A child who is a slow learner needs more time and often more resources from their teachers to grasp new academic concepts. But otherwise, their development in other areas like their physical and social skills as well as their emotional intelligence are the same as other children. With the right tools and learning strategies, your child will be able to catch up with their peers and excel in their studies. In fact, Albert Einstein himself was a slow learner!

How do I know if my child is a slow learner?
In general, slow learners may show some or all of these characteristics:

They find difficulty in solving complex problems
They work very slowly and easily lose track of time
They find it hard to convey what they’ve learned
They find it challenging to learn and master academic skills such as the times tables or spelling rules
They’re not good at fulfilling long-term goals, which may be due to a short attention span and poor concentration skills
They may not be as good at interacting with others in teamwork projects
Children who express these qualities will face a lot of academic problems.

Slow learners tend to be left behind because they are expected to learn at the same rate as the average student. Unfortunately, because slow learners take a longer time to grasp what is taught, they cannot readily apply what they have been taught in new situations.


1 – Provide a quiet place to study
This can be a small study desk at the corner of your house or a designated study area with their bedroom. As long as it’s a quiet place without distractions such as electronics or toys, your child will be provided with an ideal environment that allows them to focus on their work.

You should also choose a place where your child can easily communicate with you, in case they need any help.

2 – Organise your child’s homework sessions
While setting up a schedule can help your child get into the headspace of learning, you need to break their homework session into brief periods of time.

Children who are slow learners often take more time and energy to focus on and understand their work. Having more breaks in between will allow them to review and process information.

3 – Plan a fun activity or two
Active learning experiences such as playing educational games, singing nursery songs and performing small science experiments draw more interest and leave a stronger impression on a child.

Which is why your child is more likely to remember what happened during catch at playtime rather than the new vocabulary words they have learnt that day.

Strengthen your child’s knowledge by conducting activities that relate to the concepts your child has just learnt.



4 – Discuss learning strategies with their teachers
Teachers are also doing their best to help your child learn. They have experience teaching slow learners like your child and they know which methods will work best for your child.

Ask the preschool teachers what you can do to support your child’s studies at home.

You can also speak with your child’s teacher about the amount of homework your child receives. By reducing the amount of work, your child will be able to manage their work and process the information much easier, giving your child the feeling of self-accomplishment.

5 – Give your child enough time to think through their homework problems
Pressure from time limits can hinder your child’s thinking process because they would be more anxious about finishing their work rather than understanding what they are learning.

Give them as much time as they need to complete their work. In this way, they will not feel overwhelmed and they can focus on learning rather than completing their work.

6 – Ask him or her questions about school topics or homework
Slow learners often have difficulty recalling what they have learnt.

By simply asking them what they have learnt at the end of a school day, your child is practising their ability to recollect and articulate their thoughts, which strengthen their self-confidence. It will also help them recall learning concepts much easier.

7 – Give them a reward
Sometimes, your child needs a little motivation to complete their work when the going gets tough.

Adding on to your child’s homework schedule, you can slot in milestones with small rewards to encourage them to push on with the learning.

For example, if they need to finish three sets of homework, insert breaks between each set. Then, tell your child that once they finish one set of homework, they can get a break for example 10 minutes of tv time.

You can also seek help from a developmental psychologist

You can visit synapseservices.org to book a session with a psychologist