When children get bored easily
How to nurture metacognition in your child
Some children learn better when doing something practical, rather than thinking deeply or reading about it. The act of ‘doing’ helps some children remember the task at hand.
In all the stages of learning, we want to encourage curiosity and understand how best a child likes to learn and exploit this to its maximum potential.
Sometimes, what makes the chore of learning very difficult, especially for those who are neurodivergent (e.g. dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD) is if they have poor working memory or executive dysfunction. These children appear bored easily and cannot engage for long periods in new tasks.
I have worked with many children like this, and there is a common pattern of events. Often the issue stems from many factors, some of which are physical (poor coordination), others brain-based (cognitive).
The resulting issue manifests in a child that is looking for activities of instant gratification, who is not entertained for long or might be hyper-focused, unable to change pace or activity.
These events combine, leading to the point where the child believes that ‘everything is boring’, unless it is their choice of activity. Also the chosen activity is usually something very familiar, which limits their potential to stretch their way of thinking, and how they process their own thoughts – metacognition.
Metacognition is thinking about how you think, this self-analysis is the basis of self-improvement.
How do you develop your child’s curiosity?
The first thing is to stop talking and start asking more questions, or allow periods of silence to give the child space to work it out for themselves.
Parents who provide all of the answers all of the time are not letting their children think for themselves.
We need to place the responsibility squarely in the child’s hands.
Does this sound familiar? Whenever the child can’t find the butter in the fridge (it’s probably behind the bowl of yesterday's evening meal), instead of moving things in the refrigerator the call comes out, “I can’t find the butter!”
If this is happening in your house, things need to change.
Don’t always do things for your child; don’t provide answers until your child has tried to work it out for itself.
“Any activity that affects balance is something we have to think carefully about.”
The link between physical activity and metacognition
When survival is a factor the brain switches on.
Any activity that requires balance activates the brain and body instantly. We cannot engage in these activities absent mindedly, or else we lose our balance. When suggesting activities to parents for their children, the climbing wall is my number one option.
Children using climbing walls (or trees) need to do many things, but most of all they need to avoid falling down! They must carefully consider each point of their body’s contact with the wall, and their placement of their hands and feet has consequences. This is thinking critically at its best and nurtures megacognitive thinking skills naturally..
Afterwards, there is a lot of self-analysis; was I strong enough? How would I do this next time?
After a few goes of the same climbing wall, the activity becomes familiar and procedural. That’s when we increase the challenge to the next level for a longer duration.
Puzzling it out
I like to use puzzles which make you think, but do not strain the working memory, such as sudoku puzzles.
“You don’t need special equipment, a unique space or loads of time.”
You don’t need special equipment, a unique space, or loads of time. Unlike a physical toy, with sudoku puzzles you can see the steps taken to solve the puzzle and analyse them, and you can bring this analysis into the next puzzle.
This activity helps build on metacognition; how to solve the puzzle and how you think. There are many different variations, and the level of complexity is highly adaptable, from a three-year-old to rocket scientist level.
The act of thinking
Any habit, good or bad, can provide the same satisfaction.
The problem lies when it becomes an obsession. Our brains can get hooked on one particular activity and become unable to cope without it. The idea of thinking about what you are doing at the time. or being able to analyse what you did, allows you to be more in the ‘present’, it enables you to consider how to change your thinking.
“Mindful activity can be nurtured from a young age.”
A small amount of mindful activity can be nurtured from a young age, and when it is, we know we are improving both the working memory, and the executive function of those who need it most.
Finding the right help
We offer one-to-one therapy that nurture these ideas and allow children the opportunity to build on thinking skills that help underpin academic success.
Dyslexia? Dyspraxia? ADHD? ASD? Speech & Language? Developmental Delay? Anxiety?
Is every school day a struggle? As a parent, you may feel exhausted and on this journey alone. Each year you see the gap getting wider. You need to do something - change the approach, help your child learn for themselves, find a way to turn this around - to help while you can - do this NOW. the first step is free.
