How to Create Distraction Free Environment for Your Child?

by Oct 29, 2016Homework Help

Is your child facing trouble while studying? Does he lose his focus within few hours of study? Do you find him dozing off while reading his chapters?
It’s quite natural that if this sounds familiar to you, you may be losing your nerves. While many people will try to impose their opinion on you, the best solution to this problem is finding a better study environment.
There are times when you will notice that the child often gets distracted with a little movement in his surroundings. Be it the telephone ring or the noise from the neighborhood, he can get distracted from every little thing. But with the right method adopted along with some planning and preparation, you can carve out the perfect study environment to ensure that your child performs well.
Having the right study place is as important as having the right study skills. No matter how brilliant a student is in his academics, his concentration level may get hampered even with a small beep of your mobile phone.
A study by Green and Shore has found out that students who attended schools near New York Airports have poor reading skills as compared to children studying in schools which are located farther from the airports. This clearly shows that no matter what the sound is, noises do affect the studying skills and habits of children. Thus, being a parent, you need to ensure that the study environment you are choosing, harnesses the power of habits.
Before we suggest you the ways of having a distraction-free environment, let’s go through the ways which affect your child’s studying.
Causes of distraction affecting the child’s studies

  1. Music

It is true that many students prefer listening to music while studying. But have you ever thought whether it affects your child’s study habits? Various research results have concluded the fact that students who have their headphones on while studying, tend to have low memorization capabilities and poor information retention.

  1. Background noise

If you see your child has problems in keeping his attention or gets easily distracted, think that it is due to the background noise. It can be the sound of the airplane from your nearby airport, the din of a café, etc.

  1. Lighting

Sometimes the lighting of the study area is so dim that children have to strain their eyes while reading. This leads to a headache and eye related problems. You need to remember that proper lighting is essential for successful studying.

  1. Smells

You will notice that while you are busy cooking something delicious in the kitchen, your child tries to sneak in the kitchen to know about the food that smells so good. The problem is that while you are trying to make his favorite dish, those irresistible smells keep pulling focus away from his studies to the kitchen.

  1. Level of comfort

The comfortability factor can be both a key as well as hindrance to your child’s academic success. Check that the comfort is not too high to distract your child’s attention. Studying while lying in bed will automatically lead to his dozing off.

  1. The clock

It is up to a student how he wants to make use of the clock. While some use it to set target, there are many who keep on glancing at the clock wondering about the time to quickly pass by. Check how your child makes use of the clock in his room.

  1. Involvement with other activities

You may notice that while studying, your child continuously plays games in his tab or his laptop. He may even chat with his younger sister or play games. This forms to be a major distraction when studying.
Tips to create the ideal study environment
Step-1: Stocking the space

  1. Get a good desk and chair

It is true that having comfort in the study space is important for a student. But you need to ensure that the place is not so comfortable that it makes him lose his focus or doze off. Since bed is not at all a good option, consider-

  • A desk or a table that has its top base between the child’s waist and ribcage once he sits.
  • A chair that matches the height of the desk. Avoid using rotational chairs as it may be a source of distraction.
  1. Ensure proper lighting

As said earlier, darker study areas cause straining which tend to hamper the study session. You can consider

  • A desk lamp to have direct light on the study table. You can even make sure that the room has proper artificial lights such as tube lights so that the area gets brightened.
  • Natural sunlight from the windows. However, you need to ensure that the child does not get tempted to stare out the window.
  1. Gather the basic necessities

Before your child sits down for studying, ensure that all his necessities are right there a this study desk. Having these supplies close at hand will prevent him from getting up for a ruler or file.

  • Keep school supplies like pens, pencils, rulers, note cards, highlighters.
  • Dictionary, Calculator, Files which he can refer for assistance

Step-2: Removing distractions

  1. Tidy up the workspace

Proper desk organization is a must for every proper study environment. Thus, it is essential to keep tracks of the messy papers, open books and scattered supplies. Too much clutter can make your child feel stressed out and tired, hampering his study session. Excessive clutter can even lead to unwanted distractions.

  1. Keep his phone, laptop away

It is true that it is hard to resist from the attraction of phone and laptop. However, these form to be the main distracters. You may watch that your child is continuously playing games or browsing through his social networking accounts.

  • Switch off the phone or put in silent mode and keep it to yourself till the child completes his study.
  • If he says that he needs to use certain tools of his phone, put it in airplane
  1. Use the place for studying only

Create an impression that the desk and chair should be used only for studying and not for other purposes. The desk should be not used for playing computer games or having food. This will prevent him from having distracting associations involved with the table while studying.
In case, you are thinking about the best career options for your child from now onwards, go through- Statistics is the new best career option: Know how.
Step-3: Personalizing the study space

  1. Decorate it to motivate the child

An attractive environment may boost your child’s interest while studying. Consider decorating the study place with posters, photos which you think will help your child to perform better. However, you need to ensure that these decorations act as a motivation tool and not as distracters.

  1. Give a positive appeal

You can consider giving a positive appeal to this study space by using cool colors which inspire the feeling of peace and serenity. Use colors like green, blue, purple to create a sense of positivity within your child.
With these tips, you can surely create an ideal distraction-free environment for your child. However, you need to remember that don’t overboard. Keep it in mind that the study space needs to be effective only. Quickly implement these ways and check the results for yourself!