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Primary education

dd 'not listening' class and it's effecting her learning

18 replies

MascaraOHara · 04/07/2008 13:55

What can I do?

I have told her she must listen but I've told her that before.. I'm not sure what else I can do (not being there).

She's not disruptive or anything, she's very obedient iywkim.. she just doesn't listen, I've seen it at home. I think she's just one of thses kids/people who can just completely zone-out.. i was always a day dreamer so can sort of understand it.

I think she just finds something to fiddle with or gaze at and she's often more interested in what someone else is doing or something else that's happening instead of listening to the person talking to her. Have also witnessed her not listening to swimming instructor and instead bein gmore interested in what the other class are doing

Is there anything I can do to help her stay focussed? other than keep reminding her that she must listen to the teacher?

she is 6 and just at the end of year one. I wouldn't be bothered except teacher has mentioned it in school report because she doesn't pay attention so gets her work wrong.

TIA

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edamdepompadour · 04/07/2008 13:59

Have you had her hearing checked recently? I'd do that first. Glue ear is sooooo common.

Apparently day-dreaming is actually good for learning - there was a study reported the other day which said this. Might be a tiny bit reassuring?

No ideas re focus, I'm afraid, apart from looking at the teacher. Looking helps you to listen.

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MascaraOHara · 04/07/2008 16:23

No, maybe I should.. I'm forever getting sick of hear "pardon" "pardon" "pardon"

thanks

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Blandmum · 04/07/2008 16:29

If her hearing is OK have you thought of using spoken word story tapes to improve her listening skills?

Listening is a skill that lots of kids lack, and it is something that needs to be developed

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MascaraOHara · 04/07/2008 16:32

she has quite a few story cd's and she will lie in bed to listen to them but I've just realised when I'm reading her her bed time story I am forever having to stop and ask if she's listening because she's started fiddling with something or other.

Do you think I should start making more of an issue about it at home so she know's it's seerious

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MascaraOHara · 04/07/2008 16:32

sorry there should've been a question mark on the end of that "?"

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Blandmum · 04/07/2008 16:37

With the story thing something that can be helpful is to stop at the end of a paragraph or so, and ask her something about the last thing read. That will train her to keep listening. With time you can gradually extend the period that you read for before you stop, and ask her about things that happened 'longer ago' in the story

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MascaraOHara · 04/07/2008 16:41

OOO that's a brilliant idea.. I will try it tonight.

It can be anything from picking at her toes to twiddling a dr who card.. just absent minded fiddling really.

I am going to try that tonight, I'll let you know how I get on

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Blandmum · 04/07/2008 16:44

If she is a 'fiddler' get her something like a squeezy ball. let her fiddle, but do the questioning thingie.

If you try to stop her fiddling all together she may spontaneously combust!

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MascaraOHara · 04/07/2008 17:12

if I stop her fiddling she just picks her nose and eats it LOL

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Blandmum · 04/07/2008 17:19

PMSL!

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Littlefish · 04/07/2008 17:24

I agree with MB on the "fiddling" thing. Some children just need to fiddle in order to listen. I give some children a lump of blu-tac or a ball to hold. They are told that they can hold it as long as I can see that they are trying their best to listen. It often works. I know that I listen best when I am doodling on a piece of paper.

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Boco · 04/07/2008 17:29

She sounds exactly like my six year old dd! Her report was really good, apart from the bit about her not listening very well. She seems to go into her own daydream world while in circle time, then when they all have to go and start work she hasn't a clue what they're supposed to be doing.

When we talked about it she was very aware that it was happening - but clueless about how to stop doing it. She's such a vague dreamer a lot of the tome, she just sits and stares and thinks. I'm a bit like that, so is her dad, I wonder if there is little hope for her! She said that she sometimes tries really hard, but then suddenly finds she's thinking about something and then the teacher asks her a question and she panics as she's no idea what she's talking about. One to one and in small groups she's fine, but in a class situation she struggles.

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imaginaryfriend · 04/07/2008 21:19

This is so familiar! My dd is almost 6 but is only just at the end of Reception. She never listens, is always drifting off, fiddling, picking her fingernails. At the Christmas concert she barely sang a word but fiddled with the hem of her costume. Yesterday they had the school carnival and she spent the singing part afterwards fiddling with a bit of tissue paper on her shaker. when I read her a bedtime story she likes to eat a cheese string so she can fiddle with it while I read. In swimming she always does the wrong thing because she's not even looking at the teacher when she's telling them what they're to do next. It actually drives me nuts but like your dd mine's a very sweet, lovable child so I don't like to tell her off. She also has really good focus when she's doing something like drawing or watching a movie. When she's reading her book to me it takes forever as she continually gets distracted by what's happening in the picture, things she's forgotten to tell me about the day etc. etc. I could go on and on.

It wasn't mentioned in her school report which we got today. But she is in Reception so perhaps they don't have to do so much listening. I expect I'll get something similar to your dd when she's in Y1.

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Boco · 04/07/2008 22:54

How is her skin now IF? Did you ever get to the bottom of the problem?

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shirleyghostman · 05/07/2008 09:10

Hi,

This sounds so much like my son - 6 years old. We had tried so many different formats that we were getting tired out as much as he was.

Then one day, my husband decided to read the book really dramatically and gave different accents to each of the characters ie: Scottish, Yorkshire, German, French etc. He even ad libbed by incorporating my son and some of his school friends names into the storyline. My son loved it. Now whenever we read he asks us to put on different voices - but you know what - he listens.

Maybe worth trying but suggest (through trial & error)reading the book before acting it out as we had noticed on the first attempt that dad was scottish for one character who then became cockenese later on!

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imaginaryfriend · 05/07/2008 21:01

Hi Boco, dd's skin is much better now although it's taken almost a year of strong antibiotics and no certain plan for the future.

shirley, that's all well and good, but it doesn't help when they're not listening to the teacher / swimming instructor does it? Can't expect them to teach 'in character' ...

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bluesparkle · 02/10/2008 18:41

My 10 yr DS has dreadful listening skills. I can really relate to these posts, I was searching on mumsnet for any advice on improving these skills. He doesn't listen to the homework instructions so is clueless when he gets home. If I give him more than 1 0r 2 instructions in a row he either forgets to do both or part does 1. He is a very obliging & loving child and is bewildered by peoples annoyance at his dreamy ways. School is so pressured for him because he doesn't listen and follow instructions and seems to be forever in trouble.

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Tinkerbel6 · 02/10/2008 19:15

Mascara maybe give her fish oil supplements and see if you notice her concentration levels picking up

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