Signs of Weak Cognitive Skills in Struggling Students

If you are a parent of a struggling student, it can be hard to watch them fight day-in and day-out on things that “should come naturally.” After all, aren’t schools equipped to help all learners succeed?

Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Even in our local area, schools are slipping behind national averages on reading assessments, as well as other subject areas. Kids are struggling in school, but the real question is WHY?

WHY are struggling students continuing to flounder despite the plethora of accommodations that are available to them?

The answer is: accommodations don’t fix learning struggles. They are designed to just get kids through the school year, not to actually address WHY struggling students are struggling in the first place.

If you want to grow your child’s confidence and cognitive abilities, strengthening brain skills like attention, memory, processing speed, logic & reasoning, and auditory processing must happen.

Here are some common signs of weak cognitive skills in struggling students:

Taking Longer than Classmates to Finish Tests or Assignments

Slow processing speed or poor working memory can make tasks feel longer and more daunting to struggling students. If your child is consistently the last to finish, or is frequently re-reading or losing their place and losing time and efficiency, strengthening cognitive skills can help speed up their thinking and recall.

Falling Behind in Reading

Reading is a complex task that requires lots of cognitive skills in order to happen. Even with a move towards science-backed reading instruction in schools, kids are still falling behind. When you look for ways to help your struggling reader, addressing cognitive skills needs to happen first. 

Check out this post for more on how weak cognitive skills cause reading struggles. 

Struggling to Focus or Engage in Classroom Settings

Whether your child is labeled as disruptive, distracted, disengaged, or overly active, struggling students in classroom settings often have one or more cognitive skill weaknesses. Before relying on accommodations, investigating which skills are causing your child to struggle can be helpful.

Poor Reading Comprehension

If your child has strong decoding or phonics skills but still struggles with reading comprehension, it can be a sign that several higher-level skills are weak. By mid-elementary school, kids should be able to read a text and understand what it says. But what happens when there seems to be a disconnect? Brain training can activate the visual, auditory, and meaning centers of the brain simultaneously in order to help build comprehension skills.

Constantly Asking “What Do I Do Next?”

Does your child drive you (or their teacher) crazy with constant questions? Inability to self-start and decide on next steps can be a sign of poor logic and reasoning skills. This is a vital life-skill, not just in school but in relationships, jobs, driving, sports, and more.

Re-reading, Needing Repeated Instructions, or Struggling with Self-Motivation

Whether it’s at home, on the sports field, or in school, if your child needs constant reminders or incentives, it can be a sign that low cognitive skills are impacting their thinking ability. Frequent re-reading or needing repeated instructions means they are not focusing or remembering the first time. This can be frustrating both for your child and for the parent, teacher, or coach giving the instruction. 

Lack of Motivation or Interest in Reading, Learning, and Trying

If you sense your child is disengaging, don’t lose hope. If they are resistant to even trying to read, remember, learn, play sports, or do other activities, it could be because their brain has been conditioned into believing these tasks are impossible. Brain training targets the underlying reason WHY your child is struggling to help these things come more naturally.

This is not an extensive list by any means.

In fact, ALL of us likely have one or more weak cognitive skills that make life harder. The point is that if your child is struggling, you don’t have to leave them there. Strengthening these key areas can set them up for a lifetime of greater success academically, relationally, occupationally, and in all areas of life!

Call us today to learn more: (434) 220-7475