How can I help my active child focus on the videos?

Answer: We recommend the following suggestions:

• 1.) Dim the lights while the child is watching the videos. This will help the child focus on the screen and not on other objects in the room. This has the same effect as being at a movie theater where we pay less attention to the people sitting around us and we are able to focus our attention on the screen.
• 2.) Remove any distractions from the room before playing the videos - this includes toys and other objects that may hold the child’s attention. NOTE: Please remove the distractions well before playing the video so the child is not looking for missing toys.
• 3.) Make sure the child is comfortably seated relatively close to the screen.
• 4.) It usually helps if someone sits with the baby and says the words and does the actions with him/her.
• 5.) Try playing the videos while the child is seated in a high chair. Try this before or after the child has eaten. You may also want to use the DVDs in the car if you have a screen that he/she can see.
• 6.) Play the DVD early in the morning or before or after a nap.
• 7.) Watch the videos for five minutes at a time. Try doing fun activities between viewing the videos. Your child will be learning even if they are only able to sit still for several short sessions each day.

Over time, the child will likely watch the videos for longer periods. Play the DVD to the child while parents and care-givers are busy (on the phone, etc.) even if it is for a few minutes. Infants have tens of thousands of new synapses forming every second and all of the time you spend doing stimulating activities with the child adds up. Often, if adults play fun games with words with the babies, their interest increases for the videos. For example, you could hold up two word cards (for example 'clap' and 'wave') and say, "Which word says 'clap'?" Next, you could say, "Can you find the word 'wave'?" You could play a matching game where he/she matches the words with his/her toys. For instance, you could write down the word 'car' and let him/her put the word by his/her car. You may want to use a whiteboard with colorful markers to show him/her words that he/she is interested in. Stop when the child loses interest. Also, make it as fun and interactive as you can. Many people have successfully taught their babies and toddlers to read even if their children were hyperactive.

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