Listening is an essential skill that helps kids learn, communicate and connect with others. It plays a significant role in school, at home and with their friends. Good listening skills can help your child understand directions, learn new things and respond thoughtfully. There are different types of listening, such as:
- Active listening — This means your child is paying close attention, understanding and responding to what someone says. Active listening shows that your child is engaged and interested. For example, if your child actively listens during a lesson, they’re more likely to understand the material, participate in class and remember what they’ve learned.
- Passive listening — This is when your child hears the words but isn’t fully paying attention or engaging with the speaker. Passive listening is like listening to background noise. Your child hears the sounds but isn’t focused on understanding or responding.
By helping your child improve their listening skills, you can help set them up for success in many areas of their life. It also helps to show others that your child values what is being shared with them.
Listening and its impact on Executive Function skills
Listening skills are closely connected to Executive Function skills. These skills help your child with:
- Planning
- Remembering
- Focusing
- Managing tasks
Good listening skills boost other skills, such as:
- Working memory — Working memory helps your child remember what they’ve heard.
- Self-control — Self-control helps them think before they act.
Poor listening skills can lead your child to experience problems with:
- Following directions
- Staying organized
- Finishing tasks
Struggling with listening skills can cause your child to have a harder time in school and social situations. A child who listens well can easily follow their teacher’s instructions, while a child who struggles with listening may miss important steps. By improving listening skills, you can also help your child strengthen their Executive Function skills, which are important for learning and daily life.
The importance of active listening and learning
As mentioned earlier, active listening is more than just hearing; it’s also about understanding, thinking and responding. This type of listening helps your child learn better because they are fully focused and absorbing the information. Active listening also enables them to build their empathy skills because they are paying close attention to other people’s thoughts and feelings.
In school, active listening helps your child follow lessons, understand their teacher’s instructions and be active in class discussions. At home, active listening helps improve their ability to follow your directions, have meaningful family conversations and solve problems. Active listening can also help them with making friends and getting along with others. This is because active listeners are seen as respectful and caring people due to taking time to understand and respond to others’ feelings.
Teaching your child to improve their listening skills by becoming an active listener can help them become a better learner, communicator and friend.
Tips to help your child improve their listening skills
Don’t expect your child to have instantly improved listening skills; it will take time and practice. While it is a process to foster and grow your child’s listening skills, there are simple ways you can plant the seed that will one day bloom into stronger active listening skills:
- Model good active listening — Show your child what it means to be a good active listener by making eye contact with them, nodding your head and repeating back what they say. When they see you are carefully and actively listening, they are more likely to do the same.
- Limit distractions — Create a quiet space for listening by turning off the TV, putting away phones and reducing noise when it’s time to talk. This can make it easier for your child to focus and pay attention.
- Encourage questions — Let your child know it’s OK to ask questions if they don’t understand something. Asking questions can help them clarify their thoughts and engage more deeply with what they’re hearing.
- Play listening games — Use games like “Simon Says” or “Telephone” to make listening practice fun. These games help teach your child to focus on the instructions and to share information accurately.
- Read together — Take turns reading aloud and discussing the story. This can help improve their listening skills and also enhance their reading comprehension and speaking skills.
- Give clear instructions — When you give your child directions, keep them simple and clear. If necessary, break down tasks into smaller steps. You can also have your child repeat back what you said to make sure they understand.
- Praise good listening — When your child listens well, give them praise. Positive feedback can encourage them to keep up the good work practicing active listening skills.
- Address underlying issues — If your child struggles with listening, there may be an underlying reason, like ADHD, or a hearing problem, such as auditory processing disorder. If you’re concerned, talk to your child’s doctor to help them get the support they need.
- Seek help if needed — If your child continues to struggle with listening and it’s impacting their Executive Function, consider getting extra help, such as an Executive Function coach. A coach can provide you and your child with strategies to improve listening and related skills.
Listening is more than just a skill — it’s a key part of learning, communicating and connecting with other people. Encouraging your child to be a good active listener can help them strengthen their Executive Function skills, which can help them succeed in school and in life.
Beyond BookSmart can help you nurture your child’s active listening skills
At Beyond BookSmart, we have Executive Function coaching services to help develop and improve the skills students need to create an effective and workable study routine.
Executive Function skills can be taught, learned and applied for success. Whether your child has a learning difference, an emotional challenge, such as anxiety, or they’re just struggling to reach their Executive Function potential, Beyond BookSmart services can help your child work toward becoming the most capable version of themselves.
Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an inquiry call.
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