What Thinking Skills Do Children Actually Need to Learn?

When a child is struggling in school, the focus is often placed on behaviour, effort, or attention.

But learning is not just about listening, trying harder, or sitting still.

Learning depends on a set of thinking skills in the brain that allow a child to take in information, make sense of it, and use it. These skills are often invisible, but they are essential to everything a child does in the classroom.

Learning Is More Than Intelligence

Many children who struggle in school are intelligent. They may be curious, creative, and able to talk confidently about things they enjoy. But when it comes to learning in a classroom, something doesn’t quite click.

This is because learning relies on a combination of different thinking skills working together. When one or more of these skills is weaker, learning becomes much harder, even when the child is trying.

The Key Thinking Skills Behind Learning

Memory

Children need to be able to hold information in their mind long enough to use it. This includes remembering instructions, recalling what they have learned, and keeping track of steps in a task. When memory is a challenge, children may forget things quickly or lose track of what they are doing.

Understanding

Children need to be able to make sense of what they hear and see. This includes understanding language, following explanations, and grasping concepts. Some children hear the information but struggle to fully process what it means.

Flexible Thinking

Learning often requires children to adapt their thinking. This includes switching between tasks, seeing things from different perspectives, and adjusting when something changes. Children who find this difficult may become stuck or frustrated when things don’t go as expected.

Problem Solving

Children need to be able to work things out. This includes figuring out how to start, trying different approaches, and learning from mistakes. Without these skills, tasks can feel overwhelming or impossible to begin.

Attention and Focus

Children need to be able to direct and maintain their attention. This includes focusing on the right thing, ignoring distractions, and staying with a task. When attention is inconsistent, learning becomes fragmented.

Expressing Ideas

Children also need to be able to show what they know. This includes putting thoughts into words, explaining ideas, and organising responses. Some children understand much more than they are able to express.

Where Executive Functioning Fits In

Many of these thinking skills are part of what we call executive functioning. These are the skills that help children manage and direct their thinking in everyday life.

Executive functioning supports children to plan, organise, start tasks, manage time, and regulate their attention and emotions. When these skills are not fully developed, children may struggle to get started, feel overwhelmed easily, or avoid tasks altogether.

From the outside, this can look like a lack of motivation. But in reality, it is often a difficulty with the skills needed to carry out the task.

The Role of Sensory Processing

Another important piece of the puzzle is sensory processing. Children are constantly taking in information from their environment, including sounds, movement, touch, and visual input.

For some children, this input can feel overwhelming, making it difficult to concentrate or stay calm. For others, they may need more sensory input to stay alert and engaged.

When a child’s sensory system is not regulated, it becomes much harder for them to focus, process information, and take part in learning. This is why behaviour and learning are so closely linked to sensory needs.

Bringing It All Together

Learning is not just about intelligence. It is about how the brain takes in information, processes it, organises it, and responds.

When we begin to understand the thinking skills behind learning, we can start to see why some children struggle with tasks that seem simple to others. More importantly, we can begin to support them in ways that actually make a difference.

How This Links to My Workshops

In my family support sessions and workshops, I focus on helping parents understand what is really happening underneath their child’s behaviour.

This includes exploring how executive functioning impacts daily life, how sensory processing affects learning and regulation, and why some tasks feel much harder than they should.

The aim is to give parents a practical understanding and strategies, so they can better support their child at home and feel more confident in what they are seeing.

Looking Ahead

Over the coming weeks, I will be sharing more about these thinking skills and how they impact learning in everyday life.

This work is also linked to the Structure of Intellect (SOI) model, which I am currently training in and plan to bring to Coventry and Warwickshire from July. SOI helps to break these skills down further, giving a clearer picture of how a child learns and where support is needed.

Register Interest

If you would like to receive updates about upcoming workshops or SOI assessments, you can register your interest here:

👉Structure of intellect | The Autism & ADHD Advocates CIC