I often hear, “My child struggles to clean up her room without getting distracted.”  Here are some thoughts.

First, understand that the simple statement “clean up your room” involves not so simple multiple multiple-steps and can be overwhelming to a child with attention challenges: it is like trying to eat an uncut extra-large supreme pizza: where do you start?

Just as a pizza-cutter can cut the pizza into manageable portions, a little flexible structuring can help your daughter successfully clean up her room in an organized way.

Flexibility:

You may need to stand in the doorway of your child’s room and give simple step-by-step instructions a few times.

When giving instructions:
• Establish eye contact.
• Give directions one step at a time.
• Have her paraphrase what you have said.
• Demonstrate the desired outcome if necessary.

Encourage her to finish each step in the task

If she is completing the task but doing so in a different way than you might, continue to cheer her on to finish the task.
• Don’t stop her to show her how you would do it, as this will only get her “off-task” from the task at hand.
• Don’t expect perfection.
• Praise her for completing the task.
• After she has successfully completed the task a few times, model how she could complete the task better.

Structure:

After she has completed the task with your supervision a number of times, work with her to make a small chart or poster listing the multiple steps in this responsibility.
• It is important that she is involved in making this chart so she will take “ownership” of the task.
• Say, “Let’s work together to make a list of all the steps in cleaning up your room. What’s first?”
• Have her either write down the steps, or work together to cut and paste pictures of each step onto the checklist.
• If this process remains a struggle for your child, consider age-appropriate incentives.

Try to apply this same combination of flexible structure to other multiple-step tasks at home and school.

What struggles are you and your child having that could benefit from a little flexible structuring?

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(c) 2009- 2012, Monte W. Davenport, Ph.D.