When we think of ADD or ADHD we usually think of children with the inability to stay focused on tasks they find boring or repetitive. In fact this short attention span is a key symptom of ADD & ADHD.

But parents often get confused and wonder why there seem to be times when they ADD child is able to concentrate so intensely on something that he becomes oblivious of the world around him.

"I would call and call and then finally start yelling to get Sammy's attention. When he plays video games it's like he's in his own world and nothing else exists. It makes me wonder if he really has ADD" says Annabele Cooper, mom of 11 Sam who was diagnosed with ADD a year ago.

Children are most likely to hyper-focus whilst playing a video game or watching TV. Unless you intervene or some thing else disrupts your child's intense concentration, hours can go by without your child realizing it. This can have a detrimental effect on many areas of a child's life, such as school performance, his social life etc.

As a parent, you need to realize that having a short attention span is only one aspect of ADD. If your child has ADD then he has a dis-regulated attention system, not just a short attention span, as is commonly believed.

What causes this hyper-focus?

Just as in the case of distractibility, hyper-focus also results from abnormally low levels of a neurotransmitter called dopamine. This makes it harder for the brain to switch from something it finds stimulating to a task your child may consider more boring.

Russell Barkley, author of many books on ADD & ADHD, says "Children and adults with ADD have difficulty shifting attention from one thing to another, if they're doing something they enjoy or find psychologically rewarding, they'll tend to persist in this behavior after others would normally move on to other things. The brains of people with ADD are drawn to activities that give instant feedback."

Often, children are not even aware that they are concentrating so intensely.

There's both a positive and a negative aspect to hyper-focus. If you child channels that focus onto something productive, such as homework or studying for a test, then hyper-focus can be an asset.

But if your child only uses the ability to hyper-focus on time suckers, like TV & Video games, the negative consequences can quickly add up. If it is left unchecked, hyper-focusing can make a child loose out on all sorts of educational and social opportunities.