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Eva

Listening in class

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Hi everyone,

 

I was wondering if people had any ideas/strategies about how to help my son listen in class :rolleyes: (My son is 7 and has AS and he's in a mainstream primary school).

 

Yesterday I was helping out in class and the teacher was telling the children about fiction and non-fiction, (this is a prep/grade 1 composite so the kids range from 5-7 years old). As she was talking and asking questions, I watched as my son turned around and ended up staring out the door, daydreaming, so eventually he was sitting on the floor, facing the other way :unsure: .

 

The teacher wrote what they were all saying on the board, but my son had tuned out from the very start :whistle: . What would be an effective way to make sure my son is tuning in to the important part of the lesson? Or should I ask the teacher to give me any new topics the day before so I can go over them at home with my son?

 

Any ideas welcome!

 

Eva

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When my son (now aged 14) was in primary, when the kids were all grouped round the teacher for a lesson quite a few of them adopted of having him sit quite near to them so that when they were teaching, every now and then they would place a hand on his shoulder as a reminder to listen. It must have worked to a certain degree because he did quite well at primary school.

 

Flora :D

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Are you sure he was not listening? After all, we hear with our ears and not our eyes.

 

If he does have trouble listening, it could help if the teacher could address him by name and ask questions to keep his interest. Maybe he needs some 1:1 time with someone who can keep him on the right track.

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Are you sure he was not listening? After all, we hear with our ears and not our eyes.

 

If he does have trouble listening, it could help if the teacher could address him by name and ask questions to keep his interest. Maybe he needs some 1:1 time with someone who can keep him on the right track.

 

DS has a majour problem with listening and looking at the same time, he can only focus on one at a time and says that if he looks at the person when they are talking he is so busy looking at their face that he can't hear what they are saying - that is why he never looks at people when they are saying something important. The teachers used to quiz him on what was said and he had always heard everything. He also moves away from the class when they are all sat on the floor listening because he hates being that close to others and can't hear the teacher above the normal hum of the class. Also when he was observed they said that he gradually shuffled to a set of shelves and sat there stroking them as if he needed sensory input all the time. Perhaps your son is the same.

 

We also told the teachers that they need to say his name first to get his attention other wise just because every one is expected to listen he will assume it doesn't apply to him.

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Hi Eva,

 

Have you been to any conferences or local support groups for ADD, because what you described sounded like ADD, the tuning out bit.

 

If you haven't been to any of these, in Sydney there is a place called the Learning Difficulties Coalition in Sutherland and they are online, and they have some good contacts around Australia where you could get some leaflets addressing those very things you were concerned about.

 

Just off the top of my head a leaflet I actually gave to each of his teachers suggested these things.

 

- Placing the child right in front of the teacher so she/he could see if they were focussed.

- Placing a red sticker on a ruler to be placed in front of them so it was a code between the child and the teacher, if she noticed the child daydreaming - she would point at the red sticker which to the child was, listen/ focus as a reminder to listen.

- Trying to remove distractions, place the child next to a child that was really well behaved etc, like a role model. Or the class nerd so they could help with attention problems. To just touch their hand or whisper their name like Flora said.

 

I remember going to a support group and one of the ladies who gave a talk she was the one that pointed out what Tally said, just because they are not looking at you in the face doesnt mean they are not listening. She explained to all the parents that she was teaching a class and there was one boy who couldnt keep still, he would move, wriggle, walk around the room, virtually would be swinging from the rafters and she wondered whether this child could possibly learn anything, BUT, even though the rest of the class was still and very attentive, when she asked a question, the last person she expected to call out the answer was the boy swinging from the rafters. :) After that discussion she played that song by Whitney Houston - Greatest Love of All. So When ever I think my son doesnt have it in him, I remember that song and that boy swinging from the rafters, answering the question. :D

 

Christopher Greens Understanding ADD talks about this in detail too. His books are excellent. :)

 

In severe cases like my son, they need Ritalin or Concerta. Because the message simply doesnt get from A to B and an enzyme eats up the message, but the stimulant in this medication allows more of the message to get through, helping them concentrate better. Without Ritalin, my son would never have managed mainstream at all, even the Special School that wanted to take him said they would have to put him on Ritalin too.

 

Talking with your teacher and a Paediatrician would be a good start. Ask the teacher how much does he do this. Unfortunatly some kids become so invisible in class it isnt until you get the end of year school report that you realise something is significantly needing answers or early intervention.

 

Speech therapy was very beneficial to my son in addressing these problems too. It was like one on one intervention on how to do things that just came naturally for the other kids.

 

Get some of those pamplets from the Learning Difficulties Coalition for the teacher, this awareness will help you all.

 

Good luck hun,

 

Love

Fran x >:D<<'>

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