Family Front and Centre: A Support Resource Promoting Healthy Child Development

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Book 2: Attention

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Production of this resource has been made possible through a financial contribution by Health Canada prior to the announcement of the establishment of the Public Health Agency of Canada on September 24, 2004. Any reference to Health Canada should be assumed to be to the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Table of Content

• What is Attention ?
• Inside this book
• Infants (0-18 months)
• Toddlers (18 months-3 years)
• Preschoolers (3-6 years)
• Factors That Affect Attention
• When Attention is a Serious Problem
• Strategies and Activities
• Summing It Up
• Glossary

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National Advisory Committee

Nancy Engels Project Coordinator, JFS	JoAnn Gillan Kristie Gomuwka Myrna Martin Kate O'Brodovich Lynda Stewart Irene Szabla Annette Thexton Michelle Ward
Lisa Fiorentino Writer/Researcher
Susan Karpman Director, Family and Children's Services, JFS
Marilyn Turnley Health Canada Consultant

Consultants

Andrea Borod editing
Rebekah Frojmovic research assistant
Jacinte Gauvin translation/adaptation
Carey Gold marketing/website consultant
Davina Mill clinical consultant
Richard F. Schmid evaluation
Rose Marie Scissons research/indexer
David Wells evaluation

Family Front and Centre
A Support Resource Promoting Healthy Child Development

Production of this document has been made possible by a financial
contribution from the CAPC/CPNP National Projects Fund, Health Canada.
The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the official policies of Health Canada.
c 2004 Jewish Family Services of the Baron de Hirsch Institute.
ISBN 0-9734557-3-X

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What is Attention ?

Attention can be defined as the ability to focus on a person (e.g., mom, baby brother), object (e.g., toy elephant), or activity (e.g., feeding time, playing soccer) for a certain period of time. It relates to the ability to learn and to remember (i.e., recall the location of a person or an object). Since attention involves the ability to focus and the use of memory, it relates directly to the cognitive development of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers.

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Inside this book:

• A description of the development of attention from infancy until six years of age, highlighting developmental issues for the specific age groups.
• Factors that affect the development of attention and a discussion of when children may be at risk for more serious attention problems.
• A list of strategies and activities to help children with their attention behaviours.
• A glossary of terms.

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Infants (0-18 months)

Life outside of the womb gives infants the chance to meet their caregivers and to learn about objects through interaction and play. Overall, infants do not have long attention spans, yet there are individual differences in their levels of attention.

Nine month old Vivek observes a toy elephant that his mother holds. His mother watches as Vivek takes his time to look over every aspect of the toy before he finds his mother's face again and exclaims, "Aaah!"

Ten month old Nadine watches her Mom bounce a ball on the wall, but only for a short period of time. After 10 seconds, she begins looking around the room and finds her toy cat. After crawling towards the toy and playing with it for a little, she discovers her own ball to play with and exclaims, "Aaah!"

Both infants have normal attention abilities yet demonstrate different attention styles. Vivek took his time looking at one toy, whereas Nadine looked at 3 different toys within the same amount of time. Both infants are engaged with their environment but have different attention styles that affect how they interact with persons and objects.

Attention and Temperament

The development of temperament during infancy plays a role in the giving and receiving of attention. Temperament is the infant's overall style of interacting with the world. Typically, temperament is established by 2-3 months of age and can be divided into two main categories: easygoing and spirited.

• Infants who have easygoing temperaments are relaxed (e.g., infant who lies still in his/her crib, infant seat, or father's arms and fusses little). They are less likely to get irritated and are easier to soothe when upset.
• Infants who have spirited temperaments have more active personalities and may kick their legs and flap their arms with a lot of energy in response to experiences. These infants may also become irritated more easily and may be more difficult to soothe when upset.

Six month old Terry is a relatively easygoing baby. He smiles a lot and tends not to get upset. When Terry does get upset, Terry's mom and dad are able to soothe him and make him feel better. Since Terry smiles and is happy a lot, his mom and dad are also happy and smiling, encouraging Terry to laugh in return.

Terry's personality is easygoing; he cries little and smiles a lot. Terry may be more pleasant to take care of and as a result receives positive attention and affection.

Seven month old Amélie has a spirited personality. Amélie becomes irritated and cries more easily and it can be hard for Amélie's parents to calm her down. It is difficult and frustrating for Amélie's mom and dad to understand their daughter and to try and develop the best strategy to decrease her irritability.

Amélie's temperament is spirited. She cries more often and becomes easily irritated. Amélie may scream and kick when given attention and it may be more difficult to calm her down. Due to her temperament, Amélie's parents may misinterpret her needs and have difficulty giving her sufficient positive attention and affection.

Infants with spirited temperaments may receive less positive attention, and taking care of these babies can be frustrating and tiresome even for the most competent of caregivers. Understanding an infant's personality is helpful for care-givers as it presents a clearer picture of the infant's behaviours.

Keep in mind that all infants may have easygoing as well as spirited days. Even infants with the most easygoing temperament may have days where they are easily irritated and difficult to soothe. A spirited infant may also experience calm, passive, and generally happy days.

Exploration and Social Development

From 12 until 18 months of age, infants tend to investigate more and are curious to discover the different properties of objects. Infants engage in more exploratory play, which involves learning about and using different senses that objects stimulate for them (e.g., touch, taste, etc.).

Older infants also pay more attention to and learn by observing adults. Through attention and observation, infants learn socially appropriate ways to respond to situations. This is referred to as social referencing. Early social referencing helps infants become more aware of their own needs, since they develop self awareness and control over their emotions. Through their growing self awareness, infants also learn how to engage in playful behaviours.

Consider This...

Attention in infancy is similar to visiting a new toy store. Toy stores are full of many new and interesting objects to play with. Some individuals take their time and slowly explore the different toys, while others become excited and proceed to discover many toys as quickly as possible. Infants are being introduced in the first 2 years of life to many different persons, objects, and activities and already have different attention styles to explore their new world.

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Toddlers (18 months-3 years)

What is most remarkable about toddlers is their endless supply of energy. Toddlers use all this energy to explore their environment, paying attention to persons, objects, and activities from their experiences. Seeking and receiving attention are a normal part of a toddler's development.

Between 24-30 months, toddlers experience an increase in their attention span. They are now able to be attentive for a longer series of activities, leading to more adventure for everyone.

Jay's dad has just come home from work. Although Jay's dad feels tired, Jay (2 1/2 years) has a lot of energy and would like to play some games with him. They begin by playing Cops and Robbers. Dad is the robber, and gets caught, tied up, and left in jail. Jay then decides to play soccer and rushes upstairs to get his soccer ball. On the way upstairs, he runs into the kitchen, grabs a cookie, and talks to his mom, who plays the warden of the jail. Finally he grabs the soccer ball, races downstairs and exclaims, "I'm hungry for a chocolate and banana sandwich!"

Jay represents an example of a 2 1/2 year old who is excited and has limitless energy. He changes his attention from one object to another and he demonstrates his ability to experience and pay attention to various persons, objects, and activities by interacting and playing with toys.

Though there is an increase in attention span, 2 year olds have difficulty sitting still for long lengths of time. Many 2 year olds can only devote their attention to one thing for 2 minutes, before needing a break or wanting to do something else. They may also have difficulty paying attention to instructions that are given.

As toddlers reach their third birthday, this extra energy may continue and is still considered typical attention development in toddlers. While their exciting lives can be a delight for adults to observe, toddlers can also be exhausting and worrisome, even for the most patient of caregivers. If there are any concerns regarding a toddler's ability to pay attention, please consult the strategies and activities section.

Toddlers may also seek attention from others. They need to feel encouraged to attract our attention. Seeking attention can take the form of physical attention (e.g., looking at a toddler when they are talking; giving them a pat on the back as a sign of recognition) and emotional attention (e.g., hugging, being sympathetic to their needs). Attention seeking in toddlers helps to build a sense of confidence and high self esteem as they are being recognized for who they are. Toddlers feel good when they receive positive attention and approval for appropriate ideas, feelings, and behaviours.

Growing Independence and Responsibility

As toddlers use their energy to explore, they also demonstrate the move towards independence from their caregivers. Older toddlers move away from needing their caregivers' attention all of the time (as they did during infancy), to needing attention only part of the time. The process of gaining independence can be a slow but rewarding one for toddlers as they adjust to their more independent status. Caregivers need to be responsive and encourage the toddler's need for independence.

As toddlers become more independent, they also learn that they are responsible for their actions. Learning responsibility helps toddlers to grow further towards their independence and to feel more control over their behaviours and emotions. A sense of independence and of self responsibility helps toddlers to begin building their self esteem. Caregivers who encourage toddler independence and responsibility communicate that they trust the toddler, providing important tools for the development of social relationships.

Consider This...

Life for toddlers is similar to an amusement park as there are new rides and new experiences to be had at every corner. It is the caregivers' responsibility to make sure that toddlers explore with some independence and responsibility, instilling a sense of trust and self esteem in them.

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Preschoolers (3-6 years)

Although full of energy, preschoolers are now more capable of paying attention for longer periods of time. In order to pay attention, preschoolers must select information to be attentive to, maintain their focus, and ignore other interfering information. This can be a challenging task. Paying and receiving attention are two important issues among preschoolers.

Paying Attention

By paying attention, preschoolers are able to concentrate their efforts toward something. By receiving attention, preschoolers' needs and wants are acknowledged.

Five year old Khoi attends a School Readiness Program at her local Family Centre. Her teacher tells the class to pay special attention to the story being read aloud. Khoi sits up straight, folds her hands on her legs, and leans forward to listen. At the same time her friend Cory whispers loudly to another friend. Khoi starts leaning forward a little more in order to ignore Cory's whispering and to concentrate on what her teacher says.

Khoi tries hard to focus and tune out Cory's distracting whispers. Her teacher specifically tells the class to focus on the information in the story. Khoi sits quietly and listens. Preschoolers are capable of paying attention for longer periods of time; some preschoolers are able to focus their attention for as long as 30 minutes.

Dakota's educator at the Community Centre has asked the class to pay special attention to the rules for clean up. Dakota has a difficult time paying attention, as he cannot wait to play in the kitchen corner with his friend Jennifer. Dakota, squirming in his seat, constantly puts his hand up and even speaks while the educator talks. Dakota's educator has to remind him several times that he will get a chance to speak but must first wait until all the rules are discussed. Dakota has a hard time waiting.

Dakota has more difficulty paying attention. He is eager to play and does not pay attention to the information from his educator, making it more difficult for him to sit still.

In both of these examples, paying attention is a challenging job. It requires concentration as well as a focus of mental effort. Attention is selective and can also shift as we decide to focus our attention onto something else. Some research suggests that the more exciting a task is, the more likely that it will capture a preschooler's attention.

Receiving Positive and Negative Attention

Preschoolers enjoy receiving attention. When preschoolers receive attention for appropriate behaviours, it is called positive attention. When they display inappropriate behaviours and receive attention, it is called negative attention.

There can be many reasons why preschoolers solicit negative attention from adults. Some preschoolers may be testing limits and rules in order to understand how appropriate their behaviours are. Other preschoolers may still be learning the difference between positive and negative attention and how it relates to appropriate and inappropriate behaviours. Also, some preschoolers may receive very little attention, thereby resorting to any form of attention getting behaviours.

Mario, 4 years old, plays quietly. His mother tells him that the time has come to clean up for supper. Mario picks up his dinosaur collection and begins to put the pieces away one by one. When he has finished, Mario runs to the kitchen, quickly washes his hands, and sits down for dinner. As he sits down, Mario's mom places her hand on his head and says, "That was a great cleanup job you did Mario."

Five year old Nicholas has had a new baby sister, Helena, for 6 months now. Helena receives a lot of attention since she has many needs. In response to receiving less attention, Nicholas starts throwing his toys noisily to the ground and making loud burping noises during lunch and suppertime. These behaviours receive a lot of attention from Nicholas' parents, as they want him to stop the behaviours. Nicholas also becomes disruptive during playtime at the local Community Centre. Nicholas' parents and teacher are concerned about his behaviours.

In the above two examples, both preschoolers receive attention for their behaviours. Mario receives positive attention for listening to his mother's request through positive words and an affectionate touch. Nicholas receives negative attention for his unacceptable behaviours. He obtains attention for being disruptive with his toys and during mealtime. His behaviours also carry over into the community centre environment. It is important for caregivers to encourage appropriate behaviours through positive attention.

Consider This...

Preschoolers need help in finding the right balance between focusing their own attention and receiving positive attention. Caregivers need to work out the right formula that involves consistency, positive attention, and direction for the preschooler. Upon finding the right formula, the preschooler will grow content and experience satisfaction in being able to focus their attention on others while, in turn, receiving positive attention.

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Factors That Affect Attention

Health Factors

Children with health issues may cause them to have difficulty with attention behaviours. One of the most common health factors affecting attention involves ear infections and hearing impairments. Research has shown a link between ear infections and inattentive behaviours such as being less persistent, less attentive, and less responsive towards a task. Visual impairments may also affect children's abilities to focus and sustain their attention on a task. There can also be a physical illness that temporarily leads to a lower ability to pay attention in otherwise attentive children. Children can become preoccupied with the pain or discomfort of having an illness and are unable to effectively pay attention. All of these issues should be checked out by a health care professional.

Environmental Factors

Factors in children's environments, such as their homes and child care centres, can also affect their attention behaviours. For example, children living in households where there are stressful and challenging situations (e.g., a death in the family; parental divorce) may have more difficulty focusing.

Some children may be sensitive to physical factors such as strong lighting, materials that are uncomfortable to the touch, and loud noises. These factors may affect children's abilities to sustain their attention and remain engaged during a task. Distractions, such as loud noises, visual distractions, and age inappropriate activities can also affect a child's ability to pay attention.

Three year old Amber was taken to a ballet performance by her nana. Amber loves to have dance recitals with her dolls and her nana thought that she might enjoy watching a real ballet. As they took their seats, Amber was at first curious and explored the large recital hall. As the music and dancing began, she became excited and began swinging her legs and clapping her hands. After the first act, Amber began to swing less to the music and squirm more in her seat. She then started asking questions about when they were going home. Amber was told by her nana that she would have to sit quietly for a little while longer, but Amber did not seem to listen. Instead she kept twisting and turning in her seat and asking a lot of unrelated questions.

In the example, Amber showed difficulty paying attention.

For example:

• Amber had difficulty focusing her attention on the performance and did not seem to want to listen when being spoken to.
• Amber fidgeted and squirmed in her seat, appearing restless.
• Amber interrupted her nana repeatedly during the performance despite her nana's requests to wait quietly.

Although Amber's behaviours during the dance recital suggest that she may have difficulty paying attention, there could be other reasons for her lack of attention. Perhaps the ballet recital was too long an activity for a 3 year old. Amber can sit still and be attentive, but only for short periods of time. Her nana could have chosen an activity that would have been more appropriate for Amber's attention level, such as attending a production from a children's theatre.

Personality Factors

All children require activities that are highly engaging as well as interesting to them. Some children have more active personalities where they become bored and restless with certain activities. Some children need activities that are more visual, more auditory, or more physical. Other children may find some tasks over stimulating and overwhelming to pay attention to. They may require more calming activities to help them focus better on tasks and be able to understand and follow instructions more easily.

Self esteem can also affect a child's attention. Children with low self esteem may approach a task with caution or fear. This may also lead to lower attentiveness and to difficulty in keeping up with tasks.

Below is a list of other factors that could affect children's ability to pay attention.

Factor	Why
Fatigue	Children who have not rested enough may have difficulty concentrating and completing tasks.
Nutrition	Children who are not fully satiated may feel irritable and even uncomfortable, making paying attention difficult.
Caffeine/Sugar	Children who consume many food products with caffeine and/or sugar may have difficulty calming down and focusing to complete activities.
Bathroom needs	Children have small bladders, and some may be toilet training, and frequently need to use the bathroom. Bathroom needs can interrupt children's concentration and their completion of tasks.

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When Attention is a Serious Problem

Difficulties with attention become a more serious concern during the preschool period and occasionally during the toddler period. It is important to be aware and keep track of attention difficulties in children if they appear problematic. Any serious attention problems should receive the help and guidance of a health care professional, when they occur in:

• Duration (over at least a 6 month period);
• Intensity (well above normal lapses in attention and energy typical of the same aged child);
• Multiple environments (such as the home, child care centre, and/or school environment).

A small percentage of preschoolers are diagnosed with serious attention problems. This disorder can only be diagnosed by a health care professional and includes some of the following behaviours :

Behaviour	Examples of Behaviour
Inattention	Difficulty in sustaining attention in tasks or play activities. Easily distracted by objects, sounds and persons. Does not seem to listen when directly spoken to.
Hyperactivity	Fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat. Has difficulty playing or engaging in leisure activities quietly. Appears 'on the go' as if restless or in a rush.
Impulsivity	Has difficulty waiting his/her turn. Talks a lot (more than normal). Interrupts or intrudes on others' play activities.

In some cases, some children will have difficulty focusing their attention but do not have hyperactive or impulsive behaviours. Children who exhibit attention difficulties but do not have any hyperactive/impulsive behaviours may not be noticed for their attention problems, as they are not 'acting out' with hyperactive or impulsive behaviours. These children appear disengaged from tasks and interactions with others, which may lead to these children being labelled shy or timid and their attention difficulties may be ignored.

While some serious attention problems may arise due to environmental factors, others may have a biological origin. Children who have attention problems due to a biological origin are born with or develop neurological and behavioural challenges that affect their attention ability. These children may demonstrate developmental delays, difficulties with cognitive tasks, and problematic social interactions.

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Strategies and Activities

The following information contains strategies and activities to help infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with their attention skills. Some of the following strategies can be used with infants, toddlers and preschoolers, while others are specific to one age group. All of the strategies and activities can be modified to suit the child's as well as the setting's needs.

Strategies and Activities for Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers

1. Regular health and developmental check ups.
   • Sometimes children may have health problems that cause them to pay less attention to persons and objects. For this reason, children must regularly see a health care worker such as a doctor or nurse.
2. Help caregivers to understand their child's temperament/personality.
   • Educate caregivers about the existence of temperament differences.
   • Ask caregivers questions about their child's personality, including a discussion of their:
     1. Routines.
     2. Levels of crying.
     3. Moods.
     4. Activity levels.
     5. Reactions to change.
     6. Levels of frustration.
   • Help caregivers to make changes in routines and in the home environment to accommodate their child's needs.
3. Talk and play with the child.
   • Talking to children proves beneficial in helping direct their attention (especially for children who have shorter attention spans).
   • Opportunities for exploratory play help children learn about their world and encourage them to explore their environment.
   • Name and describe objects using short phrases (e.g., "What a big brown dog!") to capture some description of the object. As children get older, build on the complexity of sentences using more phrases (e.g., "That big brown dog has one white paw and three brown paws.").
   • Demonstrate the properties of objects (e.g., the different sounds a toy piano makes).
   • Direct children's attention to the properties of objects during daily activities like washing hands (e.g., water, soap, and drying hands).
   • Use your imagination to make toys and other objects come alive (e.g., making sounds, pointing, and generally appearing to be excited about the object).
4. Be aware of the child's environment.
   
   

Factors	Strategies/Activities
Environmental Factors	Make changes in the home and/or centre environment if a child appears to be sensitive to environmental factors. Use softer lighting. Use materials that are pleasant and soft to the touch (such as soft blankets and clothing). Create calm and quiet areas using soft materials that may also serve as sound buffers when trying to make a room quieter.
Stress Factors	Ask the caregivers about their own developmental history. Sometimes earlier experiences of caregivers may affect the care they provide for their children. If caregivers experience a temporary or permanent stressful situation, a referral to an agency or support group may help.

5. Give positive attention freely and willingly.
   • This includes physical (e.g., pat on the back) and emotional (e.g., words of encouragement; sympathy) attention for appropriate behaviours.
   • When children are speaking, let them finish talking before speaking back to them.
   • Help children to identify and label their feelings.
   • Try to understand what they are saying. Ask questions such as, " What do you mean?" or, "Can you say that again, but more slowly?"
6. Avoid giving negative attention.
   • Set limits for appropriate and inappropriate behaviours. Make sure that the child understands your expectations, and tell them how you feel when they engage in inappropriate behaviours.
   • Sometimes acknowledging children's feelings also helps them to choose more appropriate behaviours.
   • Sometimes ignoring certain inappropriate behaviours (i.e., behaviours that are not dangerous and/or violent) can help stop them from happening.
   • Recognizing their appropriate behaviours with positive attention will help preschoolers choose these behaviours over inappropriate behaviours.
7. Support caregivers with children who have attention needs.
   • Encourage caregivers to support one another by sharing experiences and discussing different techniques and strategies.
8. Follow the ABC's when observing behaviours.
   • The ABC's (antecedents, behaviours, consequences) is based on a behavioural model of observing and understanding behaviours. When trying to understand a child's attention difficulties, try using the following to understand their behaviours better.
   1. Antecedents
      What are the events that happened before the inattentive behaviour occurred?
      • Who was involved?
      • Where did it happen?
      • When did it happen?
   2. Behaviours
      What did the child do or not do in the situation?
      • Describe all of the behaviours that occurred (i.e., verbal and physical actions) with the child and with anyone else involved.
   3. Consequences
      What occurred after the behaviour?
      • What type of intervention was used?
      • How did the caregivers/peers respond?
      • How did the situation end?
        Did the behaviour continue, gain intensity, or stop?
      • How did the child respond?

Infant Strategies and Activities

1. Attend to infants' needs promptly and consistently.
   • Infants are quite helpless and depend on caregivers to meet their needs.
   • Encourage caregivers to respond to a child's crying. This is how an infant communicates his/her needs.
   • Develop a routine where their needs are being met consistently.
   • Consistency in caregiver response will help infants develop a strong sense of trust in their caregivers.
   • This initial trust sets the tone for developing trust in future social relationships.

Toddler Strategies and Activities

1. Encourage physical and calming activities.
   • Physical Activities: Indoor activities include dancing, singing, and drumming pots and pans; outdoor activities include playing in the back yard, garden or a nearby park where the toddler can run, jump, skip, and climb.
   • Calming Activities: Activities include colouring, reading, and making play-dough or playing with sand or water. You may also introduce a soothing area with soft lighting, less noise, and materials that are soft to touch.
2. Keep instructions simple and clear.
   • Break instructions into smaller steps. Usually one or two simple instructions will suffice for toddlers.
   • Toddlers may be unable to complete a task if they receive too many instructions and have difficulty following them.
3. Help the toddler develop self control.
   • Set clear and reasonable limits for the toddler's behaviours. This means allowing the toddler to be active while not encouraging inappropriate behaviours.
   • If a toddler gets upset and yells to get attention, say: "I will listen when you are ready to talk in your quiet voice." Spoken simply, this may encourage the toddler to control his/her behaviours before getting more upset.
   • Follow up the above statement with: "It is easier for me to understand what you want when you talk in your quiet voice."
   • Give the toddler choices. Let the child feel that he/she has control over his/her world.
   • Try to put a different yet positive spin on discipline. If the toddler wants to run across the concrete driveway, say, "There are other places where you can run, but you cannot run on the driveway. Let's find another place where it's safe to run." You can also give children 2 options to choose from, creating a 'Can do' message instead of a 'Can't do' message.

Preschooler Strategies and Activities

1. Set up a consistent routine.
   • Preschoolers are better able to focus their attention when they understand the routine they are undertaking.
   • Make routines fun and play-oriented (e.g., use a clean up song for clean up time; a washing hands song for snack time; use soft lighting for story time).
   • Set up a quiet area with few distractions that is consistently used for focusing on tasks alone.
2. Use bright colours and interesting objects to make a task more appealing to preschoolers.
   • Use a variety of creative attention activities, so that the preschooler remains interested:
     • Reading stories out loud.
     • Using music.
     • Using poetry and rhymes.
3. Bend down and talk to preschoolers at their eye level.
4. Use simple language. Give one direction at a time.
5. Point out the most important information for preschoolers to pay attention to.

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Summing It Up

• In infancy, babies have low attention spans, though they develop individual attention styles. Attention style relates to the development of temperament (the overall style infants have of interacting with the world) as well as to early exploration (i.e., exploratory play) and observations (i.e., social referencing).
• In the toddler years, the surplus energy youngsters have is used to explore their environment. With all this energy, toddlers sometimes appear inattentive and have difficulty following directions. Toddlers are also learning how to be independent from their caregivers, therefore needing their caregiver's attention less often. Finally, in order to feel good about themselves, toddlers should receive positive physical and emotional attention for their behaviours in order to develop a stronger sense of self esteem.
• Although preschoolers have grown considerably in their ability to pay attention, they still need to receive attention. Sometimes this attention is positive (attention received for appropriate behaviours). Other times it is negative (attention for behaviours that are inappropriate). Caregivers should try to reinforce appropriate behaviours while discouraging negative behaviours.

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Glossary

Attention: The ability to focus on a person, an object, or an activity for a certain period of time.

Attention getting behaviours: Behaviours that children engage in order to grab an adult's attention.

Attention span: The amount of time an individual is able to focus on one person, object, or activity.

Cognitive development: The development of how one thinks about and mentally represents the world.

Easygoing temperament: An infant's way of interacting with the environment where he/she is relaxed, not irritated easily, and easy to soothe when upset.

Exploratory play: Learning through play while using the different senses that an object stimulates (e.g., touch, taste, etc.).

Hyperactivity: Behaviours indicating restlessness and fidgeting.

Impulsivity: Behaviours indicating a lack in patience, a tendency to intrude and easily suggestive.

Inattention: Difficulty sustaining one's attention; easily distracted.

Independence: To rely on one's self and not others.

Mental effort: Using one's cognitive ability towards a task.

Negative attention: Receiving attention for behaviours that are inappropriate.

Neurology: The scientific study of nervous systems.

Observation: Use of visual skills.

Positive attention: Receiving attention for behaviours that are appropriate.

Self esteem: One's self concept; an individual's perception or point of view about one's self.

Social referencing: Observing other individual's behaviours to learn social appropriate ways to respond to situations.

Spirited temperament: An infant's way of interacting with the environment where he/she has a more active personality; may become irritated more easily and may be more difficult to soothe when upset.

Temperament: An infant's overall style of interacting with the world; typically established by 2-3 months of age.

Trust: The ability to rely on someone.

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