Kids have trouble concentrating. It's a fact of life. More and more children these days are being labeled ADD or ADHD, when in fact, they're just being normal kids. Drugs may lull them into compliant stupor, but why drug your kid when there's another option available?

Before you diagnose your child with an attention disorder, why not try these fun games with them? They can be played anywhere, from the living room to the kitchen to the car, and they're great for long car trips. Plus, they help children learn to concentrate and focus. They may also help your child "become" smarter. Children who can concentrate better, can learn better.

Missing Numbers

This game is great for any child who can count. You count from one to ten (or one to twenty, depending on the age of the child), leaving out numbers every so often. When you leave out a number, the child should call out the number you left out. For example, you might go "One, two, three, five," and by the time you're saying "six", your child should have called out "four". (Don't stress if your child is consistently missing numbers. If, after you've said "six", the child hasn't called "four", playfully point out that they missed one, and start the game over. Leave out different numbers each time, of course.)

A tricky variation on this game for older children involves counting by multiples (for example, three, six, nine, twelve, etc) and occassionally leaving out one of the multiples. Don't be surprised if this game is almost as difficult for you as for the child. Both of you will probably mess up many times over; that's all part of the fun. Laugh over it together, no matter which one of you messes up, and start over.

Opposites

This game is great for preschool kids. You call out a word (hot, light, soft, etc.) and the child gives you the opposite. With young children especially, be sure to pick concepts they know. And remember that some words will have more than one opposite. If you say "happy", for example, the child may say "sad", or they may say "angry". Both choices would be right. They shouldn't say "excited", however.

Tongue Twisters

No article on games to improve concentration would be complete without those beloved tongue twisters we all remember from our childhood. These include perennial favorites such as

She sells sea shells by the sea shore Rubber baby buggy bumpers Betty bought a bit of bitter butter

And, for children who have a lisp or have trouble with their r's and w's, try this one:

Swiss wristwatch

All of these games should be fun for you as well as for the child. Remember, keep them fun. You know that the child is learning concentration and developing important skills that will last them the rest of their life, but the child doesn't know that, nor should they. As far as you're concerned, this is playtime. Make the most of it.

Written by Keesa Renee DuPre

Sugary snacks may improve kids' concentration

London, Sun, 13 Jul 2008

London, July 13 (ANI): Forget peaceful environment or meditation, for sugary drinks and snacks are more than enough to boost your kids' concentration while studying.

That's the conclusion of a new study, which found that a sugary drink improved primary school pupils' memories and concentration.

Teachers fear the findings may promote junk food and the results confound suggestions that high-sugar diets cause hyperactivity.

The scientists, however, believe learning would improve through small regular snacks rather than large lunches.

"The evidence sugar might cause hyperactivity is non-existent. We have shown it can help memory and concentration," Telegraph quoted Professor David Benton, as saying.

"Children between the ages of five and ten need twice as much glucose for their brains compared to an adult, but unlike other organs the brain does not store energy so it has to obtain it straight from the blood.

"The message we would like to encourage is that children need to be fed a little and often, but the risk is that they get fed a lot and often leading to problems with obesity," he added.

In the research, Benton gave 16 nine and ten-year-olds fruit squash containing either artificial sweetener or glucose, a basic form of sugar. When the children consumed glucose, he found their memory test scores improved by over ten per cent.

The children also spent between 11 and 20 minutes longer on a task when asked to work individually in class.

However, Benton insists that schools should not start feeding pupils fizzy drinks between classes, proposing regular fruit of muesli bars instead. (ANI)

Lack of concentration these days looms large as a hindrance in the performance of most of the children today. Not only are the studies adversely affected, but also a great amount of time is wasted just in an attempt to concentrate on the subject.

You can keep some things in mind while your child is studying to help him concentrate better.

• See to it that he has all the things that he needs while studying before he starts to keep him away from getting distracted again and again.
• Set a target to achieve within a particular time frame and keep inquiring where has he reached.
• If it is a dull topic, then add interesting facts from your side and ask questions.
• Make it an interesting session by changing the method from monotonous mugging to games like quizzes on the topic or rapid fire rounds.
• Also see to it that he is neither hungry nor sleepy while studying.
• Give him the value of ownership of the work. Let him feel that he is studying for himself and not performing any duty or chore for his parents.
• Also tell him not to study just with the purpose of avoiding shame or humiliation if not done well. Ask him to study for his own benefit.
• You can also team him up with a better performer in class. Ask your child to pick up good studying habits and methods from such a student and set goals to slowly reach his level and then beat him. Healthy competition is an excellent motivator.
• Tell him the story of the spider which kept climbing the wall each time it fell till he conquered it. It would motivate him not to get discouraged if initially he is not succeeding and to keep trying.
• Patience should be the key factor.
• Invest your confidence in him. Even if he is not succeeding, keep telling him that you have absolute faith in his abilities and he will do well if he tries.
• Do not ever humiliate or put down your child. It will be a great loss on his self esteem.
• Inculcate positive thinking in your child. Help him to think better about himself.
• The best motivator is recognition. Do not miss to praise him even for a single time when your child does well.
• Also teach him to applaud for himself. This would do wonders for his self esteem and would motivate him to do better.
• Make him learn relaxation and meditation. If his mind gets too crowded, ask him to take a mental break. Tell him to stop thinking about everything and meditate. If not that then he could simply think of a calmer scene and relax his mind.

If sincere and honest attempts are made on both your sides then it would not be difficult for your child to master concentration and soon become an excellent performer.

My son is in second grade. His attention span is very short, and he frequently has a "dreamy" expression on his face. Is there anything I can do to help him expand his concentration skills?

As children grow, they often show behaviors that appear to be regression or cause for concern. But in fact, these behaviors are signs of new maturity. For instance, the dreamy expression your second grader exhibits may be a sign of his newly developing ability to reason and analyze information. Nancy Richard, a child development expert who wrote a chapter for each of the books in the "How Is My -Grader Doing in School series," writes in the second grade book: "Second Graders ponder, consider and weigh things. On casual observance, this may look like idle day dreaming, but it is really thoughtful reflection, a new and powerful tool for problem solving."

In other words, what you are describing may not be a sign of a short attention span. One question to ask is: Can my child concentrate when he is doing something he loves or when he is participating in an activity that truly interests him? If the answer is yes, then you need to find ways to help him stay focussed on tasks that appeal to him less. Because seven to eight-year-olds are beginning to explore new ways of thinking, they can be easily distracted. You might try suggesting that your child work in areas where noise levels or visual distractions are reduced. Or you might search for ways to help your child become more engaged in the learning at hand. One way to do this is to make sure that he understands the purpose of a learning activity and that he feels confident in tackling it.

If on the other hand, your child never seems to engage in any activity for more than a few moments, you may want to discuss these concerns with your child's teacher and/or his pediatrician.