How to Get My 8 Yr. Old to Focus More on His Homework

Create a reward system as well as the rest and snack that others mention. Positive reinforcement. What does he like to do/watch/time with mom and/or dad. He gets points/coins for being on task, doing his work, and then he can spend the points at the end of the week. It could be as simple as getting to rent a movie/game, to doing something with mom or dad.

Mine likes music playing (quietly), a drink, & a snack.

He goes back an forth on whether he wants to be left alone, wants someone sitting next to him so he can show off or ask questions, or whether he wants to "race"...ie trying to finish his pages before I get out of the shower..with OtterPops as a reward for every "extra" page done.

We've also found...that USUALLY...he does math the best shortly after he wakes up, or right after lunch. Now, we homeschool, so that might not work for you. But it's what we've noticed with math.

Well, I have to say I mostly clicked on your question because I have the same exact issue in my house! And I wanted to read your responses. But then thinking about it, I just started something new that seems to be working (so far). I used to have him do homework right after school to get it over with. (mainly because that's when the other kids in the neighborhood do it and then they all come banging on the door and mine usually isn't done yet.) But, I realized that he needs a little downtime first and a snack, and this helps him work better. So now he starts every day at 3 (He gets home at about 2:15) and I hang a sign on the door that says "HOMEWORK TIME DO NOT KNOCK". So there are no distractions (except little brother but that's another story)yet my son knows his buddies are out playing so he is motivated to get it done. So far so good, we'll see if it lasts! Good luck to you (and me!) :-) Thanks for posting this....I'm going to keep checking back to see what other ideas you get!!

Read the book DISCOVER YOUR CHILD's LEARNING STYLE

http://www.learningsuccessinstitute.com/

Everyone has different learning styles. Learn what his is and then you can tailor the homework to be more interesting and engaging. Play to his strengths.

This has been a source of frustration for me with my now 10 year old, since day one. We just started a new program, he loves it, I love it and it's working! Supposedly you should expect your child to have approximately 10 minutes of homework for every grade level. So my 4th grader should have about 40 minutes of homework everyday plus 30 minutes of reading. So, as soon as he's finished with his reading, I set a kitchen timer for 60 minutes (I give him a 20 minute leeway) and he starts his homework. When he feels he's finished, I stop the timer and review his work. If it's not neat, accurate and complete, I start the timer up again and send him back to his room to finish or correct his work. when he's truly finished, we stop the timer. Whatever time is left gets put toward video game playing time for the weekend. Video games is his "thing" but it could be whatever reward works well for your child. If my son knows that he won't get to play video games at all during the weekend because he screwed around when he was supposed to be doing homework, he's more likely to simply focus. It's a race against the clock but he knows the work has to be good. He has to accept responsibility for his own actions.

I had this same problem with my oldest, now 17 years old, when she was about this age. The things that worked with her were: chewing gum while doing homework, stacking and unstacking pennies with one hand why doing homework with the other, listening to classical music quietly-either on a walk man or a regular radio, the other thing is having her work in 10-15 minute time periods and then getting a break for 10-15 minutes. Best of Luck! It will take patience to see what works.
K.

Hi S., as an educator of special needs children in 2nd and 3rd grader (many who have a difficult time focusing) I find that if I allow the children to work just 15 to 20 minutes on the task at hand and then let them have a snack or a short playtime (about 10minutes) then redirect the child back to the task it helps to get it completed. However, there may exist other problems which have not been noticed, boredom, to difficult work or to easy the list is endless, but just keep trying. Whatever works for other children may not work for yours just don't give up be patient and if needed seek professional advice.

S.,

Since ALL kids learn differently, homework is such a challenge. I was fine as a kid sitting on my own doing homework (as long as my Mom let me listen to mellow music) but, my sister no matter what my Mom tried just couldn't sit still to do homework.

So, like others suggested try a rewards system. For my sister this helped immensely!! We both got one, so she didn't feel like she was the ONLY one with the problem. My Mom used a calendar, and put stars next to chores completed and homework done. By the end of the month, this would determine a surprise from my sisters or my favorite store...as we got older it helped determine our allowance too.

Be patient with him, he's still young and learning study habits that will help him get through the day. Give him guidance and love, and show him how to get things done and he'll be super successful!

If your son isn't focusing, he's not understanding the work. That's the bottom line. When you really understand something, you get joy out of it and you like doing it, when you don't like it it's because there is something you don't get. The key is to figure out what he doesn't quite get. Send me a message if you want to find out how to do this. I help kids who are struggling and it's a very easy fix.

I am with you here, girlfriend!!! My 7 year old struggles, too. What helped her somewhat is to give her small goals, like say "I'm setting the buzzer for 10 minutes, let's see if you can finish one worksheet before it beeps." Goals for each unit of homework seems to work pretty well with her. It is just really hard to get them to sit and concentrate after they have been doing that all day long.

So what happened? How did you get him to work on his homework? Mine went hunting with his dad, and missed school. He would not do his homework. :-)

I have to agree with Riley, try right after some good rest and good nutrition.

Try giving him time to do heavy exercise - it really works for my 6 year old daughter if I let her do the monkey bars a couple of times right before she settles down to do homework.

Does he understand the math that's presented at school? If he doesn't- talk to his teacher and see where his levels are so you can assist him. If he's just not confident, then sit with him and see if he knows what to do- praise him for figuring things out. Is too much homework being given to the kids, so that they're defeated before they even start?

If it's just a matter of him not feeling like doing his homework ( or wanting company)- I would let him have a little break when he first comes home ( like a 1/2 hour or so)- then start in on the homework. Present it to him so that it's not overwhelming ( like one page- or 1/2 a page if that's all he can handle). Give him lots of positive affirmations for doing the work- during homework time, and then after he's done he's "earned" some free time- whether that be 1/2 hour of tv or playing a short game with you- or whatever.

I do think that some schools overload kids with homework. Homework, especially in the early grades, is supposed to just reinforce/refresh the kids on stuff they've been learning.

When my kids were younger, if they spent too much time on homework ( such as an hour for a math assignment), I would write the teacher a note- to let her know that I felt it was too much. As a teacher I would want to know how homework was being received. I never had a conflict with a teacher about it. As a matter of fact, all 3 of my kids did very well academically. I work as a special educator- and I see how our kids can get beaten down from the stresses in their lives- which is not what we educators want to see!

I know that every child is different, with different strengths and weaknesses. I would support him for trying to learn, and not get hung up on grades or competition among other parents.

I hope this has been helpful.

I have the same challenge with my daughter. Here are some strategies I've used at different times: 1)she takes a 5 minutes break between each problem 2)she sets a timer and works for 15 mintues then takes a break 3)she stands up while working on her math 4)she does her math on a clipboard in a different part of the house--change the environment 5)we play ast & fun rock & roll music while doing math 6)she holds a squishy ball in her hand to squeeze to help her focus 7)she eats an m&m after each problem 8)she does math before any other homework 9)I read a book next to her while she does math. Good luck!!

S.,

I am 37 years old, and I have always had a terrible time focusing. I always got good grades in school, but I always had a terrible time concentrating and focusing for long periods of time. It's bee a struggle my entire life. Just recently, I found out why.

I have food allergies. Food allergies manifest differently for every person. We normally thing that manifestations of food allergies would be hives or trouble breathing. Nope, there's a whole list of manifestations that we wouldn't never think of, most of which I had.

I have been treating and elimiating my allergies with an NAET allergist. NAET.com is a group of allergists around the world who treat and elimiate allergies without drugs. They are the ONLY ones in the world who do this.

Yes, my ability to think is better and and focusing is much better now.

I am completing my degree in Nutrition Science and I have been doing a little bit of stuying in the area of allergies. I can answer any questions you may have. ____@____.com

Or you can just log onto NAET.com, locate an allergist in your area and have your son tested for food allergies. You might be amazed to find what's behind not being able to focus. I found out the corn allergies can cause mental illnesses! And there's more.

When considering anything regarding the human body and excellent health always consider 1. Deficiencies, and 2. Allergies. When both are addressed, the body normalizes.

Be Well,

N.

Make a rule that whatever your son likes to do for pleasure and relaxation (video games, watching tv, going on the computer, etc)he cannot do until his homework is done. That has helped my children.

I have this problem with my 8 yr old because the work is too easy and he is bored. Now that they are doing multiplication and division it is a little better. If it is not at his level (too hard, too easy) try talking to his teacher-none of my sons teachers have worked with me but I've heard that some other people's have.
I also let him do what ever pops into his head to get it done. He writes the words or numbers backward, upside down, pen or colored pencil even crayon, sometimes he wants to write the words in spanish, whatever just to get through it.
Good luck.

Math is difficult for many. I work with kids at the elementary school age and I do have a 9 year old too. My daughter (now 14) did struggle in math and we had to make it a fun learning experience for her. We had to use manipulatives (ie., beans, cotton balls, popsicle sticks, money) and make it visual for her. It is hard to focus when you can't picture it in your head. That is most of the problem they face. Don't be afraid to ask your child's teacher for guidance or a quick run through of how she shows them how to work out the problem so that the same think is being reinforced during homework time. My son on the other hand has taken to math quite easily and gets unfocused in Language Arts (any writing really). I just know with math, kids do need to visualize and have repetition. Hope this helps!

Yea sit down at the kitchen table and help him, make it fun for him, while your at it, do some bonding time, teachers have the kids from 9am to 3pm then its up to the parents to step up and help teach them...

good luck

I would talk to an sensory educated Occupation Therapist,
some kids have sensory needs that are not met and then to sit down and try to concentrate is just impossible.
If you can read or call Pediatric Therapy Network, or go online and check it out. He may just need some active
physical time before he has to sit for awhile. They are know around the world and train OT's from all over.
Torrance, CA worth a try right?

Baroque music. Totally helps with homework, something about the mathimatical sequences helps with concentration. My mom used to put it on for us, and I used it with a kid I was tutoring. It really helped, even though he didn't have a background in classical music. He worked faster and seemed to understand it better...
Good luck
R.

Have a race with him, write the problems on a paper for you, then say go, you want him to be first or real close not left in the dust, so act like you are panicing and can't think, freaking out so he gets ahead. He will be laughing at you but totally motivated to beat you. I have found this technique works for all his homework. Just race him by folding the laundry or this page done first. Boys love to beat they're moms. Good luck! J.