Brain Facts about Children and Learning

•   The years between three and 10 are a time of rapid development of social, linguistic, cognitive and physical competencies, corresponding with dramatic neurological changes. Brain activity in children in this period is more than twice that of adults, and, although new synapses continue to be formed throughout life, never again will the brain be able to master new skills so readily or rebound from setbacks so easily.

•   At age 11, the brain begins to cut back extra connections, in a “use it or lose it” way, at a rapid rate. Connections that are used repeatedly in the early years become permanent; those that are not are eliminated.

•   Brain research confirms that children learn best in a psychologically safe environment. It indicates that emotional intelligence is the bedrock upon which to build other intelligences. It is also more closely linked to lifelong success than IQ is.

•   Research has demonstrated that emotions can speed up or inhibit the thinking process. Under conditions of high stress, the brain goes into “survival mode” and higher order thinking is impeded.
Adverse or traumatic events elevate the level of cortisol in the brain, and chronically high levels of cortisol alter the brain by making it vulnerable to processes that destroy brain cells responsible for thought and memory. Cortisol also reduces the number of connections in certain parts of the brain.

•   The brain is designed as a pattern detector; perceiving relationships and making connections are fundamental to the learning process. The brain resists learning isolated pieces of information (unconnected facts, things which make no sense, etc.). Children (and adults) learn best when they can actively make sense of their experience.

•   Effective teaching builds on the experience and knowledge that children bring to school. Teachers need to help children make connections between the known and unknown.

•   Effective teaching also enables children to use all their senses and intelligences. Music, drama and arts instruction have been linked to higher performance on achievement tests, as well as those examining creative thinking, art appreciation, reading, vocabulary and math.

•   It is important for children to be physically active in the classroom. Physical movement juices up the brain, feeding it nutriments in the form of glucose and increasing nerve connections – all of which make it easier for kids of all ages to learn.

 •  Generally speaking, the younger the child, the more important it is for active engagement with materials, peers and teachers in order for learning to take place.

From TEACHING READING LITERACY,
Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory

How the Brain Learns Best
Over the last 40 years we have learned more about the human brain than in the previous 400 years, and in the last 5 more than the previous 100. Educators and neuroscientists have been trying to put this knowledge to work through practical insights for the classroom. All learning is, of course, brain-based. Through a process of education, we are trying literally to change the brain.

Learning requires attention and attention is mediated by specific parts of the brain. Yet, neural systems fatigue quickly, actually within minutes. Within 3–5 minutes of sustained activity, neurons become “less responsive” and need a rest. They can recover within minutes, too, but when they are stimulated in a sustained way, they just are not as efficient. Neurons are like pianos, not organs; they respond to patterned and repetitive, rather than sustained, continuous, stimulation.
When a child listens to a fact: “George Washington was 6’4” tall” she or he uses one neural system (A). When given a concept related to that fact (“The average height of men during that period was only 5’4””) a slightly different, but functionally interconnected neural set (B) is used. Then, when she or he hears a vignette: “Washington, at the darkest moment in the Revolution, when his soldiers were deep in the despair of defeat, starving and freezing at Valley Forge, slowly rose to his full height and, using his dominant personality and towering height was able to motivate them to continue fighting,” yet other neural systems are activated (C & D). These interrelated systems are important for learning; indeed, students will learn more completely if they make “changes” (create memory) in all of the neural systems (A, B, C, and D). Facts are empty without being linked to context and concepts.

A child’s brain seeks novelty. In a familiar and safe environment, the brain looks for something new and interesting. If a child hears only factual information, he will fatigue within minutes. Only 4–8 minutes of pure factual input can be tolerated before the brain seeks other stimuli, either internal (daydreaming) or external (looking out the window). If the teacher is not providing that novelty, the brain will go elsewhere. Continuous presentations of facts, isolated concepts or nonstop anecdotes will all have a tiring effect – and the child will not learn as much, nor will she anticipate and enjoy learning.

The bob-and-weave lesson. The best presentation, for a teacher, the most engaging and effective teaching has these three elements. And it is important how these elements are put together. 
The most effective presentation must move back and forth through interrelated neural systems, weaving them together. These areas are usually interconnected, like a complete “workout” in a gym where we rotate from one station to another. Similarly, in teaching, it is most effective to work one neural area and then move on to another. Engage your students with a story to provide the context, and make sure it can touch the emotional parts of their brains. This will activate and prepare the cognitive parts of the brain for storing information. Information is easiest to digest when there is humor, empathy, sadness and fear – they work to make “dry” facts easier to swallow.
1. Give a fact or two.
2. Link these facts into related concepts.
3. Move back to the narrative to help connect the concept and the story.
4. Go back to another fact.
5. Reinforce the concepts.
6. Reconnect to the original story.
7. In and out, bob-and-weave, among facts, concepts and narrative.

Human beings are storytelling primates. We are curious and we love to learn. The challenge for each teacher is to find ways to engage the child and take advantage of the novelty-seeking property of the human brain to facilitate learning.

Dr. Bruce Perry,
Instructor magazine, Scholastic, Inc.

Brain-based Research for Teachers
“Learning is the brain’s primary function, its constant concern, and we become restless and frustrated if there is no learning to be done. We are all capable of huge and unsuspected learning accomplishments without effort.”

F. Smith,
Insult to Intelligence, 1986

Today, educators are suddenly interested in brain-based research. Teachers need to more fully understand the complexities involved in educating language students.

Memory and Emotion
Memory is not a simple skill. It is a process with several key steps:
1. There must be a sensory register for conscious and non-conscious stimuli;
2. Short-term memory occurs (usually in only 5–20 seconds);
3. Active processing and thinking must take place; and
4. Finally, information can pass into long-term memory.

There are four different pathways through which memories and information are retrieved. Our ability to recall often depends on which pathway we access, but each is important.
1. One pathway is procedural for repeated actions that become somewhat automatic. The more times you repeat an action, the more efficient your brain becomes.
2. Emotion is a trigger for remembering episodic memory.
3. Semantic memory is used most in the language classroom.
4. Sensory receptors act like a sponge and the conscious mind acts like a sieve – sorting out what is important.

Brain-based Principles for the Classroom
1. The brain is a parallel processor, capable of doing several things at one time. Thoughts, emotions, and imagination, as well as automated functions, operate simultaneously. Teaching should orchestrate the learner’s experience so that many different aspects of the brain’s operations can be addressed. (Learning Styles, Multiple Intelligences Theory)

2. The brain downshifts under threat. If students feel threatened, uncertain, afraid or intimidated, the brain doesn’t get enough glucose for cognitive functions such as clear thinking and problem-solving. Emotions are critical to learning and to memory. The classroom must be an emotionally positive experience.

3. The search for meaning occurs through Patterning. The meaningful categorization and organization of information is how the brain tries to make sense of events and stimuli in its environment. Individuals pattern differently from one another. When the brain’s natural tendency to construct meaning from patterns is exploited in the classroom, learning lessons becomes more like a real-life experience.
The task for teachers is to organize and present material in a way that allows the brain to create meaningful and relevant connections to extract the patterns. Whole Language Approach and Content-Based Learning both seek to develop problem-solving and critical-thinking skills this way. Models and graphic Organizers can help bring out patterns in texts.

4. The brain is meaning driven. The brain needs to make meaningful sense out of countless pieces of data. We cannot stop the brain’s natural process of seeking patterns. Each pattern that the brain discovers can be added to the learner’s perceptual map, allowing the brain to avoid a state of confusion or anxiety.
Teachers must create activities and materials that are meaningful. Students can master rote memorization, but they often become full of information yet starved for meaning. Unless information carries meaning for the students, they will not be able to use it.

5. Each brain is unique and should be assessed creatively. Teachers must be open to different interpretations and different ways of seeing information. Getting the correct answer is only part of the picture. Finding out what students think and know is also crucial. Students need greater choices and more diversity in instructional choices.
Teachers can address learner uniqueness and diversity by allowing learners to work together in groups to assess and evaluate their own learning. They should give learners opportunities to shape their own learning and practice self-assessment. Teachers should ask more thought-provoking questions – the better the quality of questions asked the more the brain is challenged to think. Teachers should have students make up their own questions and answer them.

6. Movement and exercise improve brain functioning. Aerobic exercise can improve thinking and learning. It also improves mental functioning by increasing blood and oxygen flow to the brain, which helps students think better. Moving students around the classroom and getting them involved in activities that require group work, going to the board, retrieving materials from various locations in the room, and rotating groups are all helpful. If possible, students should be able to get up on their own, move around, and stretch.

7. Brain growth is enriched by continual learning. Problem solving is to the brain what aerobic exercise is to the body. Brains stay younger, smarter, more alert, and more useful by working out with “mental weights”. Enrichment may come from different sources – positive and engaging social contact, high-challenge, low-stress activity, and life experiences that are novel and exciting.

Mary Ann Christison,
Forum magazine, April 2002

1. Which two points do you think might/will influence your approach to teaching?
2. Which findings would be the most difficult for you to implement? (either personally or institutionally)
3. Are there any findings which you dispute?
4. What do you think are the most valuable insights?