How can you increase interest and staying power in a 6 year old?

[Yurtgirl]

My niece has the attention span of a gnat apparently (I rarely see her but my mum has been moaning!)

After hearing one page of a story she is bored
After 5 minutes of a game she wants to do something else

She is like it all the time apparently

Has anyone got any suggestions how she can be encouraged to stick at things for longer?

TIA

Is it that she finds it hard to concentrate for more than 5 minutes, or is it that she gets bored easily - I think there is a difference. If she is just getting bored, then you need to work on what actually interests her. If a childis engaged in something that they want to be doing, they will stick at it.

you'll find most kids that age have bad concentration it just depends on her interests my son of 7 will interupt me so many time during a book or gets bored playing certain games i find its when i tell him (no you cant do that in the game) he gets bored and probably slightly annoyed at the fact ive told him no he cant do something, they need to learn that they're are rules i know but what it comes down to is they want the fun at they're age not be told how to have fun,

but when its something he can be left to his own imagination he can get lost for an hr at a time its amazing how a book of blank paper and a tray full of pens and crayons can be so much more exciting than hearing a story guess you'll just have to figure out what it is that she likes and always have a back up plan haha cuz they do get bored alot! what i always say to my boy is "its your imagination and you can do what you want with it!"

dont stop trying with the other things though games are good for the concentration jigsaws memory cards that sort of thing but when they get bored and it stops being fun you need to leave them too it or it could put them off it all together.

i hope this helps i had the same problem over a year ago i was thinking there was something mentally wrong but it turns out its normal!

I think its a bit of both tbh

My mum and I are discussing whether its nature or nurture

I really hope that doesn't mean you're discussing how it could be your sister's fault!!

I don't think it's at all unusual for a 6yo to find it difficult to concentrate on something she's not that interested in. Jenni puts it well - they don't want to be told how to have fun.

Also, sometimes it can just mean that they are bored. Is it that the games/books are either to easy and therefore not demanding enough to hold her attention ,or too difficult and therefore, she can't engage with them? That was a very fine line for my DS1 at that age.

Sister in law actually

Gosh it sounds awful now you point it out!!

She is a lovely girl, her mum is lovely - too lovely for my brother I sometimes think!

But yes at least to an extent I think it is possible to nurture a child away from having a longer attention span - just as it is equally possible to nurture them towards having a longer attention span.

Obviously its equally possible that a short attention span is entirely nature - but I dont think that is true in this case

Either way she needs some help!!

Not necessarily Yurtgirl - Ds1 was criticised for not paying attention in Yr1 (his teacher had me in tears actually) but in Y2, he either grew out of it, or he had a better teacher, who was able to engage him properly. She never felt it was an issue at all and he's much more focused at home now too (when he wants to be) so probably a bit of both.

How does your niece do at school? Is her mother concerned?

i really wouldnt be too concerned not at the moment anyway my son was refered to a phsycologist just over a year ago for his lack of concerntration he often went into a world of his own and at the same time as telling me this the teachers also told me and showed me his tests over 90% correct some 100% and his spelling and reading was amazing for his age i couldnt understand it myself when i spoke to the phycologist (because the teachers know best now dont they!!!) she said he seeemed very creative and didnt seem to be anything wrong she said the chances are it could be immiturity and just keep an eye on his schoolwork incase he starts to fall behind and to give him a few years before i worried too much she was very supportive and gave me advice on how to help with his concentration. and was more dissapointed at the fact his teachers has taken him down a group so as not to disturb the other group with his lack of concentration she pointed this out to the teachers and asked why if he was as they said themselves more than capable of the work but i ended up moving him schools because of a housemove where it got a little better hes now 7 and will be going into primary 4 soon and his teacher has gave me nothing but praise for him he brings me home student awards and continues to get 90 and 100% on tests so i say dont be too harsh yet its easy for an outsider to point the finger but like me and many other mothers no-one knows their kids best than mum! if she starts failing her mum will know and pick up on it, you may be family but you did say yourself you hardly see her and well grannys its in the job description to moan about the grankids my mums an expert at it!!