{"h1":"Therapy that helps a child learn to attend to others","faq":[{"a":"Warm, play-based behaviour therapy is the main support. Therapists follow your child's interests and reward each moment of looking, turning or responding, building joint attention through games like turn-taking, pointing and face play.","q":"What therapy helps a child learn to pay attention to others?"},{"a":"Most children share attention, respond to their name and point to show interest in the toddler years. If by around 3 your child rarely makes eye contact or seems more drawn to objects than people, a developmental check is worth booking.","q":"At what age should a child notice and respond to others?"},{"a":"Yes. Get to your child's eye level, narrate play, wait for them to respond, and react with delight the moment they look at you. Your therapist can coach you and your child's teacher with simple everyday strategies.","q":"Can I help my child attend to others at home?"}],"lang":"en","slug":"what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-attention-to-others","title":"What therapy helps a child learn to attend to others?","entity":{"key":"attention-to-others","kind":"skill","name":"attention to others","slug":"attention-to-others"},"lenses":[{"kind":"stakeholder","label":"Parent","value":"parent"},{"kind":"age","label":"Child","value":"child"},{"kind":"domain","label":"Social","value":"social"},{"kind":"intent","label":"Support","value":"support"},{"kind":"lifecycle","label":"Act","value":"act"},{"kind":"route","label":"Behaviour-Therapy","value":"behaviour-therapy"},{"kind":"empowerment","label":"Family Empowerment","value":"family_empowerment"},{"kind":"ability","label":"Social Awareness","value":"social-awareness"},{"kind":"assessment","label":"Social Responsiveness Scale, 2nd Ed","value":"srs2"},{"kind":"language","label":"English","value":"en"},{"kind":"sdg","label":"SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities","value":"10"},{"kind":"sdg","label":"SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being","value":"3"},{"kind":"skill","label":"attention to others","value":"attention-to-others"},{"kind":"stakeholder","label":"Caregiver","value":"caregiver"},{"kind":"stakeholder","label":"Teacher / Educator","value":"teacher"},{"kind":"stakeholder","label":"Therapist / Clinician","value":"therapist"}],"parent":{"key":"skills","label":"Skills"},"related":[{"lang":"en","slug":"what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-social-relationship-and-reciprocity","title":"What therapy helps a child learn social relationship and reciprocity?"},{"lang":"en","slug":"how-can-a-teacher-support-a-child-working-on-attention-to-others","title":"How can a teacher support a child working on attention to others?"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-social-responsiveness","title":"What therapy helps a child build social responsiveness?"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-social-interaction","title":"What therapy helps a child learn social interaction?"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-social-engagement","title":"Therapy for Social Engagement in Children"},{"lang":"en","slug":"as-a-therapist-what-techniques-help-a-child-develop-the-ability-to-attention-to-others","title":"Techniques to build a child's attention to others"}],"summary":"Attention to others is supported through warm, play-based behaviour therapy that rewards each moment a child notices, turns towards or responds to people, builds joint attention through turn-taking and shared play, and coaches caregivers and teachers to invite connection in everyday life. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.","answer_md":"*When your little one starts to notice the people around them, a whole social world begins to open up — and the right play-based support gently lights that spark.*\n\n## In short\nLearning to **attend to others** — to notice faces, follow another person's focus, and share moments together — is most often supported through **behaviour therapy** and play-based social-communication work. Therapists use warm, structured, motivating play to help your child turn towards people, share attention, and respond to faces and voices. With patient, repeated, joyful practice, these social-awareness skills steadily grow.\n\n## The support that helps\n- **Behaviour therapy (naturalistic, play-based)** — the core support. Therapists follow your child's interests and reward each small moment of looking, turning or responding, building attention to others one positive step at a time.\n- **Joint-attention activities** — gentle games of pointing, sharing a toy, peek-a-boo and turn-taking teach your child to share a focus with another person — the foundation of social connection.\n- **Face and voice play** — singing, mirror play and animated expressions invite your child to watch faces and link them with warmth and fun.\n- **Coaching for caregivers and teachers** — because attention to others grows best in everyday life, your therapist shows you simple ways to invite eye contact, narrate play and wait for your child to respond at home and in class.\n\nThe aim is never to drill a skill, but to make *people* the most interesting, rewarding part of your child's world.\n\n## When to seek a check\nA developmental check is worth booking if your child rarely makes eye contact, seldom shares interest by pointing or showing you things, doesn't respond to their name, or seems more drawn to objects than people.\n\n## The Pinnacle way\nAbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional — never from an app or form. From there, a clinician-administered structured assessment shapes a plan built around your child, delivered through our [behaviour therapy](/behaviour-therapy) support. Learn more about [attention to others](/attention-to-others) and how the [AbilityScore®](/ask/what-is-the-abilityscore-and-how-is-it-calculated) guides your child's journey.\n\n## Trusted sources\nWHO ICF (Chapter d7, Interpersonal interactions and relationships); American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org) social-development guidance; ASHA guidance on social communication.\n\n**Next step —** Want to help your child connect more with the people they love? [Book a social-communication check with a Pinnacle clinician](/behaviour-therapy).\n\nThis is general information, not a diagnosis — individual assessment and diagnosis require an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.","canonical":"https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-attention-to-others","editorial":{"reviewed_at":"2026-06-11T20:12:18.613642+00:00","reviewed_by":null,"developed_by":"SETU Consortium · Pinnacle Blooms Network"},"alternates":[{"href":"https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-therapy-helps-a-child-learn-to-attention-to-others","lang":"en","indexable":true}],"dimensions":[{"key":"skills","label":"Skills"}],"meta_title":"Therapy for Attention to Others in Children","meta_robots":"index, follow, max-image-preview:large","everyday_tip":"During play, get down to your child's eye level, wait expectantly, and react with big warm delight the moment they glance at you — making your face the most rewarding thing to look at.","published_at":"2026-06-10T14:16:00.221239+00:00","reading_paths":[{"key":"signs","items":[{"lang":"en","slug":"at-what-age-should-a-child-attention-to-others","title":"At What Age Should a Child Show Attention to Others?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"could-difficulty-with-attention-to-others-be-a-sign-of-a-developmental-delay","title":"Could difficulty with attention to others be a sign of a developmental delay?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"is-it-normal-that-my-child-is-not-yet-showing-attention-to-others","title":"Is it normal that my child is not yet showing attention to others?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-does-it-mean-if-my-child-is-not-yet-showing-attention-to-others","title":"What does it mean if my child is not yet showing attention to others?","reason":"Same topic"},{"lang":"en","slug":"what-signs-suggest-my-child-may-need-support-with-attention-to-others","title":"What signs suggest my child may need support with 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