Teach Your Children to Single Task, not Multitask

We question how children lose their childhood with parents trying to keep up with the Jones', the tendency of families to overschedule their children and government pushing No Child Left Inside so children spend more time testing than learning,

All these good intentions..... at what expense?  I remember reading The Hurried Child by David Elkind and realizing that although it was written in the 1990's, it was still relevant not just 10 years later but 20 years later... and the distractions he mentions are the same ones we face today, just slightly different format (every kid age 12+ has a cell phone, many with smart phones vs. a bag phone that only some could afford).

So this recent article got me to thinking....the value of children re-learning to single task and the role modeling of parents to ALSO re-learn the art, yes art, of single tasking. Not just for the direct benefit of the children but also for the benefit of the adults and the family.


By Dr. Jim Taylor
After reading my last post, I hope you’re convinced now that so-called multitasking isn’t what it purports to be and definitely doesn’t do your children any favors in school or anywhere else. So, the next thing to do is to show them (and perhaps yourself) that “single tasking” is a much better way to go. Single tasking is definitely not rocket science, but it may require that your children break some deeply ingrained habits around their use of technology and learn new habits that will enable them to be more productive and efficient. The good news is that, with some commitment and discipline, your children can retrain those habits and, in a relatively short time and with the benefits clear, become comfortable and adept single taskers.

Full article