7 year old boy with total inability to concentrate

[YellowDinosaur]

The title says or all really.

Is this normal? Otherwise he is a bright inquisitive chap who asks endless questions (but doesn't necessarily take in the answer) and seems to be doing well at school. But the total inability to concentrate on a specific task apart from football / games with his brother is driving me and my dh up the wall and we don't really know how to help or if we should be worried...

Of to bed shortly - if I don't respond till tomorrow i'm not ignoring any advice and will be back!

If he can concentrate at the things he loves I would worry less. DS1 couldn't even sit still for the things he loved the most which was the big 'tell' that all wasn't perfect.

Yes I guess he can concentrate when he wants to.

It's all the questions where he doesn't even listen to the answer then asks the same thing 5 minutes later. And the 'pack your swimming stuff' (which is all sitting on the floor next to his bag) and putting only half in, and having to coax him with homework (which he seems to want to do) every 10 chuffing seconds.

But actually as you've pointed out he can concentrate when he wants to.....

I can't tell you whether it's normal but I can understand.

My son has inattentive ADHD. He can concentrate very well when he enjoys something (computers) but is completely unable to concentrate or focus if its repetitive or boring for him (getting dressed, homework etc etc). This is an important and often misunderstood point about ADHD.
I'm not insinuating your DS has ADHD but I can empathise with you.

I don't know what he is like at school but my sons school were pointing out from a very early age that my DS was unable to sit down, complete any work or concentrate at all.
What helps: routine, sitting down together to make rules and writing them out, not punishing him for forgetting or not being able to concentrate. When giving instructions, don't give a list, instead take it one step at a time giving him the next instruction after he has completed the first eg. Find shoes. Put on shoes, find coat, put on coat, pick up bag etc. instead of saying get ready to go out.

We rarely attempt homework but used to find that doing homework in short 10 minute segments worked better. We also used to try homework in the morning before school when concentrating is easier.

Theaccidentalexhibitionist that's really interesting and the tips for what helps are great. I have to say that at the moment I tend to get totally frustrated with him, especially when i've answered the same question about 5 times in 10 mins and he's still unable to remember the answer so i'm almost definitely punishing his inability to concentrate even if only in my mood. I'll try and be more patient. Also the one instruction at a time thing is helpful. I am specific in what I want him to do but tend to give 3 or 4 instructions at once.

We have a parents evening coming up at the end of the month. So far his teachers haven't said anything to indicate that this is a major problem but we'll ask in a bit more detail.

Sometimes if it's an attention thing relating to verbal instruction, it can be auditory processing issue... would he be better if it was written down, or a sequence of pictures as to what to put in bag, what comes next etc?

The not being able to follow several instructions given at the same time sounds like an auditory processing thing, many little kids don't "get that", but I am not sure at what age you'd worry that they can't do it...

I'd be probably approaching the school and making some enquiries, if he isn't able to "hold" sequences of intructions there are ways about making it easier for him... if he's missing out on learning time (or fun time) because of this, it's becoming a problem and needs strategies to overcome it.

yellow getting impatient is entirely normal. We try our best to be patient but find that our DS often does not hear us until we shout as everything else is zoned out. Gradually we've brought the volume down.
I call his name before giving instructions and quite often ask him to look at me before giving instructions so I know he has heard me.
The other thing that we find useful is to get him to repeat our instructions back to us. That makes us confident he has understood and helps his memory.

Children who struggle to concentrate often feel out of the loop with the world, which can make them anxious. I was the same as a child and was often told off for my inability to concentrate. Fear of getting told off meant that when I was given an instruction I would panic and freeze, making things worse. I see that in my DS now, so that helps me keep my patience.
Thing that pisses me off the most is my DS inability to remember to flush the loo and wash his hands. Don't even get me started on his inability to hit the toilet bowl when he wees

We do the look at me /repeat it with instructions too. Sniggering about the toilet stuff - are you sure we don't have the same son? :o

Jenny I'll have a think about different ways to present the information too, thanks.

Haha, someone advised putting Cheerios into the toilet bowl to help my DS aim but with two dogs in the house they'd be constantly hanging round the toilet with their heads in the bowl eating the Cheerios