Attention & Focus

• Consider incorporating the students’ interests in tasks. When it is possible, offer the student choices about which activity to complete and get input from the student about how to make tasks more interesting. When you are able, explain why tasks are important and what the student will learn from the activity. When possible, provide interactive learning opportunities.

• Be mindful of how long the assigned task will take and consider building in scheduled breaks during lengthier assignments. Give caregivers guidance about how long a student should work before a break is offered based on the assigned task and the routine that worked in the classroom. Remember that breaks should be more common after less-preferred or more challenging learning activities, and consider how to clearly mark tasks that would require more frequent breaks. Ideas for different types of breaks can be found here.

Many Google Chrome extensions and apps have been developed to reduce distractions during computer tasks. These could be found in the Chrome web store or App store. If you are suggesting that a student use one of these tools, make sure that you explicitly teach the student and/or caregiver on how to use the feature. Depending on the student’s needs, these may be helpful:

• Auto Highlight by dannyadam.com (highlights the most important information on a website)

• Move it by thepegeek.com (periodically reminds student to take a break to physically move around)

• Stay Focusd by Transfusion (helps you limit the amount of time you can spend on time-wasting websites)

• Mercury Reader by mercury.postlight.com (removes website clutter and distractions like ads, comments; allows user to adjust font and colors on websites)

• BeeLine Reader, by beelinereader.com (adjusts color gradient to make reading easier/faster)