Why is following directions important for children

In addition, remember to also give them simple choices. This can make following directions a bit easier. Most kindergarteners can follow three- or four-step instructions. They may also ask questions to seek clarification. Following directions is a skill that your child will use for the rest of their life. So, here are seven strategies to help them improve. Otherwise, the activity will feel impossible for both you and them. You can gain their attention by simply asking for it — e. I need to tell you something.

One of the key components for helping your child learn to follow directions is being clear on what you need them to do. To achieve this, be direct and use simple language. We have a long day ahead tomorrow, and it would be great for you to get enough rest. You might assume that the latter will help a child become more understanding. After giving them instructions, allow a few seconds to pass, which may help the information sink in.

Doing this may also help your child learn to listen the first time, rather than requiring you to repeat yourself. When a child has following instruction difficulties, they might also have difficulties with: Behaviour: The actions of a person, usually in relation to their environment e.

Completing academic work e. What can be done to improve following instructions? Single instructions: Give your child only one instruction at a time. Simple l anguage: Keep language simple and direct. Repeat: Get your child to repeat the instruction to ensure that they have understood what they need to do e.

What do I want you to do? Clarify: Encourage the child to ask for clarification if they forget part of the instruction or have trouble understanding what they need to do. Encourage them to ask for the command to be repeated or clarified e. Visual aids e. Visual cues can often be very useful to help the child to follow longer instructions as it provides them with something to refer back to if they are having difficulty remembering what they need to do.

It also highlights the order in which they need to complete the instruction. What activities can help improve following instructions? Simon Says: Gradually increase the length of the command when playing this game e.

This can be reversed so that the child has to give someone else the instructions. Drawing games: Describe a picture that the child cannot see and they must try and draw a similar picture from your verbal instructions.

Compare the two pictures at the end. Use previously drawn background scenes e. Take turns giving instructions about where to draw or stick on pictures of objects or people e.

Why should I seek therapy if I notice difficulties with following instructions in my child? Therapeutic intervention to help a child with following instruction difficulties is important to: Help a child to follow instructions within the educational setting e. Being enthusiastic and respectful when giving directions usually works best. If an honest explanation doesn't convince Jimmy that your request is important, you may have to gently guide him through certain steps.

Then express your approval of his efforts. Taking a playful approach with toddlers will help them learn that doing things with you and for you feels good. Then put the box away on the art shelf. As a result, Anna responds by happily putting her materials away.

Like Anna, most three-year-olds have no trouble following a two-part direction. By age three, preschoolers have a receptive or understood vocabulary of a little over 1, words, to which they add at least 50 more words each month. But children this age are still learning how to listen and pay attention to what they hear. After Keith's teacher announces to the three-year-old group, "Get your coats and line up at the door," she is surprised when she sees Keith standing at the door-without his coat!

Because Keith was not focused when she first started speaking, he didn't hear or understand the complete direction. All he heard was, "Line up at the door," which is exactly what he did! Threes respond best to simple choices rather than what they perceive as being commands. Scott likes it when Mrs. Keyes asks him, "Do you want to put the blocks on the cart or place the toy trucks in their garage?

Fours can respond to three-part directions if they are delivered in the proper sequence. Jamal yells excitedly to his firefighter friend Owen: "Quick! Grab a hose, put out the fire, and rescue the dog from the house! I saved the dog! Some preschoolers are considered to be "field sensitive. For example, Andrea asks: "How do I make Liza a birthday card? After observing another friend fold her card, Andrea finally feels comfortable trying it on her own. Other young children may be more "field independent.

Field-independent Carlos doesn't need or want directions as he jumps right into activities and explores things his way. Preschoolers' individual learning styles also influence how they receive, understand, and follow directions. Analytic children enjoy having directions broken down into small parts step-by-step; global learners need to see or understand the whole picture.

A child who learns best visually says, "Let me see how to do it," while the auditory child says, "Tell me the way to do it," and the tactile child states, "Let me do it. It's important to give children directions that relate to their learning styles and involve open-ended questions and two-way communication. As her teacher observes this spontaneous interplay, she notices the children who can do all three parts of Debbie's direction and those who get stuck on the first or second action.

She notices, too, that some children can follow the directions after repeat tries. Best yet, they are all laughing and having fun-always good ingredients when learning new skills. Have you ever tried to sub your head and pat your stomach at the same time? That feeling of frustration that many of us get is akin to the experience young children have when they are learning to listen to, understand, and follow directions.

It's almost as though there's a short circuit in the process that keeps them from absorbing all the information. Happily, just like the Head-and-Stomach game, it is a skill that can be learned through conscious step-by-step practice.

Some children learn best through repetition. And for fives and sixes, practicing steps for a new skill is fun. Children this age have learned the value of listening in life and are becoming good at it-even though it might not appear that way at times!

Gideon is calling over the immense block building he is creating with his friend Joya, who is looking slightly puzzled. Listening is the core ingredient in a child's ability to follow directions. However there are many parts to the listening process. In this situation, Joya not only has to hear what is being said auditory acuity and perception , she also has to understand the meaning of the sounds and words auditory comprehension and interpret them into a sequence of events she must then actuate.

When looked at in this detail, it's no wonder that we have such a hard time getting children to follow our directions! What do I do first?