Quick and Easy Attention-Getting Strategies

Tiffany has been struggling to attend to information in class and at home. Even one-on-one, Tiffany loses focus quickly. Tiffany's resource teacher told me "I've tried everything". When I inquired more about what "everything" meant I realized a key attention-getting strategies were missing.

The Truth: Tiffany is similar to many students who struggle with inattention, especially those children who have ADHD, high anxiety, executive dysfunction, or experience(d) trauma. Attending to information that is unpleasant, difficult to process, or not provided in the optimal learning style can make focusing even more challenging. Additionally, focusing, or attending, has a time limit - and it's different for every human being. The great news is we learn to attend to all types of information and extend the timeline to which we can attend as our brains mature! But remember, your child's frontal lobe (where the ability to attend lies) will not develop until near adulthood. 

What I Suggest: When Tiffany's teacher told me she tried "everything", she meant in terms of discipline, or verbal reminders. Kids who struggle with attending are really great at tuning that out. Verbal feedback can sound monotone to students so repeating the child's name or saying "focus" just doesn't work. I suggest you use the other senses and change up the routine constantly. You don't want to child to become immune to the attention-getting strategy because you've overused it. Use these attention grabbers to get a student's attention when it is most necessary to avoid the tune out and maxing out the amount of "attention reserves" your child has. Here are a few attention-getting strategies to try that use senses other than our ears:

• Touch:
• Hand on the Shoulder (a great silent full-class attention-grabber)
• The "High-Five and Go" (even just putting your hand in front of the student and saying "high five listening, go" and the getting that high five grabs the student's attention to your body and to theirs)
• Clap 3 Times (often an attention-grabber used in the NFL to refocus a teammate when getting back on the field)
• The "Mimic Me" Pose (where you touch your nose and the student needs to attend directly to you and their own body to touch their nose in response - don't forget to change it up by doing an ear pull the next time and a double eye blink the one after that)
• Smell:
• Waft of a Scent (this is tricky because it can be a distraction; however if done correctly it's as simple as running a quick gum wrapper, an open lotion bottle, or the cap of a lemon juice bottle under the student's nose and asking "what did you smell?". Once they answer you, you've hooked them back in for the next chunk of attending time.)

Notice: Some of these strategies involve verbal feedback from the student. This verbal output is great to re-focus the student, but may not always we able to happen in a classroom setting.

Reply to this post if you want one of these attention-getting strategies to be performed to get a visual.

What to look for in a school

I am working with Jaden's family right now to identify the best environment for her for high school. It is difficult to find the right placement for Jaden. Her parent's keenly asked: "where exists a school that is going to both challenge and at the same time understand my child?"


The Truth: No matter the age, finding a school that is a good fit for your child is very difficult because your child is unique. Finding a good fit is going to look different for you and your child compared to another child and their family. However, here are some key factors in identify the best environment for your child:



What I Suggest: First, you must realize that the choice of best fit is for your child right now. If you try to plan too long-term ("well this is where I want Jaden to be in 4 years") it's not going to work. Your child will be very different in 4 years, and maybe even in 2 years and another placement change may be necessary again. Second, follow these guidelines when touring schools so as not to get caught up in the new and shiny tech labs: 

• Identify the positive culture, and make sure it's pervasive in your child's day. You do not want your kid in a punitive system of punishment. You want a positive behavior cycle where your student is rewarded for being them instead of punished for not fitting into the square peg.
• Identify the alternatives, and flexibility allowed to students. Since your kid is unique, their path is as well. You want to find a school that honors multiple paths and has options for achievement. If you hear "all kids have to take..." or "we require that everyone must meet these standards...", you can feel free to walk out.
• Identify your child's top need in a school. Don't think of it in the categories of "social", "academic" or "athletic". Instead, what does your child need the most support with? Maybe the top need is organizational support. If that's the case, going to a school that provides weekly or monthly plans ahead of time would be a great fit! Or, maybe, the top need is more time to process information. If that's the case, then going to that school that is rooted in mastery-based grading is going to be your child's best fit.

Thirdly, and most importantly, do not look at the school for yourself. It's easy to get caught up in "I would love this school if I was your age". But remember, you are not your child, and they are not you.



Reply to this post if you'd like a list of concrete questions to ask for each suggestion above.