It’s happened to us all before. You are in an important meeting. Someone is giving a presentation. A power point presentation starts, then, the next thing you know, everyone is getting up and leaving. You haven’t heard a word that’s been said. You were staring out the window, not paying attention. You were distracted.

Kids deal with this sort of thing everyday in the classroom.

But why did your mind start wandering? And why did you not even notice that you were thinking about, oh I don’t know, organizing your sock drawer when you should have been taking notes on the quarterly profit losses?

Metacognitive Awareness is the solution to this problem. It sounds really technical, something that you might hear in a doctor’s office, but it’s really just fancy talk for paying attention to what the mind is doing. With a little training and some practice everyone can master metacognitive awareness—even kids. Here’s how it works:

1. Recognize when you are off-topic.
• As soon as you notice that you are off-track stop yourself.
• Now think back to when you started to get off track. What happened? Did you hear some noise in the background?
2. Identify the distraction.
• The ringing cell phone distracted me. Now that you know the source, you are more likely to recognize it when it happens again, and more likely to stay on track.
• It may go something like this: A cell phone rings somewhere behind you. You stop focusing on the speaker and…WAIT. That’s a cell phone, it rang, and it distracted me. I should re-focus on the presentation. Or ask that co-worker to shut off his phone.
3. Thinking about thinking.
• This is really what metacognitive awareness is all about—paying attention to what the mind is doing.
• If your mind is active in the classroom and not turned onto autopilot, it is easier to pay attention to what is going on around you. As you learn new things, be aware of your thought process—is this new thing like other things? Can I relate it to something else? Does this make sense?
4. An active brain is an on-topic brain.
• As you learn new things, be aware of your thought process—is this new thing like other things?
• Can I relate it to something else? Does this make sense? Do I need to ask any questions? If you flip your mind’s switch to “on” the likelihood of not paying attention diminishes.
5. Practice Makes Perfect.
• Metacognitive Awareness, like so much else takes time to perfect. The more that you are aware of what your mind is doing; the easier it is to pay attention. And the less likely it will be that you’ll spend entire meetings staring out the window.

Studying for a test, scenario A:

• A student slouches on the couch in front of the TV, which is on. There is a cell phone open on the coffee table. The student also has iPod ear buds nestled in her lobes, a book propped open on her knees, which are bopping to a bass beat, a vacant stare in her eye.

Studying for a test, scenario B:

• A student sits at a desk. The room is quiet and well lit. There is little distraction—no TV, no computer, no cell phone. Books are open on a desk and student B is focused on his work.

Clearly, student A’s concentration is less than focused on the task at hand, but there may be more wrong here than poor study habits. The increased decibels from the TV, the iPod, and the cell phone may be doing more to increase stress levels than the upcoming test!

A study from the World Health Organization shows that excessive noise is linked to health problems. Physiological changes occur in the body when loud noise is present in the environment that a person may not even be aware of—stress hormones increase, sleep patterns can be disrupted, and ear problems such as tinnitus can develop—all from even small increases in the background noise level.

And you thought that loud noise was just bad for concentration!

Attention all students who study like the student in scenario A: Turn down the volume. Take a deep breath. Reduce your stress. Study, and do it quietly, with little to no distractions—your health and your memory will thank you.

Playing was good for your child’s health and development. Well, not anymore, and especially not if they are playing with the hundreds of mass-produced, foreign-made toys that can actually be detrimental to a child’s physical well being. Small, removable parts and toxic chemicals used in the manufacturing process had lead to some recent high-profile toy recalls—at least two recalls in the last two weeks.

The health and safety guidelines of toy manufacturing aside, the popularity of these foreign-made, cheaply produced types of toys is a larger issue. The fact that these toys are so popular means that there is demand—that these toys are in homes across the globe. And that’s concerning because the more intricate and detailed the toy, the less imagination is required to play with it. All the various small parts and add-ons, extra bits and support toys mean that every possibility and variable for play is thought of. Sure, it’s a great merchandising tactic, but it creates a scenario where children are less mentally active during playtime—and that’s a dangerous habit to fall into during the childhood years where play makes up a large part of a child’s mental development.

There are several grassroots movements supporting a return to simpler, homemade toys that are not only well made and durable, but also local and toxin-free. They promote the type of toys that are meant to support a child’s imagination process, not replace it.

If you are looking for a virtually free, non-toxic, recyclable, toy that is easy to access and provides hours of imagination-filled play that stimulates and promotes cognitive development there is always the old favorites—the cardboard box, the backyard, playground equipment.

The only toys that children need are those that run on brainpower, not battery power.

Summer break is practically synonymous with long road trips. Whether you are heading to the beach, to camp, or to Grandma’s house, you’ll want an arsenal of tips handy to keep the kids occupied after the crayons are broken, after they’ve listen to their iPODS three time through, and after the batteries wear out on their Nintendo.

Why not try some of these old-fashioned car games? Not only are they fun, but they help develop memory and listening skills too!

The I-Packed-a-Suitcase Game

In the repeat-after-me tradition of games, is the always-popular suitcase game. Not only is it fun, but it is also a great way to develop your child’s memory.

Here are the simple rules:

• The first person begins with the sentence: “I packed a suitcase, and in it I put…” followed by an item of that person’s choice, such as “a toothbrush.”
• The second person also starts with the same statement, “I packed a suitcase, and in it I put…” then repeats what the first person said, and adds his own item, “a toothbrush, and a bathing suit,” and so on, until someone forgets to list one of the items!

You can adjust the level of difficulty and absurdity, according to your mood.

My preferred item to pack in a suitcase is a battering ram… you’ll never know when you’ll need one!

Backwards Listening Game

This is a great game to encourage listening abilities. You say a series of random words—and have your child repeat them to you in the opposite order! For example:

You: shirt, cow.
Child: cow, shirt

Start with 2 words and increase the number as proficiency improves. Or, if you are feeling up to it, create a backwards sentence so that when your child says it back to you, he is decoding your message! Hilarity is sure to ensue!

You: cheese, like, smell, socks, Dad’s
Child! Dad’s socks smell like cheese!

The Alphabet List Game

One of my personal favorites is the Alphabet List Game. It’s a very simple game that can present opportunities for some creative thinking.

• Using the Alphabet as the guide, select a theme to create a list about. Some good themes are: animals, cities, fruits and vegetables, sports teams, pizza toppings, underwater…the possibilities are endless!
• Now select someone to start. They begin with the letter A and, based on the category chosen, give an example of something that begins with the letter A. For animals, it would be Alligator, for cities, Amsterdam.
• Then the next person gets the letter B, the following person the letter C…and so on, until somebody can’t think of an example for that letter. Some letters are more challenging than others, so everybody is allowed one pass.

The Classic Game of ‘I-Spy’

Always popular with younger children, the old “I Spy With My Little Eye” is a great game. Simply select anything in the car or room and say, “I spy with my little eye, something that is [that color].” Then the kids take turns guessing what the item is. Adjust the difficulty to meet the age of the child.

Tip: When kids are stumped, give them a phonetic clue. For instance, “it starts with the sound ‘mmmm’.”

Twenty Questions

Think of something simple…it can be anything at all, though regular play usually limits the choice to something that falls into the categories of animal, vegetable, or mineral.

• When you’ve chosen your item, the game begins. Let the players know that you’ve selected something with the simple statement, “I’ve got it!” Then the kids ask 20 questions to determine what the item is. The trick is that all answers must be a yes or a no, this way, the kids must phrase the questions in a specific way in order to get a yes or no answer.

This game is great practice for children to form questions in a structured way, and even better practice for them to take all the replies and deduce the answer. What a fun way to develop critical thinking skills!