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Quick Tips for Increasing Your Attention Span

Attention is a complex process that includes being alert, selecting what to attend to, ignoring what is unimportant, and maintaining focus for the right amount of time.

Here are a few simple things you can do to improve your attention:

• Limit distractions
• Take breaks
• Get enough sleep
• Eat healthy snacks
• Stay hydrated
• Exercise
• Meditate
• Turn off your phone
• Chew gum 

Tips to Focus your Attention in Class

1. Prepare before class

Preparing before class helps you understand the material better and makes it easier to concentrate during class. Read and take notes on what that will be covered in class. Review, rewrite, summarize your notes from the previous class. Make a list of questions you can ask in class.

2. Get a minimum of 8 hours sleep

Fatigue makes concentration in class more difficult.

3. Eat a snack before class

Hunger can be a distraction and can make it hard to focus in class. Grab some good nutrition before you head to class such as fruit or nuts.

4. Get moving

If you are an antsy person, make sure you have gotten your energy out before class (e.g. take the stairs or ride your bike to class, go to the gym).

5. Sit near the front

Sitting close to the professor will minimize distractions (whisperers, texters, etc.) in front of you. You could also consider sitting away from your friends or other distractions like the window or door.

6. Turn off your phone

Turn off your phone completely. Don’t set it to vibrate as this is still distracting.

7. Participate

Express your ideas, ask questions, or start a discussion. Raise your hand. Use time after class to talk to your professor and ask about concepts you did not understand. Participation will also help you focus in classes.

8. Take notes

If possible, take notes by hand instead of typing them. Enhance your notes by using diagrams, visuals, colored pens, and markers.

9. Review, rewrite, summarize

Review, rewrite, summarize your notes from the previous class either 5 minutes after class ends, that night, or the next day.

10. Reward yourself

Motivate yourself at the end of the class with rewards for paying attention (e.g. your favorite latte, $ to your “saving for shoes” account).

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Focusing Your Attention When Studying

1. Meditate regularly

Meditation trains your brain to stay at attention for longer periods of time. Practice focused attention mediation for 10 minutes a day or try out one of the many apps such as Stop, Breath & Think.

2. Take breaks

Apply the Pomodoro Technique, which is based on time intervals that promote bursts of intense productivity followed by brief rest periods.

3. Exercise to get the jitters out

Get your physical energy out, which will increase your focus, before you start studying. Or do a little exercise during breaks.

4. Limit distractions

Turn off your phone and close websites or use apps such as Freedom or Self Control to block distracting websites or applications.

5. Drink plenty of water and eat healthy food.

Prepare drinks and food before you start studying so that you will be less likely to get up and lose focus. 

• Stay hydrated.
• Drink black tea instead of coffee.
• Eat power snacks and .

6. Consider your energy level.

Schedule your most challenging study sessions when you anticipate feeling most energized and focused. Do the hardest thing first.

7. Increase your alertness.

show that listening to classical music helps you pay attention. Chewing gum and taking notes by hand also contribute to attentiveness.

8. Give yourself permission to zone out.

Allow your mind to wander and schedule a convenient time for daydreaming (e.g. while doing dishes or exercising).

9. Get a good night’s sleep.

Make sure you have slept at least eight hours. Fatigue makes concentration when studying very difficult.

Fidget to Focus - Tips for people with ADHD

People with ADHD often work best when they do more than one task simultaneously. If the work we are engaged in is not interesting enough to sustain our focus, an additional sensory-motor input that is mildly stimulating, interesting, or entertaining allows the ADHD brain to become fully engaged and allows sustained focus on the primary activity. Fidgeting for some improves rather than distracts.

Movement strategies

These tips involve moving your body while you’re trying to focus on tasks such as studying or listening. 

• Exercise, such as walking, jogging or bike riding
• Swivel in a chair
• Rocking or fidgeting
• Standing up
• Pace
• Wiggle your toes

Touch Strategies

These strategies involve holding, feeling or handling something while you’re talking or listening.

• Using fidget toys, such as balls or a Slinky
• Playing with your hair or clothing
• Fiddling with keys
• Takenotes or doodling
• Tap or drum fingers
• Knit or sew
• Pet an animal

Sight Strategies

Visual fidgets are all about noticing details in your surroundings or watching something while performing the task.

• Using colorful tools, such as bright folders, highlighters or pens
• Watch a fish tank or water
• Glancing out the window
• Looking at the flame in a fireplace
• Playing video games

Sound Strategies

Sound fidgets include listening to something while you’re performing tasks such as reading or talking.

• Listening to music, such as classical music or jazz, or rhythmic beats
• Whistle, hum or sing
• Listen to a ticking clock, traffic or white noise
• Talkto yourself

Taste Strategies

These tips use textures, flavors and temperatures of foods and beverages
to help you better focus on reading, listening, and working.

• Eat or taste different flavors, such as salty, sour, or spicy foods
• Drink hot beverages, such as tea, or cold ones, such as ice water
• Eat chewy snacks
• Drink bubbly seltzer

Mouth Strategies

Putting something in your mouth can help while reading and working.

• Chew on pens, gum, or ice
• Sip coffee or water
• Suck on hard candy
• Chew on hood strings

The same fidgets won’t work for everyone all the time, or in all situations. You’ll have to experiment to find out what works best for you.

A fidget must also be appropriate for the situation and respectful of those around you. It is not a good fidget if it helps you focus but distracts everyone else.

Source: Rotz, Roland & Wright, Sarah D. (2005). Fidget to Focus: Outwit Your Boredom: Sensory Strategies for Living with ADD. iUniverse. . Here you can find a short summary of their book.

Watch: Learn about a improving focus with fidget toys