Attention and listening skills are important for supporting children's language development and learning.

Attention and listening refer to being able to listen and focus on specific tasks, sounds or words.

It can be difficult for young children to develop these skills and some children may need extra support.

How you can support attention and listening skills

• be face to face with your child where possible and get down to their level
• get your child's attention before giving an instruction. For example, say their name or gently touch them on the arm
• keep tasks short and simple so that you can praise your child for completing an activity
• remove distractions where possible. For example, turn off the television, radio, phones and other devices. Your child will find it easier to listen in a quiet room with fewer distractions
• use a visual timetable, "first/then" board or "working towards" board so your child knows what is going to happen and what is expected of them
• use a sand timer or egg timer so your child can see how long they need to concentrate
• use visual supports to help maintain your child's attention. For example, pictures, photographs, diagrams, video clips, gestures and practical demonstrations
• use verbal prompts to refocus your child if they become distracted. Acknowledge whatever has distracted them and redirect them to the task. For example, "Now we're doing/talking about...".

In education settings

• consider where the child sits. They may find it easier to concentrate when sitting at the front of the class
• only give out items, such as worksheets and pens, when they are needed rather than leaving them on desks where children may be tempted to play with them
• try to alternate table-top activities with more active activities involving movement
• provide regular movement breaks throughout lessons
• remember that children do not need to sit still or look directly at you to show they are listening. Some children may find it easier to concentrate if they have a fidget toy or an item such as Blu Tack to manipulate
• for older children, using a whiteboard to record key words or create mind maps whilst listening may be helpful.

Developing your child's attention

When working on attention and listening skills, start with what your child can already do.

If your child can sit and listen for 30 seconds, begin with activities lasting 30 seconds and gradually increase the time.

• work towards spending five minutes doing an activity with your child that they enjoy. If they cannot manage five minutes, start from the amount of time they can already manage and build up gradually
• once your child can manage five minutes, spend one to two minutes on an activity they enjoy and then change to an activity they are less motivated to do for three to five minutes
• use a "first" and "then" approach to support transitions between activities. For example, "First we are colouring, then we can play"
• keep your language simple and repeat the plan to support understanding
• changing the activity, rather than immediately increasing the length of time, may help your child maintain attention for longer
• this can help your child work towards participating in adult-led activities before moving on to a preferred activity
• using "first" and "then" boards can help your child visualise what they will be doing and the order in which activities will happen
• place the "first" card on the current activity and the "then" card on the next activity. When the first activity has finished, move it aside so your child can see it is complete
• when your child can manage two activities for five minutes, gradually increase the length of each activity
• then increase the number of activities, introducing new activities for shorter periods initially
• start with an activity your child enjoys, introduce the activities they need to do, and finish with a reward activity.

Games and activities

Level 1

• games and puzzles: encourage your child to sit for a short period, up to five minutes, each day to play a game, complete a puzzle or colour a picture
• sounds around you: talk about sounds you can hear at home and outdoors
• ready, steady, go: use activities where your child waits for you to say "go". For example, rolling a car down a ramp, blowing bubbles, playing a musical instrument or knocking over skittles. Pause after saying "Ready, steady..." and gradually increase the waiting time before saying "go"
• books and songs: look at books together and talk about the pictures. If your child is not yet ready to listen to a story, talk about what you can see or create a simplified story. Use pauses such as "It's a...(pause)" and wait to see whether your child can fill in the gap or indicate they want you to continue
• musical instruments: take turns making sounds using musical instruments and see whether your child can listen and copy the rhythm
• anticipation activities: use games such as peek-a-boo, tickles or blowing up a balloon. Pause before completing the action to encourage attention and interest
• touch your nose: give simple instructions such as "touch your nose", "clap your hands" or "jump up and down"
• sound location: hide a clock or radio and encourage your child to find it by listening to where the sound is coming from
• animal noises: lay out pictures of animals or toys and make animal noises. See whether your child can match the correct sound to the correct animal
• musical statues or musical bumps: encourage children to listen carefully for when the music stops
• posting game: play a posting game where your child needs to listen carefully to which item or picture should be posted
• shopping game: play with toy food, empty packets or wrappers. Start by asking your child to find one item, then gradually increase to two or three items
• follow the leader: carry out different actions and encourage your child to copy them.

Level 2

• pass the clap: one person claps and the clap is passed around the group. Start slowly and increase the speed
• sound lotto: play a sound and see whether your child can match it to the correct picture
• remembering a sequence of sounds: use two sets of musical instruments. The adult plays one or more instruments and the child identifies the correct instruments in the correct order
• copying rhythms: clap a rhythm and encourage your child to copy it
• animal stories: tell a story involving animals and ask your child to make the correct animal noise whenever the animal is mentioned
• opposite ends: prepare pairs of opposite ideas, such as hot/cold or work/fun. Children move to one side of the room depending on which option they prefer.

Level 3

• Kim's game: place three objects or pictures on the floor, cover them up, then remove one and ask the child which item is missing
• stand up if: ask children to stand up if a statement applies to them, such as "stand up if you are wearing something red"
• linking actions to sounds: assign different movements to different instruments and ask children to carry out the correct action when they hear a particular sound
• fruit salad: children are assigned different fruits and swap seats when their fruit is called
• bean game:
  • long bean – stand with hands in the air
  • broad bean – stand with arms stretched out
  • baked bean – crouch down
  • jelly bean – shake all over
• pass the keys: one child is blindfolded while the group passes keys around. When told to stop, the blindfolded child guesses who has the keys
• what's all the noise?: one child is blindfolded whilst another person creates a sound. The child has three guesses to identify the sound
• count to 10: the group counts to 10 without two people speaking at the same time
• change the rhythm: one child leads by clapping a rhythm and everyone else copies. The rhythm changes throughout the game
• change one thing: one person leaves the room whilst another changes one thing about their appearance and the child guesses what has changed
• add one action: each person copies the previous action and adds a new one
• animal actions: each person chooses an animal and an action. The action is then passed around the group
• pass the bottle: children pass a bottle around a circle using only their feet
• last detail: children work in pairs, change two things about their appearance and identify what has changed.