International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume VI, Issue III, March 2022 | ISSN 2454–6186

Increasing Attention Span by Developing Fine Motor Skills of a child with Development Delay

^{Rajeeka Shehana Jenorge
Researcher MSc in Psychology of Applied Behaviour Change
B.Ed in Special Needs Education}

Increasing Attention Span by Developing Fine Motor Skills of a child with Special Needs
Abstract: Many children find it difficult to pay attention during class and in general activities. Their attention span is very low and they struggle to progress. Teachers find it difficult to keep the children focused on a topic for a certain period of time. Parents are constantly complaining of their child’s low attention span and the inability to stay focused or perform a simple instruction. In order to help the children, increase attention span many research techniques and strategies are being analyzed and applied. From a very early age children start entering preschools. Most of their time of a day is spent at school. This clearly highlights that teachers play a great role in a child’s life. Teachers are able to identify a variety of skills in the children. They are able to see the child’s strengths and weaknesses. Benjamin Franklin stated that when a child is spoken to, he may forget, when taught he may remember but when the child is involved in the activity they would learn effectively. This clearly highlights that giving children hands on activities would not only keep their interest but they would learn effectively. manner. The activities presented in this study are fun based which allows the child and teacher to enjoy the session together. Teachers could use them as a base in their lesson plans and enrich the child’s development which in turn would help to increase the child’s attention span. Through this action research parents, teachers and educationists would be able to highly benefit and provide the needed input to the child and in turn help the child towards success.

Keywords: Attention Span; Development Delay; Fine Motor Skills

I.INTRODUCTION

Development delay is a term used to describe any disability for a child between the ages of 3-9 years. According to IDEA’s (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 2017) definition of development delay, a child with a disability includes anyone in the ages between 3-9 who has been assessed using appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures in areas of development milestones such as physical, cognitive, communication, social, emotional and adaptive skills and in turn need special education or related services to help gain assistance. This clearly helps identify when most children would start crawling by 8 months and attempt to walk at 1 year, a child who would show a 5- or 6-months lag in attempting to crawl could be categorized as development delayed. It is estimated that around 5 – 10% of young children face development delays