Dear Amy: My 11-year-old son has a severe problem with completing tasks on time.

Ever since he started going to school, I have noticed that he is really slow in doing everything. For example, when the teacher asks the students to line up, he is always the last one.

He takes twice as long as everybody else in the family when it comes to eating meals, and he spends three to four hours each night doing homework that the teacher recommends should only take 30 to 45 minutes.

I have asked his teachers and pediatrician about his behavior, but all they said is that he would grow out of it. However, it just gets worse each year.

Even though he does not participate in after-school activities, he still stays up until 11 p.m. sometimes, just to finish his homework.

I try to reward him with small prizes every time he finishes his homework faster, but it still does not work.

When I ask him why he does things so slowly, he says it is because he does not want to do them. How do I encourage him to do things faster? What am I doing wrong?

-- Concerned parent

Dear Parent: You should have your son evaluated more thoroughly to be checked for a learning, cognitive or medical issue that interferes with his ability to get and stay on task.

If he is consistently and noticeably different from other children his age and if this tendency is growing worse, then I would challenge assertions that he will grow out of it. In fact, he isn't growing out of it -- he is growing into it.

You should also give him more opportunities to have fun after school and at home -- because if he has less free time he might learn to budget his hours better.

He might enjoy music, theater or learning to play chess. Some educational video games could prompt him to make connections and learn to react more quickly.

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