Dealing with distractions

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fatbananas
Posts: 1411
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:03 pm

Dealing with distractions

Post by fatbananas »

My DC is soon to end Year 2. He's doing well but his class is very noisy, with a few naughty boys and some
extremely chatty girls! After a weekend at home (our house is relatively quiet - periods where there is just reading/ playing going on, rather than extraneous noise from tv, computer, radio in background), DC manages to complete written literacy work at school on Monday/ Tuesday but finds it harder as the week goes on and, apparently, by his own admission, finds it impossible to concentrate at the end of the week and therefore never finishes his literacy work on Thursdays and Fridays.

I've read a lot of comments on here recently, in different threads, about ability to concentrate and dealing with distractions. Are there any tips that parents can provide to help my DC ignore distractions or encourage him to refocus once he has been distracted?

I'm aware that he is still v young and, next year, they will be mixing the classes up into more formally streamed groups in the core subjects, so I hope :roll: that the noisier kids will be in other groups, but I just wanted to have a few ideas about what I can do to help my DC should it continue to be a problem.
Seize the day ... before it seizes you.
scarlett
Posts: 3664
Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:22 am

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by scarlett »

I have the same problem with my yr4 boy/ yr2 girl. Although it can be helpful to encourage them to concentrate even if there is lots going on around them, my feeling is why should they ? If they want to buckle down and work then that should be encouraged .My DD teacher splits up the disruptive children and places them boy/girl to stop the chatting too, I suppose ! The only thing is my DD has to sit next to a naughty boy whose behaviour has improved, but my daughter now spends most of the time helping him with his spellings etc . My son is in a class with older, really disruptive children and he used to get really agitated and upset at their behaviour, but now can see how much better it is for him if he works so takes his work off into a corner to concentrate which really annoys me, but at least he has found a way to adapt. Once he even took himself into the hall and was told off for leaving the classroom, which I did complain about because surely it's the disruptive children who should be taken into the hall ?!

I think it's a good sign if your DS has spoken to you and said he can't concentrate rather then just joining in.You need to speak about your worries to his teacher and hopefully s/he can let you know how they sort the children and manage distractions. It's one thing getting them to work at home ignoring their siblings, but they deserve a calm, quiet working environment at school.
fatbananas
Posts: 1411
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:03 pm

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by fatbananas »

That is exactly how I feel, Scarlett. It makes me so cross :twisted: ! My DS was put with an extremely naughty but bright boy for a maths task last week. The boy walked off - out of the classroom (found wandering round the school!) - half way through and it wasn't until the end of the class that the teacher had noticed that he wasn't there, or that my son was trying to manage on his own. My DS has, similarly, been given a table in a corner of the classroom to do his literacy work, which helps, slightly, but not enough I think. And, besides, it makes him feel like he's got the problem, rather than the hellish kids being dealt with.

Sorry, fuming, ranting as I type!

There is now less than 2 weeks left of school (report at the end of the week!) and I feel I've wasted enough of my breath with his current teacher. Next year, it's a different building, different teacher and, though still the same class for most subjects, they are split up across the year group for the core subjects. I think that will make some difference but not perhaps 100%.

I suppose I just didn't want this problem to continue, let alone escalate and as I can't control the classroom (sadly :lol: ), I thought perhaps I could help how my son deals with it.
Seize the day ... before it seizes you.
scarlett
Posts: 3664
Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2010 10:22 am

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by scarlett »

You can discuss with your son how to best deal with these sort of problems, FB but I found it does depend on whether they feel they can interrupt the lesson to announce they can't work or even if the teacher takes any notice...they might be spending all their time sorting out the disruptive kids and be only too happy that your son just tries to sort out his work quietly on his own. I don't want to keep jumping in and moaning to the teacher plus I don't know that she wouldn't turn round and say that my ds is chatting etc too ! but I think from his reaction my ds can't concentrate but wants to. I've told him ( he's older than yours though ) to tell firstly the child to be quiet, then tell the teacher he can't concentrate and that's usually when they tell him he can take himself off somewhere.Then I tell him he must tell me and if I find it's happening lots then I will talk again to the teacher.As they get older they do consider these children to be pretty dim and seem to be able to shut out the noise more effectively, proud that they will then get all their answers right.This might be a terrible thing to say, but I do tell him that when he's driving off to a great job in his sports car, with a pretty wife, they will be cleaning dog poo off the streets. :oops: :oops: and he quite likes that idea.Where there's a will there's a way and children need to learn some self control too, which is what this is about really, our boys want to work and will find a way...the others just don't care.
menagerie
Posts: 577
Joined: Thu May 26, 2011 9:37 pm

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by menagerie »

I've been giving my boys Bond papers to do with the radio on in the background, the cat jumping on their laps and my husband and I chatting and cooking as they work. I did this intentionally to get them used to working with distractions. Their marks have dropped a bit but they are learning to shut the distractions out. I started to do this after the scare-stories I read on here about children crying or being sick in the exam, which would absolutely wreck my boys' concentration if I don't build up to them preparing for it. Learning to cut out background distractions and concentrate is a great skill for them to have mastered by the time they get to the exam.
fatbananas
Posts: 1411
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:03 pm

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by fatbananas »

This might be a terrible thing to say, but I do tell him that when he's driving off to a great job in his sports car, with a pretty wife, they will be cleaning dog poo off the streets. and he quite likes that idea.


:lol: :lol: I've been telling my DS that working hard means he won't be one of our (useless) dustbin men but I think the idea that these disruptive kids could be cleaning dog poo would grab his imagination more and be greatly incentivising!

DS does tell the teacher, which is why he gets put on a table in the corner but I think sometimes DS just doesn't want to keep complaining. And, as we've said, why should he have to.

Menagerie: how old are your boys? Have they had similar classroom experiences and has it got better as they've got older?
Seize the day ... before it seizes you.
menagerie
Posts: 577
Joined: Thu May 26, 2011 9:37 pm

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by menagerie »

Years 3 & 4. Year 4 seems much more settled than year 3.
vasu
Posts: 719
Joined: Sun Oct 03, 2010 3:36 pm

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by vasu »

I read in the appeal forum about a child failing the exam because he was distracted by disruptive kids. Since then I put on music, let my younger one play with legos in the same room(this is very distracting for ds), banging pots in the kitchen etc. Initially he was quite distracted but now he just tunes out everything except :roll: legos and ds2.
Having one child makes you a parent; having two you are a referee.
yoyo123
Posts: 8099
Joined: Mon Jun 18, 2007 3:32 pm
Location: East Kent

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by yoyo123 »

I suppose it is a bit late now, but after a few weeks in Y3 if it is still a problem have a word with his class teacher, maybe she could devise some sort of reward or incentive scheme to complete the work set.
fatbananas
Posts: 1411
Joined: Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:03 pm

Re: Dealing with distractions

Post by fatbananas »

now he just tunes out everything except legos and ds2.

Vasu: :lol: at least you can be fairly certain that those two distractions won't be in the 11+ exam rooms!

Yoyo: That's a great idea.

Thanks everyone. I do feel I now have some strategies up my sleeve.
Seize the day ... before it seizes you.
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