Aiding the Developing Brains of Children: The ABC's of Changing Environments for Positive Brain Development

1. Aiding the DevelopingBrains of Children The ABC’s of Changing Environments for Positive Brain Development .

2. Brains are Designed to Change From birth to five years of age the brain develops more than any other time in children’s lives. Palowski power point Module One

3. The Changing Brain Over the first few years of life, the brain grows rapidly. As each neuron matures, it sends out multiple branches (axons, which send information out, and dendrites, which take in information), increasing the number of synaptic contacts and laying the specific connections from neuron to neuron. Experience determines which connections will be strengthened and which will be pruned; connections that have been activated most frequently are preserved. http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/plast.html

4. Studies show… Environment Can Make a Big Difference! Palowski, Module One Power-Point

5. Working Together • Since the ENVIRONMENT can impact brain development almost two times more than genetics it is important to know ways to ENRICH the environment so that there is optimal brain development.

6. A- Activity • Active interest and mental effort by the CHILD are major factors in making synapses and neural networks form. • The more work the brain does the more it becomes able to do.

7. B- Brain-Building Environments • A caring, responsive caregiver • Organization of physical environment • Appropriate play materials (Toys should be 90% child and 10% toy) • Adult involvement with the child • Opportunities for variety in daily activities; outings, lots of reading, etc. • BOTTOM LINE---Young children need safety, love and conversation from their parents and from capable care givers.

8. Allow children to seek out new adventures and experiences. Curious exploring encodes the love of learning, a natural curiosity and zest of the process of discovery. Jensen, Enriching the Brain, 2006 Your main objective should not be to “teach” your young ones but to help them DISCOVER how to “organize experiences for themselves.” C - Curiosity & D-Discovery Discovery Curiosity

9. E-Experiences • Provide early experiences of listening, following directions, and responding politely to adults. • Provide experiences of socializing with other children. • Provide experiences with holding small objects and manipulating scissors, glue, crayons, paintbrushes, and rulers. • Provide many positive experiences with books to help them discover that they are interesting gateways to stories and information.

10. F- Family Activities Do special activities or go on trips as a family. This doesn’ t have to be costly. -Picnics -Park Visits -Zoo trips -Library time -Walks or bike rides

11. G- Good Example • Modern psychologists have discovered that humans learn mostly from the example of those around them. They learn not only how to walk and talk, but also their moral values that way. • “You can’t avoid being an example---for good or ill.” • Kevin Ryan& Karen E Bohlin , Building Character in Schools, “Ten Commandments for Parents”1999 http://www.parentmap.com/article/parent-to-parent-video-raising-moral-kids

12. Good “habits of mind” sustained concentration language imagery questioning strategies thoughtful problem solving Negative “Habits of Mind” impulsivity guessing disregard of consequences expectations of easy pleasure in all learning H- “Habits of Mind” Screen-time fosters negative “habits of mind”

13. I- Interaction • “Attunement -Early Healthy Emotional Attachment can be achieved by one or two adults interacting with a young child and stimulating positive emotional reactions. There is absolutely no substitute for the quantity of quality time.”(Eric Jensen, Enriching the Brain, 2006) • Play games together. • Choose toys that children can change, manipulate, assemble, take apart and put back together again. • TALK, TALK, TALK “Narrate the day as it evolves.” • Follow your child’s lead and keep talking about what interests him or her.

14. J- Journals • Even preschoolers can use journals! • Teachers and parents record stories that the children dictate and draw pictures for. • Children are encouraged to share about their stories at school and home.

15. K- Knowledge While children can gain knowledge from computer use, children can develop higher levels of knowledge by playing board games, card games, getting involved with hobbies, and interacting with adults.

16. L-Language Language learning can include: • Listening to millions of words • Listening to complete sentences • Seeing words as well as hearing them. Pointing out signs, letters, words and etc. while driving down the road. • Making specific identifications and distinctions. • Talking through tasks such as getting dressed. • Reading aloud every day for 10 to 15 minutes and TALKING about what you read. Hook new words onto existing words!

17. M- Movement • Movements such as rocking, swinging, and other physical activities help develop the brain and even promote good emotional growth in infants. • As children grow, physical exercise continues to be important. It increases chemical connections in the brain. • Movement and physical experience provide the important groundwork for higher level cognition through the brain’s sensory area in young children. • Regular exercise especially spontaneous play, for children, enables the brain to deal better with stress and anxiety. It helps children learn more efficiently because of better blood supply and the chemicals that are released which in turn effect emotion and memory.

18. N- Nutrition • Good nutrition is important for all learning. • Suggestions from the neuroscience experts: Stick with whole foods such as fruits and vegetables. WATER is the BEST drink Sufficient and balanced proteins are important; eggs, milk, lean meats, yogurt Eric Jensen, Enriching the Brain, 2006

19. O- Overnight Sleep • Children learn best when they are well rested and secure. • …”Nighttime is when learning is consolidated, organized, and distributed to various areas of the brain for long- term storage.” Eric Jensen, Enriching the Brain, 2006 • Sleep is a very important ingredient for transfer from short-term to long-term memory. Eric Jensen, Enriching the Brain, 2006

20. The child should be interested and involved. Remember that repetition is important for firming up learning in the brain. Give the child positive encouragement for active exploration. Make sure your home is safe, then encourage attempts at new challenges. Provide open shelves where a variety of toys, objects, and books are always available Give just one or two new toys at a time. Call attention to specific objects or aspects in your surroundings. Talk about what is happening. Language linking is so important. Choose toys that the child can manipulate and see cause and effect happening before them, (examples; pots and pans, blocks, spoons, etc.) P- Play Children learn best when they are initiating their own learning through play. The best ways to guide children’s play are:

21. Q- Questioning Questions are a great way to get children thinking. Here are some ideas: • Solve problems together talking through your own questions. • When asking questions give children plenty of time to think and answer. • Let children act out or manipulate objects several times to try to answer any questions that they can’t seem to understand. • Encourage understanding.

22. Read,Read, Read • It is NEVER too early to read to your child. • Start with simple board books, move to picture books and then books with longer stories as your child gets older. • Take your child to the public library. Story-times for different aged children are available and there are great summer programs that are fun and FREE. http://www.parents.com, “9 Ways to Help Your Child’s Language Development”

23. Security A loving, safe home is the most important basic for all children. Children who feel safe and secure as toddlers are usually better learners later on. Children who feel secure are more likely to reach out to new experiences. Mediate stressors for your child as much as you can. Social Support Children need other people too who will mentor, encourage, guide, limit, and celebrate the experience of life. It is good to be mindful of who is influencing children, and “arrange the worlds of our children so they are exposed to the best and are safe from the worst.” Ryan& Bohlin, Building Character in Schools, 1999 S- Security & Social Support

24. T-Time Sufficient Time Enrichment is important, but there also needs to be TIME for “settling”, resting, and processing. “Enrichment is not about cramming in as much as possible! It is the whole package; avoiding harm, keeping stress down, giving some free quiet time daily and managing the activity and information so that it can be processed.” ( Eric Jensen, Enriching the Brain, 2006, p. 267)

25. U-Using the Mind Creatively • “The fullest development of human intelligence includes the ability to use one’s mind in creative ways.”(Healy, Failure to Connect p.163) • Creativity is of great value but it seems to be stifled by today’s software and videos. • One study of preschool children showed that use of a popular software program to teach reading actually reduced creativity scores. • Teachers of young children comment that “many children now have to be taught to play symbolically or pretend.

26. Visual development is one of the first areas that needs to be accomplished in order for children to be “ready” to read. Visual development must be adequate for focusing at the correct distance, distinguishing letters and words, moving from left to right, and keeping ones place. Children are whole-brained learners and their brains prefer that both hemispheres cooperate. Since any activity automatically puts both hemispheres of a child’s brain to work we can not teach just to one side of the brain. What we can do is help children use the strengths of both hemispheres to solve problems, learn, and create new ideas. V- Visual Development &W- Whole -Brained Whole-Brained Visual Development

27. X X-Out Unlimited Computer Use • The computer is actually more engrossing and potentially mind-dulling than the TV and it is not necessarily more educational. • Advertisers have grossly taken advantage of the spending -power controlled or influenced by children. All to the tune of $485 BILLION a year. • Children are exploited On-Line. Yet in one survey of children the majority responded that they trust their computers more than their parents. • Your example and leadership is very important! Monitor the software you allow your child to use and set a limit for screen time. The recommended limit for preschoolers is to spend no more than one hour of total screen time a day.

28. You • You, the parents, are the most important people in your childs’ lives!

29. Z- Zone of Proximal Development • The “zone of proximal development” is an area in a child’s learning that they haven’t quite reached, but it is attainable. • It is the gap between actual achievement and potential achievement when learning is primed to happen. • Good questioning meets children in their “zone of proximal development” in order to challenge their understanding and move them to more mature thinking.

30. Above All... • Remember that your child is an awesome gift! • Be an advocate for your child. • Be a learner along with your child.

31. References • Jensen, Eric, Enriching the Brain, 2006 • Ryan, Kevin & Bohlin, Karen E, Building Character in Schools, 1999 • Healy, Jean, Failure to Connect • Jensen, Eric, Teaching With the Brain in Mind, 2005.. • Power Point Presentations by Dr.Tammy Palowski, Francis Marion University, 2013/2014 • http://www.parents.com • http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/plast.html • http://www.parentmap.com/article/parent-to-parent-video-raising-moral-kids