Attention and concentration are important skills. Without these two factors, we would be exposed to quite a few dangers in everyday life. But they are also of enormous importance for learning. In this article, we will tell you how important attention and concentration are for the development of your child.
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What We Need To Know About Attention And Concentration
The importance of attention for human existence can be experienced every day in our own bodies. This selective principle of consciousness can be considered quite reasonable. If all information coming in from outside had to be processed at the same time, this would limit the capacity of the brain.
The writer Oscar Wilde already summarized this correctly in a saying: “Creating limits the field of vision, observing expands it”. If we are intensively engaged in a task, time not only flies by, but we also seem to be cut off from the outside world, so that only fragments of conversation can be perceived.
Conversely, even among hundreds of voices, our hearing is able to pick out one voice that is very well known to us. This phenomenon is called the cocktail effect in the psychology of perception.
The fact that mothers and fathers immediately perceive their crying children during the night, so to speak, is also due to this phenomenon, which innately, results in the immediate reaction of a parent. In order for the child to sleep through the night, not only massive and comfortable baby beds are beneficial, but likewise sleep rituals that slowly accompany the daytime consciousness to rest.
Activity, Concentration And Sleep
This Is How Activity And Concentration Affect Our Sleep
The daytime activity of an agile and curious child can have just as much of an effect on sleep patterns as the nighttime story or the little lullaby music just before sleep. In addition to fixed routines, a consistent day-night rhythm is effective, stress-free and provides the necessary sleepiness in the evening.
Accordingly, a balanced sleep, the child’s ability to concentrate as well as attention during the day complement each other. Thus, only a well-rested child will be able to maintain concentration while learning for as long as it is necessary for the learning process during the day.
This Is How Attention Affects Your Child’s Development
The attention and care you give your child in infancy is also a significant criterion for later development. Social deprivation experienced in infancy can lead to serious psychological deficits. This term refers to social isolation. Thus, it refers to the emotional state of social exclusion.
Care is thus a prerequisite for the child’s later health and, consequently, must not be underestimated. Neuroses, anxieties and other psychological ailments are behavioral patterns that increasingly affect the later adult.
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Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD)
The importance of attention and concentration for a child’s development is demonstrated by a serious psychiatric disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which now affects more than 5 percent of children worldwide.
If this numerical example is applied to the number of children in Germany alone, namely around 10 million children under the age of 14, this is equivalent to half a million children suffering from the disorder in this country alone. The consequences for a flourishing national economy can therefore not be estimated too low.
How Does ADHD Manifest Itself?
The ability to concentrate, which the affected patients lack, equally affects learning, which, however, is crucial for the adult path of life.
Children with ADHD do not always show the same symptoms. Many are hyperactive, brimming with impulsivity and easily distracted. They often have problems with homework.
In everyday life, these symptoms show up regularly in different areas of life (in the family, in kindergarten or school, and in contact with peers). There are numerous triggers and situations in which problems can occur.
Easy Distractibility
Due to a high level of distractibility, even by small things, affected children find it difficult to concentrate. As a result, school children have great difficulty following lessons or completing homework.
Strong Urge To Move
A considerable external restlessness is noticeable: sitting still is extremely difficult or impossible. This can become so pronounced in children of primary school age that they climb over tables and benches in the classroom, for example.
What Factors Lead To The Deficit?
While some experts point exclusively to genetic causes of this serious condition, other researchers focus on social changes. Nevertheless, it has been shown that alcohol and cigarette consumption during pregnancy in particular increase the risk of ADHD in the child.
The mother’s duty of care thus begins during pregnancy and should be reflected accordingly in further education. Concentration exercises for children not only promote learning, but are also a good precaution for later mental fitness.
