the child to be active and the mind will not get strained in the children. This helps in developing concentration in the children.
Get enough sleep
Sleep is very important for everyone and it is very much important for children. Mind and body need rest and sleep, which is the best way to rest both mind and body. Children without proper sleep will not be able to concentrate as their mind is completely strained due to activities. Ensure that your child has proper sleep so that he/she can be active every day. Avoid late night sleep and ensure that the children will sleep earlier and wake up earlier.
During sleep, the mind combines memories and appropriate rest fortifies the neural connections that form our memories. This helps children to develop concentration effectively.
Conclusion
Although concentration is one of the evasive traits of any person, proper management will help to ensure concentration. With the above tips from experts it is proved that concentration can be achieved if judicially followed by both parents and children.