Discrepancy In Their Attention Span

As I’m working with ‘Under 2s’, I have noticed a discrepancy in their attention span. Children of ages 15-30 months attend to activities for 10-15 minutes when highly motivated. The complexity of the task also matters, as a demanding task requires so much concentration that their attention does not continue for more than 5-7 minutes. When exploring in a familiar place with a new toy, a child attends for 15 minutes or more. In a distracting place or when others stressors are interfering (sleep, hunger, thirst, need to use the toilet), a child noticeably appears distracted or less attentive. I cannot really expect them to have very high attention spans and have to be constantly on my toes to engage with them and encourage learning. I have noticed varied levels of attention depending on their interest in the activity. For example, I was with a few children who were jumping on the trampoline at the centre. They were taking turns on it. This activity went on for almost 20 minutes but quickly came to a halt when another teacher opened the sand pit cover for children to play. This happens with a lot of different activities and I have noticed children’s interests dipping at different times of the day.
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I may sometimes have problems with choosing the right level of activities for the children; I will then look at this issue more closely to determine what the problem is and try to correct it. Having thought about my teaching quite intensively lately and having seen my colleagues has led me to realise that it is always better to go with the flow where such young children are concerned. I cannot possibly rush them into anything. My role is to guide and encourage learning but the children are the ones who set the pace. If skills need to be learnt or just to have fun, I need to be patient with