Want to get your PRESCHOOLER to LISTEN? Learn HOW from EXPERTS!
“My child zones out in the middle of any conversation!”
“Sirf wahi sunta hai jo use sunna hota hai!”
“My child doesn’t listen to me! What should I do?”
If you are one such parent who can relate to these comments and don’t know how to get your child to listen, this blog is for you! To start with: DON’T WORRY. We all have moments when trying to get a child’s attention feels like talking to a brick wall.
At home, this inability to listen can be infuriating and at preschool, it can get in the way of their learning.
The experienced educators at the best preschool in Bopal, Ahmedabad understand that this inability to listen can get in the way of a child’s learning. Here are some tips and secrets straight from the expert’s desk:
How parents can nurture good listening skills
At the best preschool in Ahmedabad, every teacher is constantly working on developing a child’s listening skills through different activities, but there are things that parents can do at home to help them even more:
1) Be a good listener yourself:
For young children everything starts and ends with their parents. You might not have noticed but every child observes and analyses their parents and unconsciously integrates the parent’s habits into themselves. They may copy gestures or internalize words learned from their parents. Children can easily tell if their parents are being attentive or not by the way parents reply or not to their words.
Hence, as parents, try setting a good example by showing children how to be a good listener by being one. Keep your phone aside or stay away from any kind of distraction and show your interest. Maintain eye contact, stop what you are doing and show your children that they have your undivided attention. No matter how irrelevant you find your child’s talk, make sure to respond and react to them.
Wait there’s more! It’s not just with your child, model positive listening skills with other people too, especially when your kids are around.
2) Be very clear while giving tasks
According to child experts, a reasonable attention span to expect of a child is two to three minutes per year of their age. That means, 2 years old would have an attention span of four to six minutes, 4 years old would have eight to 12 minutes, and so on. That is why it is very important to avoid over-explaining to young children. Moreover, they struggle to multi-task, so rather than expecting them to follow a long list of instructions, be short and crisp while talking to them.
For instance, rather than telling your children, “Brush your teeth, take a bath, comb your hair, pack your bag, wear your shoes.” Break it down for them. Give them one or two tasks at a time. Tell what’s expected of them and ask them to repeat everything you’ve said to make sure that they are listening and understanding everything.
Always remember, the way you talk also matters, so don’t just shout your request from the kitchen or the living room. Maintain eye contact while talking to them.
