About attention

Attention describes being able to concentrate for a long time, being able to stay focused on one task without being distracted, being able to divide your attention between multiple tasks (for example, listening while completing an activity), and being able to switch your attention between different ideas (for example, shifting your thinking to a new task or activity easily).

Many students with disability have challenges with attention. This includes those with intellectual disability, specific learning disability, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and students on the autism spectrum.

Each student is unique, and so they may have different levels of attention. For example, some students may be able to concentrate on a single activity for a long time, but have difficulty dividing their attention between two tasks. Others may have difficulty concentrating for a long time and need frequent breaks or change of activities to keep them interested.