Trouble staying focused

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My son is in the second grade. He is a great kid, but school has also been tough. This year, we had behavior problems at the beginning of the year (getting out of his chair, making noises, etc) that caused a distraction in the classroom. He has gotten a lot better at staying quiet and in his seat and isn't a big distraction any longer. However, he is having a ton of trouble staying focused and on task. He is very smart so I am sure he is bored, but I understand where his teacher is coming from that she needs him to do the work like the other kids just to make sure he understands. He will stare off into space, doodle, color, and other things. One big problem is math, where they take timed tests. He knows the information but I think he gets distracted during the test and does poorly. I'd like to figure out something to help him now so that he can be successful as he moves forward in school. His teacher has been pretty good with him, but I'm at a loss on ways to help him pay attention, stay focused, keep a neat desk, and get his work turned in. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!!

Hey momof1.

I should start by clarifying that I am not diagnosed. However, it's pretty clear to me that I am, if that is any consolation. Basically, how you described your son, is basically how I felt my whole academic life. I have serious problems paying attention, I get bored, so I result to day dreaming, doodling ect. It's not that I am not interested in listening and learning, it's just I can't do it. I hear someone talk, and it often goes in one ear, and out the other. I have since given up on trying to pay attention as nothing works for me. But there is hope. I am currently in University, which means I have gone through both school and college to reach this point, so I must have done something right. I'll tell you what that is, but I am afraid it may not help him pay attention.

Essentially, it's learning the material before hand, at home. The problem I had was that I didn't listen in class, therefore, I couldn't do the homework as I didn't know how to do it. Therefore, I resulted in learning the material in my own time, which then helped me complete the homework. But, from doing this, I was often ahead in class (I already knew the content they was talking about - which gave me more of an excuse to not pay attention...) However, although I wasn't paying attention, this helped me become better at taking tests (as I still knew the content from my own studies, so I didn't have to rely on the material I would learn from listening)

If you want to approach the above, I can only recommend that you take the time to create your own library of material which will help him. Buy some books relevant to his grade, print off stuff you find online ect. Create a portfolio of work for every grade, which you can easily reflect back on should he forget a certain piece of information. It's important that he learns the material from somewhere if he isn't getting it from class.

Paying attention is hard, but it's certainly easier if he already knows the material. This may help him contribute better in class work?
I am saying this based on my own perspective. I essentially feel like an older version of what you describe as your son. What I wrote above, I only did it on certain occassions (when I was motivated to work) but when I did do it, school was definitely easier for me. If you can start this off as something to do for the rest of his school life, I'm sure he will breeze though school. It may even help him pay attention when he is older too.

If you find out how to help him pay attention in class, please tell me how. I still have a year and a half of University, so it would be of great use..

I am in college and I have trouble focusing on my homework. One thing that may help me is deactivating my Facebook until the end of my spring semester.