February 2020 - EASTERN OREGON PARENT - 13
Simple ways to help your children learn to listen
ou can’t help your child
learn anything if you don’t
teach them to listen and
pay attention. That’s what you have
to do first.” I overheard Tricia, a
mother of three as she visited with
a father at a parent get-
together.
Afraid of breaking
a child’s spirit, we are
sometimes reluctant
to “make” a child do
something. With clear
and consistent struc-
ture and expectations,
we can help our chil-
dren learn to listen and
pay attention. Without
these two skills of lis-
tening and concentra-
tion learning becomes
difficult.
One of the won-
derful things about
working with three-,
four- and five-year-
olds, is we can sing and
play to learn. If you are
working with children
who are having dif-
ficulty responding to their names
and requests, sing songs using their
names. A favorite is “Mary Wore
Her Red Dress.” Gather a group,
being sure you have enough time
to include every child in the song.
Select a child’s name and a piece
of clothing and substitute this into
the song. When the child’s name is
sung, he or she skips around the in-
side of the circle. For children who
are having difficulty listening, call
on them near the end. The words
follow:
Mary wore her red dress, red
dress, red dress.
Mary wore her red dress all day
long.
“ Y
Johnny wore his white shirt,
white shirt, white shirt.
Johnny wore his white shirt all
day long.
Another favorite song for transi-
tioning to a new activity follows:
Wibbly wobbly wee, an elephant
sat on me.
Wibbly wobbly woo, an elephant
sat on you.
Wibbly wobbly woosan, an ele-
phant sat on Susan.
Wibbly wobbly wichael, an ele-
phant sat on Michael.
“What’s That Sound?” is a fun
game for one or more children. Ask
the children to face away from you
and cover their eyes. Make dif-
ferent sounds, for example, snap
your fingers, clap hands, click your
tongue, rub your hands together,
jingle jewelry, tap a finger on a
table, rustle clothing, tap a glass,
pull a tissue out of a box. Use your
imagination. After each action ask,
“What’s that sound?” If one child
dominates the game, call on indi-
vidual children.
Reading out loud everyday will
help your child learn to listen. Even
if you start out reading one min-
ute a day, keep adding a minute a
day until you get to thirty minutes.
If your child walks around the
room while you read, keep read-
ing. Your child may have a learning
style where movement is impor-
tant. Many children (and adults)
are able to move and listen at the
same time. To “test” listening skills,
change a few words to a familiar
story.
Children need to learn to hear
silence. Composer Claude Debussy
is quoted as saying, “Music is the si-
lence between notes.” Appreciation
of silence allows us to hear what
is important. The word “obey” has
Maren
Schmidt
_______________
Kids Talk™
roots in the Old English
word “obeyer” meaning
“to listen.” When our
children know how to lis-
ten, to both sounds and
silence, they can choose
to respond with ability, or
in other words, become
responsible.
To help your children
appreciate silence, play
“The Silence Game.”
Darken a room and ask
your children to listen
and not talk. Count si-
lently, using your fingers
to help your children
focus on staying silent. Sit
quietly for sixty seconds
and then ask what they
hear. Lengthen the time
by thirty seconds each
time you play. This is a
simple but powerful learning game.
Sing songs, read out loud, and
play games to help your children
learn how to listen and pay
attention. Tricia’s advice was right.
It’s what we have to do first.
________
Kids Talk™ is an award-winning
column dealing with childhood de-
velopment issues written by Maren
Stark Schmidt, M.Ed. She has over
30 years experience working with
children and holds teaching creden-
tials from the Association Montes-
sori Internationale. Contact her at
maren@marenschmidt.com or visit
MarenSchmidt.com. © 2020.