Reading comprehension and concentration issues; starting at the page for hours
From Cynthia, Mum —
My 11 year old son finds it very difficult to comprehend materials given to read. He could be on one sentence or page for hours without being able to explain what he read. Most times it looks like he is just staring at the material with his mind somewhere else. This is actually affecting his confidence and grades at school. I intend to send him to a boarding college but I am so scared he may not cope. Please I need your help. I am deeply disturbed.
Clare —
Hi Cynthia
Thank you very much for your message. I'm sorry to hear about the concern with your son, that must be incredibly stressful.
Could you tell me about the types of materials you are referring to? Are we talking fiction leisure reading? Class hand outs? Text books? I just want to understand better what he is struggling with, particularly as he is only 11 it is probably very common for a boy his age to be a bit 'behind' when it comes to reading.
My initial thoughts are, it could be a few things going on here: 1 - it's an issue with concentration rather than reading ability; 2 - he finds it difficult to verbalise what he understands; 3 - he doesn't understand the question / task being asked. I think we need to drill down and figure out what the 'root' cause is...
My apologies - I realise I have asked questions rather than answered yours, but I think it's important to better understand the situation in order to help.
He mostly struggles with virtually every material including his class handouts, text books etc. He could be on one page for hours and still unable to comprehend or say something about what he just read. I have tried to observe him sometimes while he's reading, it looks like he's just stirring at his book and his mind off to somewhere else. It's so frustrating and bothers me so much.
I think it's an issue of concentration and comprehension because he can read. Also he finds it very difficult memorizing things.
I can see how that would be incredibly stressful and difficult.
Hopefully you're already aware that I am not an expert in what you're asking about as this goes a bit beyond study help for teens, but I do have a few suggestions that you could try, at least as a starting point:
1. Introduce (if there's not already) a bit of structure to his studying / homework. If he struggles with concentration then it could help him to study in short blocks of time (eg 15 minutes) before he gets a break. This also gives kids a manageable task to focus on.
2. Make sure he understands the task before he starts reading. I'm thinking part of the issue with his comprehension might be that he doesn't understand the purpose of the exercise before he begins.
3. Get him to verbalise and / or write down any thoughts / answers he has about what he is reading. He might find doing one easier than the other, and he can build on that to become good at both.
4. Does he do any reading for pleasure? Getting him interested in books written for his reading age might really help develop his reading / comprehension skills.
Also, I think patience, practice and time will be required. Your son is still very young and it may just take a bit of time for him to develop these skills. I would think a lot of kids his age are in the same boat.
I'll leave it there for now, but please feel free to come back to me if you have any follow up questions or if I can assist any further. I would love to hear an update on your son's progress when you get a chance.
I truly appreciate your suggestions and advice. I will make good use of all and see how effective they will be in improving his reading and comprehension skills.
I will revert to you on his progress.
