Homeschool Hack: Add Novelty to Improve Focus & Attention
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Have you ever wondered why a new toy, a new craft or science box, a new friend, or a new activity can captivate a child and hold her attention for surprisingly long spans? They are novelties!
A novelty is something new, original or unusual.
Novelty and the Brain
Simply put, Novelty engages reticular activating system, which increases dopamine and serotonin leading to improved executive function (scroll down for neurology terms if interested!). Novelty helps to provide a singular focus on the topic/item at hand. With the pleasure center of the brain being excited and a singular focus, a lot of learning is bound to happen!
This is why new fun items (like a Raddish Kids cooking box) can be super engaging - especially the first time or two it is introduced. Novelty does wear off though, so the novelty needs to vary. Allowing things to be the novelty can be a slippery slope.
Novel Activities
Utilizing novel activities can be inexpensive and plentiful. You can customize every activity to not only meet your child’s unique interests, but also to incorporate any topic you may be studying in your homeschool. Here’s my quick list:
Action dice & Action Card Inserts
Obstacle course
Youtube - BrainDance Warm-Up, Cosmic Kids Yoga
Life size board game or programming game
For more, download my 15 Novelty Activities & Ideas!
Double Hack Bonus
Combine a novel activity that also includes concepts from a subject or topic you learning about! For instance, if you are studying space, use the action dice with the space themed cards for a novel activity that will allow your child to embody the learning.
Encouraging a Singular Focus
As we learned, novelty helps to provide a singular focus, which allows the brain to stay focused longer. We can use this concept to remind ourselves as homeschool parents to help our kids focus on the tasks we give Them. In the Tedx Talk, “What Makes Some Brains More Focused Than Others” by Marvin Chun, we are given these key steps:
Relax - create a relaxing environment for you child to work in
Unitask instead of multitask - make sure the task you assign is a single task - one step - to complete before moving on
Simplify the task - focus on one aspect at a time
Accept the Novelty Challenge
Try this hack out at home and let us know how it goes!! It may take a little creativity, but we hope that this small hack will help add some focus and attention to your homeschool days.
Resources
15 Novelty Activities & Ideas for Improved Focus and Attention - free digital download
Action Dice card inserts - free digital download
Attention Games by Barbara Sher
“What Makes Some Brains More Focused Than Others” - Tedx Talk by Marvin Chung
BrainDance Full Body Warm-Up
Music & Movement - Podcast Episode 31
Neurology Terms
reticular activating system (RAS)—a group of nuclei at the top of the brainstem which trigger arousal, the first stage in paying attention.
dopamine—a neurotransmitter associated with satisfaction, pleasure, paying attention and is produced when engaging in physical activity and active learning
serotonin—a neurotransmitter that regulates moods, including depression, anxiety, food consumption and violence.
neurotransmitter—a chemical released at the connection between neurons facilitating transmission.
executive function—high level processes of the frontal lobes of the brain, including inhibiting inappropriate behavior, planning and selecting actions and holding information in the mind.
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