TOP TIPS: HOW TO HELP CHILDREN BETTER UNDERSTAND

Sometimes children don’t seem to understand what they hear. Teachers find that these children in the classroom look around to see what everyone else is doing. Parents can become frustrated when children can’t seem to follow directions. This is often referred to as a comprehension gold deficit Receptive Language difficulties or delays.

Children can have a hard time understanding what they hear for a number of different reasons. Often children simply have not reached that stage in their language development and adult sentences may be too long or complex in sentence structure.

Some children have trouble processing sound (auditory processing) or remembering what they hear (auditory memory), even if their hearing is tested and shown to be fine. Some children have trouble learning to understand specific concepts (such as words of direction, such as “right” and “left,” or location, such as “behind” or “next to”). Some children have difficulty doing more than one thing at a time, so if they are thinking about something else they can lose information. Difficulty with working memory skills can also affect a child’s ability to comprehend.

There are strategies that parents and teachers can use when children don’t seem to understand what they hear. These strategies help, whatever the reasons for the difficulties.

My top six tips for giving your child the best chance at understanding are:

· Always get their attention first. Use their name and make eye contact.

· Make sure what your main point is and keep your sentences short, clear and to the point. Say exactly what you mean.

Emphasize keywords. Say the keywords louder, louder and with more emphasis.

· Show them what you want to say. Demonstrate or use gestures or facial expressions to emphasize what you want them to understand.

allow enough weather to process the information.

If you don’t understand the first time, rephrase what you said. Say it another way.

You will probably find that you need about teaching New concept. Children with comprehension difficulties often need explicit teaching, since it is more difficult for them to learn implicitly (for example, through observation). Keep the explanations simple, but give the explanation in several different ways. Do not assume that what you have said has been understood.

It is very useful to teach children to say that they do not understand. If they learn to do this, it will help them get clarification when they need it. Talk specifically about how to do this. Show them how to make a puzzled face. If they can talk, teach them to say “I don’t understand” or “Tell me again.” If a child goes to school, it can be helpful to ask, “Please, to show me what you mean.”

Praise your child when he tells you he doesn’t understand.