How to Help Your Child Focus at School

Member

By StacyP
User-Submitted Article

Article Rating:

(10 Ratings)

We send our children off to school each day, wishing them the best. A child who can focus at school will learn more. Being able to focus will increase your child’s success at school. (What parent doesn’t want that for their child?) Learn what can be done to help your child focus at school.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Step 1

Early to Bed, Early to Rise

It all starts the night before the school day. A good night’s sleep will help your child focus at school. Set a decent bedtime and make it a habit. A well-rested child makes for a more focused student.

The National Institutes of Health recommends that children and adolescents get at least 9 hours of sleep each night. Not getting enough sleep can cause your child to focus less at school. In addition to not being able to focus well, a sleep deprived child is more prone to accidents and behavior problems in school.
Step 2

A Hearty Breakfast

Your child will be able to focus better at school after eating a nutritious breakfast. Ditch the sugary pop tarts and gooey danishes for healthy breakfast foods. Fruit, eggs, whole grain toast, oatmeal, and low sugar cereal are examples of healthy breakfast foods that will help increase your child’s focus at school.

And good nutrition doesn’t end with a healthy breakfast. Your child needs good nutrition 24/7 in order to focus better at school. Make sure to pack your child a healthy lunch. If your child gets the school lunch, then teach your child how to choose healthy foods. Likewise, having a healthy after school snack and dinner are also an important part of increasing your child’s focus at school.
Step 3

Physical Activity

Engaging in regular exercise will help your child focus at school. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, a journal from the American College of Sports Medicine, featured a research article listing regular physical activity as a factor in improving academic achievement. Additionally, various research studies have shown correlations between regular exercise and decreases in depression, anxiety, and ADHD symptoms, which can often hinder a child’s ability to focus at school.

A research digest from The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports reports that regular exercise is a factor in immune health. Children who exercise regularly have fewer colds and upper respiratory infections. A child without a nagging sickness will have an easier time focusing at school. Regular physical activity is a good way to help your child focus at school.

Regular exercise could be as simple as walking to and from school, if the school is a moderate distance away from home. Have your child skate or ride a bike instead of being driven to local places. Assign your child physical chores to do around the house. Encourage physical activity by inviting the whole family to play games like touch football and tag. Buy video games that promote activity, such as Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) and Wii Fit.

Comments

dsarokin said

Flag This Comment

on 11/10/2008 Great advice. Staying focused in school is quite a challenge for boys, and I think these tips might really be a help. Thanks.

klnygaard said

on 10/27/2008 fantastic information

gottalovelattes said

on 10/27/2008 This is a truly well-written and extremely useful article!

Gardengates said

on 10/27/2008 Sometimes I think we tend to look for the obscure instead of the obvious. Nicely written and excellent tips on helping us all focus by taking good care of ourselves! Thanks.