Children learn thanks to their executive functions ; that is to say, those that allow them to encode and integrate the information of their environment. Cognitive stimulation allows to stimulate these functions (memory, attention, language, planning, organization, reasoning …).
And two of its primary functions for the entire learning process are attention (which allows us to attend) and memory (which allows us to retain).
In this article we talk about seven cognitive stimulation exercises for children ages 6 to 10 that will help them improve attention and memory .
What is cognitive stimulation?
Cognitive stimulation is the set of actions and activities aimed at maintaining or enhancing people’s cognitive functioning, through various exercises.
When we talk about cognitive functioning, we talk about those skills that allow us to: attend to information from the environment , process it, memorize it, manage it, manipulate it … In short, what allows us to internalize information from the outside, learn, communicate, etc.
In this article we will focus on cognitive stimulation aimed at improving two essential cognitive functions for children’s learning: attention and memory.
Four cognitive stimulation exercises to enhance attention
Attention is a fundamental cognitive ability; According to the definition of RÃos y Periáñez, it is “that mental ability that allows us to generate and maintain a state of activation”.
Thanks to it, we can process the information of the environment, in addition to selecting (or filtering) the information that interests us from other available sources. That is, it allows us to focus on the stimuli and, in addition, perform a certain task for a certain time.
This is why it is so important for learning. How can we enhance it? We leave you four interesting exercises for this:
Find the differences
In this exercise, your child will have to find the differences between two images that, at first glance, seem identical. It is a game that stimulates sustained attention (concentration) and selective attention , since it implies being attentive to two images, while one is paying attention to each of its elements and details.
On the internet you will find a lot of material to print, although if you dare, you can also make the drawings yourself, or even, at some point, reverse the roles, and have your child make two drawings that look the same but contain differences.
On this platform you can do this exercise interactively. We also leave you an example of the exercise here, for older ages (around eight years old; remember that, the older you are, the greater the number of elements the images must contain, and the greater similarity there must be between them):
Each number, a symbol
This exercise is ideal for enhancing sustained attention. It consists of the following: on a sheet, we will write a lot of numbers (for example, 10 numbers in each row). Remember that on the internet you can find files of this type (we leave the link at the end).
They will be numbers from one to 10. We will ask our child to draw a symbol on top of each number; for example, in one a cross (cross it out), in two, a circle (surround it), in three, a star, in four, a triangle, and so on until 10.
If we want to make it a little more difficult, we must ask him to do it in a certain time , that is, against the clock. We leave you an example of the exercise, taken from the educapeques platform:
Coloring the shapes
This exercise is a worksheet that includes the following: at the top of the page there will be a series of geometric figures of different colors (when the children are older, around eight or nine years old, it is best to introduce more figures and that these are a little more complex).
Below the colored figures, we find many others in white . The exercise consists of coloring the shapes below following the model above. For example, all the red triangles, the blue squares, etc.
The time factor can be included in the exercise (for example, that the child has 4 minutes to do it), to further improve performance.
Another variant of the exercise, a bit more difficult, is that the figures are the same but in different sizes, as shown in the example taken from the echognitive platform:
Repeat words
This is a simple exercise, which can be turned into a game. It consists of naming our son about 10 or 20 words to memorize . After we name them, we will ask you to memorize them and wait 10 minutes to ask them.
Once that time passes, ask them and wait 20 minutes again to ask them again. The premise is that you try to memorize the maximum number of words (the order does not matter).
Three cognitive stimulation exercises to boost memory
Memory is another basic cognitive skill. It allows our brain to encode, store and retrieve the information of certain events.
Thanks to memory we learn, since it allows us to retain the information learned, in addition to allowing us to have memories and therefore an identity . How to enhance it? We leave you some resources, explained, that can help you:
Save an image
This exercise consists of presenting the child with a picture with different details. For example, a family scene with different people, in different clothes , sitting at a table with different dishes. You should watch it for X minutes (for example, 3 minutes), and we will ask you to memorize it during that time.
Then we will ask you questions about it; for example “How many people were there? What color was the girl’s shirt? Were there macaroni on a plate?”, etc. The level of difficulty of the questions asked will vary depending on the age of the child.
Memorize the lyrics of a song
Another simple exercise that will stimulate your child’s memory is to encourage him to memorize the words of a nursery rhyme.
You can turn it into a fun game , first selecting a song that you like and then singing it together until you memorize it. It is an exercise that you can practice in the car, on the way to school …
Memorize pairs
This exercise consists of the following: it is about introducing the child to a series of pairs (for example, six). In each pair (which can be drawn on a sheet or be a token, that is, manipulative material), we find two elements; for example, a red umbrella next to a lilac umbrella.
We will ask you to memorize the X pairs for X time (for example, in 1 minute); then we will remove the material and present you the different colored umbrellas.
Your task will be to match the umbrellas (or whatever object) that were paired in the first part of the exercise. Keep in mind that, in children aged six to 10, the number of pairs, ideally, should be 10 or more.
An example of the exercise, taken from the ecognitive platform, is the following:
And you, how do you enhance the attention and memory of your children? Did you know any of these exercises? We encourage you to try them with them!
Remember that you can introduce small variations in each of them and adapt them to the interests and ages of your children.
Photos | Cover (pexels), Image 1 (pexels)
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