Increasing your child's attention span is a very slow process but well worth your time and effort. It is not accomplished overnight, but is something that can be gradually accomplished The age of your child will determine what type of activities you will use to increase his/her attention span. For toddler age children, schoolwork, reading, etc, can be utilized. Use a behavior or several behaviors that your child likes and are enjoyable to him/her when you first begin.

Determine how long your child is now playing or engaging in any specific behavior (coloring, playing quiefly, reading) by timing these activities with a watch. This may be a very short amount of time (1-5 minutes).

Pick a time each day to work on this. Your child will need the structure of a specific time each day to work on increasing his/her attention span to make the process easier.

You will want to begin by instructing your child to engage in the behavior you have chosen (for example, playing quietly) for an amount of time you feel certain s/he can do (maybe 5 minutes). Set a portable kitchen timer for that amount of time.

Praise your child brieflv (You do not want to distract him/her) as often as possible during this time.

If your child engages in the activity for the specified amount of time, praise and reward him/her. This can be done by spending 5-10 minutes with them, reading a story, giving them snacks, etc. Tell him/her how proud you are, etc.

Very gradually, increase the time. The amount of time will depend on your child. Try 3 to 4 days at each time to begin with. You may need to stay on one time length for more than 3 to 4 days, depending upon your child's progress. Do not lengthen the time until your child is doing well at the shorter period.

If your child is enjoying these quiet types of activities at any other time during the day, be sure to praise him/her often.

If your child tantrums before or during the time your are working on this behavior, place him/her in time-out. After the time-out is over, instruct him/her again to engage in the activity. Praise getting started and trying. Make this as pleasant as possible, but do not give in to the tantrum by allowing the child to get out of the activity.

Remember the time-out period should be brief. A good rule of thumb is one minute per year (i.e. 7-year-olds would have 7 minutes of time-out), and never more than 10-15 minutes for a preadolescent child. More time does not equal better results.

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Our service area covers most of the State of California reaching from San Diego to Redding and our preferred method of payment is always Medi-Cal or Medicare. For over twenty years, we have served a very special population of children. It is our goal to work together with the caretakers of these children to effect the best diagnosis and care possible for each of our clients.

For more information on our services, you can call us at (818) 343-3833. We are always happy to help.