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Children are naturally energetic and curious, and as most parents and carers know, it can be a real challenge to get them to sit still and focus on a task. Some children (and adults) are better at concentrating that others, but everyone can learn strategies to develop these skills.

Listening doesn’t just mean hearing; it’s about taking in and understanding the meaning of what is being said. Good listening skills will help your child throughout their life. The ability to focus can help them to learn, which in turn will build their self-esteem. With so many distractions in the modern world, good concentration skills can also benefit their mental health. Read below for tips about how to improve your child’s ability to listen, concentrate and focus.

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When you’re communicating with your child try to maintain eye contact as much as possible so they are learning to take in what is being said. Give clear instructions and ask them to repeat these if you’re not sure they’ve fully understood.

Top tip: If you’re explaining something important to your child, try minimise distractions in the room, like noise from the television. Children don’t have the ability to filter out background noise and it can prevent them from taking in what you’re saying.

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Following instructions is a great way to improve concentration skills. Try playing games like Simon Says, or asking your child to copy clapping patterns. You could even try following simple recipes together in the kitchen and letting them take the lead.

Did you know? You can now play CBeebies games on your Amazon smart speaker. These games require little ones to listen carefully and respond to their CBeebies friends, so are a fun way to develop their concentration skills!

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Focusing is the ability to give full and close attention to a task, and is something that all children struggle with, particularly if it’s something they’re not really interested in. Start practicing these skills by playing fun puzzles together that will hold their attention, like this Octonauts hide and seek game!

Try this: Practice your focus skills together by playing our spot the difference puzzles with your favourite CBeebies friends.

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Often for children, focusing on something they find boring is difficult because it can seem like an endless task. Help them understand that they only need to concentrate on this one activity for a certain amount of time, and once that is finished they will be free to do other things. Try setting a timer and tell them that once it goes off they can take a break or do something else.

Top tip: Lots of children struggle with concentrating on homework. Read our tips for how to handle Key Stage 1 homework.

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Mindfulness, the ability to focus on the present moment, is a brilliant relaxation technique and can have great benefits for mental health. Teaching your child to slow down their mind, use all their senses and ‘be’ in the moment will help them to focus their mind and can reduce stress and other negative emotions.

Try this: Try these techniques for keeping kids calm.

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Read even more parenthood tips and tricks from CBeebies.