As summer break comes to an end, families across the country prepare for the transition back to school. But while the start of a new school year is an exciting time for many, some students struggle to concentrate in the classroom.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 26% of public school leaders reported that student inattention had a “severe negative impact” on learning during the 2023-2024 school year.
This contributes to the challenges many children face during what Sandra Loo, PhD, director of pediatric neuropsychology training at UCLA Health, describes as the “summer slide.”
“We know from many studies over the years that kids tend to lose about a month’s worth of learning during the summer,” says Dr. Loo. “This tends to be worse in math than in reading, and the extent of the loss might be larger at higher grades.”
Returning to the classroom after summer break can be a difficult adjustment.
“The transition back to school is sometimes hard because school can be a different, more pressure-filled and stressful environment,” says Dr. Loo, who is a mother of one.
“If possible, build in some routine — such as getting up earlier in the morning — and start working some learning activities back into the daily schedule,” she advises parents, “so it’s not as shocking on the first day of school.”
What causes inattention?
Inattention can manifest differently for each child, and according to Dr. Loo, it is often one of the first symptoms of something deeper.
“Inattention is like fever — it is nonspecific. It tells you that something is going on, but it isn’t specific to what the underlying cause is,” she says.
These causes can include environmental factors such as a lack of sleep, housing or food insecurity, or conflict at home. Physical health issues, developmental delays, learning difficulties and emotional challenges may also contribute.
“For younger children, especially in elementary school, this is really the time where attention problems such as ADHD or learning disabilities may not be identified yet,” Dr. Loo says. “So ideally, the goal is to understand what is driving the attention issues and then explore different strategies for improving inattention.”
To support that goal — and to ease the back-to-school transition — Dr. Loo recommends strategies that families can use to improve their child’s concentration:
Implement structure early in the school year
“Start with a more structured environment early on, with organization and routine, and then see how your kids adapt or take on those responsibilities,” Dr. Loo advises. “It’s easier to have things highly structured and then you can readjust as needed or reduce if the structure is unnecessary.”
Dr. Loo also says structure should be adapted by age.
For younger students, she recommends breaking down larger tasks into smaller steps, establishing a designated homework space with minimal distractions, using manageable blocks of time with intermittent breaks, and creating a plan of action — such as sequencing homework tasks.
“As children go into middle school, they will then learn how to create their own structure and routine so that by high school, they're able to sit down and implement those strategies,” she says. “All kids do better with structure.”
Advocate for classroom accommodations
Educational accommodations — such as assigned seating near the teacher, movement breaks, shortened assignments, outlined notes, and alternative testing environments — are also helpful. Dr. Loo emphasizes that communication is key when advocating for these resources.
“It’s a collaboration between parents and teachers when figuring out what might work best for a child in elementary school,” she says.
Open collaboration is especially important for older students.
“Communication between parents and teachers — or older students directly with their teachers — is recommended,” Dr. Loo says. “I think most teachers will respond to that and try to do what they can to help.
“At UCLA, we have an Office of Student Disabilities that can facilitate these accommodations. So, even at the college level, there are resources built in to help students with demonstrated need for educational accommodations,” she explains.
Minimize screen time distractions
Cellphones are often a major source of distraction for students, says Dr. Loo. However, establishing clear screen time boundaries — such as limiting daily use, designating specific times for access, and using incentives — can reduce distractibility.
Dr. Loo recommends applying the Premack Principle — a strategy that uses a preferred activity, such as screen time, as a reward for completing a less preferred task, like homework — to overcome this challenge.
“The idea is that once you’re done with chores and homework, then you have time to use your devices, ideally for a prespecified amount of time, as a reward,” she explains.
“If devices are introduced very early on, it gets a lot harder to control,” Dr. Loo says. “But having parameters everyone understands and agrees upon — and trying to enforce those consistently — is one of the best ways to do it.”
Increase engagement and personalize learning styles
Additionally, Dr. Loo encourages incorporating hands-on and multimodal learning strategies to boost engagement and cultivate a more enjoyable learning experience.
“One thing that can happen at home is the integration of preferred activities and interests to make learning, whether it’s reading or math, more fun and joyful,” she says. “I work with parents who, for instance, set math problems to music or turn typical card games into math problems by doing simple calculations — such as adding, subtracting, multiplying — with the face value of cards while playing the game.”
Dr. Loo also advises students to explore different study strategies and reflect on their learning habits by asking, “What kind of strategies do I enjoy and help me be more engaged?”
Note-taking, for example, helps some students stay engaged during class discussions. Others may benefit from reviewing recorded lectures.
“There are lots of ways to make learning enjoyable through hands-on activities,” she says. “It’s a little bit of trial and error because everybody’s a little bit different … but the more you can build it in, the more it helps with the learning process and brings back a little bit of enjoyment.”
Encourage open communication with your children
Starting the conversation early can foster better focus and emotional regulation in school, says Dr. Loo.
“Parents are the first line,” she explains. “They’re the experts on their kids, so ideally, having daily conversations with their kids about what’s going on — both good and bad — is a good place to start.”
Parent-child communication also helps children verbalize their emotions and process the school day.
“As stress and anxiety build, children may be more open to suggestions to help them with self-regulation if they feel that you understand their situation,” she says. “For example, there are a lot of social situations that kids aren’t really sure how to handle, but parents are well-equipped to help them. It’s an ongoing conversation between you and your child to help them manage the stresses of everyday life.”
Identify the resources you need
Finally, when seeking the right support, Dr. Loo encourages families to consult their pediatrician, collaborate closely with schools, seek help from a mental health professional, and explore trusted online resources.
“Talking with your pediatrician is a good place to start,” she says. “There are also online resources for attention evaluations or other behavioral treatments that may be helpful.
“The most important thing is to see how long attention problems persist and their functional impact,” Dr. Loo explains. “If they are really negatively impacting how a child functions at school, home, or with their peers, that would be the time to consider an assessment with either a medical or mental health professional.”
Drawing from her own experience as a mother, Dr. Loo shares a personal perspective:
“Being a parent helps build empathy for other parents because you experience how hard it is in the difficult moments. Sometimes it’s easy to make suggestions knowing that it can be tricky to implement,” says Dr. Loo.
“Things don’t always, or even most of the time, go as planned, so you may have to adapt and adjust — and that’s OK,” she says. “Just try to keep moving in the right direction of helping to support proper development of your child’s attention and focus.”
