Advice needed re my 7 year old DD

longforthesun

I would appreciate any advice any could give me.

My DD is 7 and suffers from really bad concentration. This is affecting her ability to do her school work and homework. School work is a nightmare as unfortunatley she does not have a very good teacher but that is being dealt with. It is the homework that I need help with. Tonight took 4 hours to do the most simple worksheet. I know she is capable of doing it she just does not seem to have the concentration.

Tonight I am at my wits end I am almost in tears over it. If she was not able to do the work then I would not be so worried but she is more than capable of doing it. She is not being bullied it was the first thing I thought of.

Our budget is tight but if need be we would find the money for a tutor for her but I don't know if that would help her concentration. She eats a good diet so I cant even put it down to her being sluggish cause of a bad diet.

Any words of advice?

Skint_Catt

Do you eat fish? Oily fish are great for the brain and concentration levels (tuna, sardines etc) I would have also mentioned E numbers, but I'm guessing these are low if you say she has a good diet?

Is it a lack of interest in a subject or is it all subjects?

Js_Other_Half

If you are concerned about her, then have a chat to your GP. Explain what you've told us, and give examples if you can.
I'd suggest keeping a diary too just so you can keep track of what she's like.

In the meantime I'd be inclined to give her some Omega 3 oil just in case - it can't hurt.
http://www.zipvit.com/cgi-bin/popupprod3a1.pl?prodcode=A216j&cartnumber=4247c&currency=

Rachel85

I was going to suggest Omega 3 too.

Is it possible that she's tired? Its hard to know how much sleep different people need and she might just need more.

Also - I know you say she eats a good diet, but could it be that she needs to eat at different times? I know that even though I have breakfast if I don't have my elevenses (and my three-ses) I can't concentrate on anything other than my hunter gatherer instinct. Of course I'm not for a second suggesting that you don't feed her, but some peole need a different eating routine!

whatatwit

Does your DD find the work boring or pointless.

My DD could never see the point of colouring in work sheets, she would happily do the writing though.

Has she always been like this, or has it started since she got this teacher?

Fourcandles_3

Does she eat between school and homework? I found my daughter needs an energy boost before dinner or is hopeless. I would mention it too your GP though if you are still concerned.

Good luck.

angelheart-xx

has she beed assesses for add (adhd)

as reading your thread you would have thought i wrote it 5 years ago
my daughter is 10 and has adhd and dyslexia

it was a long haul but knew she had academic problems was always fighting over homework eventually with fight she saw educational phsycologist who asked me to get her reffered to dcfp after speaking to them (waiting list was long) and filling out charts etc they realised she had add part of adhd girls tend to suffer attention problem rather than hyperactivity now she is on medication and OMG different child in school her work is up to scratch and she is trying a lot harder

and those teachers out there that said to me she is lazy she can do the work she doesnt want to
turned out she couldnt do the work even if she wanted too

i told her so and saw her later and she said oh is your daughter getting on brilliant now agggghhh felt tlike strangling her lol

longforthesun

Thanks I am going to try fish with her she will eat frozen battered fish but as I tend to cook from scratch she rarley has this so will try fresh fish. I am going to look into omega 3 suppliments if they are suitable for her age.

I do think tiredness may be at fault too. She falls asleep straight away, sleeps soundly and is very hard to waken in the morning she sleeps for about 12 hours most nights and looks as though she could sleep for longer.

She is a good eater but I know what your getting at about the hunter instinct her dad is the same as you Rachel85 perhaps she is taking after him.

longforthesun

Whatatwit she has always been a bit of a daydreamer but has got worse since having this new teacher. I do think she get bored with some of the work. To be honest it is not very hard what she is been given.

Fourcandles she sometimes eats after school but latley I have just been taking so long to her homework we have been just been starting it as soon as we get in. I will maybe look at getting in some energy boosting snacks for after school.

Angelheart I have not considered adhd but will look into this further. Will perhaps bring this up with her teacher for advice.

Lunar_Eclipse

We have similar issues re: homework. Both the kids are bright so not being able to do the homework easily is not the issue. But this could be the issue for some children. Others will also find it very boring (as in easy, not just things they'd rather do.)

For us it is simply a question either of tiredness or simply how much my DD decides she doesn't want to do her homework so procrastinates and argues about it for far, far longer than she could do the whole lot. At all other times, she is so laid back. Through trial and error, we have found a fixed day/time works best for us (with ZERO flexibility now sadly) and I suspect the time is rapidly approaching where she will learn the consequences of not doing it at school one day! But I'm not worried about that; it will probably be a good thing.:)

Don't worry. But I wouldn't spend 4 hours on it either.

Js_Other_Half

longforthesun wrote: »

I am going to look into omega 3 suppliments if they are suitable for her age.

.

The link I gave earlier is for an omega 3 liquid - it can safely be given from toddlers upwards. I've just started my 2 year old on it, as he won't eat fish. I've tried stickers as a reward, as well as a round of applause...:o