How can I improve 1) the listening skills 2) attention span and 3) fine motor skills of my preschooler? 2)?

listening skills...read and talk to them...turn off the tv and videos attention span...start with short stories to read and very slowly move to longer ones fine motor skills...linking paper clips, tracing, stringing beads, small pegs in peg boards, using scissors, tearing paper into small pieces

Have a look at the varied exercises in the book BEING IN CONTROL examples at : http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/9659025114/ http://jasonalster.googlepages.com/home http://dysgraphia-help.blogspot.com/2006/05/dysgraphia-help.html

reading cover all the above try this site it helps listen matches their attention span and allowing them to use the mouse and keyboard helps eye and hand movement..its free

All three things can be improved by getting the child away from television watching. 1) Talk to your child all the time. Describe what you are doing. Read to the child and make it quality time snuggled up together. 2) Every added hour of watching TV increased a child's odds of having attention problems by about 10%. Kids watching about three hours a day were 30% more likely to have attention trouble than those viewing no TV. 3) The Parents as Teachers National Center says that young children need to “explore, move, manipulate, smell, touch and repeat as they learn. Studies have found that watching television does not increase attention, promote social skills, or foster creative play.”

Let's start with attention span: turn off the television as today's programs are fast paced and reward short attention spans, introduce other forms of entertainment like books on tape/CD (available from local library) and art projects that are more rewarding the more attention/time you give them. Encourage your child to delay gratification, telling them that you think they are special and are going to give them a special treat as a reward, but not until tomorrow...they'll pester you, but hold out and don't give them the treat until the same time the next day...eventually, they'll be able to work toward week-long goals, because they will have had experience postponing pleasure and will know that you keep your word (this comes in great with potty training too!). Invent games to play with your child that don't have specific starting and ending points. It's about the journey, not the destination. Games that involve make-believe, dressing up, inventing stories, etc. are a great way to exercise the mind. Fine Motor: give your child tools to develop fine motor skills and plenty of time to work with those tools. Many teachers give young kids safety scissors and old magazines, some of the good ones even teach young ones to shuck Indian corn and tear up cabbage to develop muscles in the hand and coordination, but only the best do what my mother did...get a pair of children's training chopsticks (or if your kid is ambitious, regular chopsticks) and allow them to eat special foods, but only if they can pick them up with the chopsticks! Start with something easy like popcorn, then move to something round like peanuts or candies, and then try mixing up jumbles of frozen berries and nuts and Cheerios. Listening skills: Here is another place where audio books come in handy. Leave them on in the background while your child plays and then ask them later about the story. They might be surprised how much they heard, and if not, they'll come to listen as they'll expect to be asked. It's also great if you can make your own audio books, by recording your own voice as you read your child a story in bed or as they bathe. Then let them listen to it over and over. Some parents overload their kids with information and kids respond by shutting down. They may listen to you more/retain information more if you involve them in the process of figuring out the answers to problems. Ask them a question. Give them a couple of minutes to ponder the answer/respond. Repeat the question. Wait 30 seconds. Then, say, "Here's what I think...Maybe when ___ happens, it means that ___," then ask them what they think about your hypothesis. Encourage them to listen by showing them that you too will listen (reciprocity), and show them that you think what they have to say is valuable (builds self-esteem).

For one and two, try step-directions as often as possible. Start with one-step - "Will you please come into your room?". Do this for a couple of weeks then move onto two-step - "Will you please go into the family room and get your shoes for me?". As for number three, try making a game out of it. Put some toothpicks on the table and have a race to see who can pick up the most and put them in a glass in 30 seconds, practice holding a pencil while playing tic-tac-toe. There are opportunities everywhere.

read to him/read to him/read to him