B a r b a r a s h e r I l L u s t r a t I o n s b y r a L p h

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T T E N T I O N
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Focused
Games for 6- to 12-Year-Olds
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A T E R I A L S
Large box (such as the kind a computer or printer would come in)
Decorative materials, such as photos of favorite characters, bright 
(yellow or red) or calming (blue or green) paint, soothing wallpa-
per design
Glue, scissors, tape, and so on
Large clip
D
I R E C T I O N S
Have your child make a Thinking Box by decorating it inside and out in a
way that will make her happy just looking at it. The box should be turned
on its side for decorating.
When it’s homework time, place the box on the kitchen table or your
child’s desk so that it makes a private hideaway.
Inside the box, have a light, a timer (or clock), and a fresh supply of
pens, pencils, and erasers. Put a clip on the side of the box so that each day
the student can put up a list of the homework she needs to do.
Have your child look at her assign-
ment list and decide how much time she
will need to do each assignment. For
example, she might take twenty minutes
to do math problems and then take a
three-minute break to eat a snack before
going back to work for another ten min-
utes on more math or another subject. As
each assignment gets done, she checks it
off her list. She can use the timer to help
her stay focused and keep to this schedule.
Oddly enough, limiting one’s times
helps expand it. If the time to do her math
homework, for example, is open ended—
“Work at it until it’s done”—it can invite
daydreaming and time wasting. If the
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child knows she has to concentrate for only a short burst, she’ll find the whole
process more manageable, one burst at a time.