posted on March 17, 2011 15:14
Dear Highlanders, Families, and Friends,
Recently, 13 Lower School teachers attended a workshop on current brain research. Kenneth Wesson, the presenter, challenged the educators attending with the question, “If your job is to develop the mind, shouldn’t you know how the brain works?” Although there has been a significant amount of data to help us understand how the brain develops, grows, and changes, we are still in the early stages of research. Our teachers came back from the conference full of enthusiasm and ideas.
First and foremost they felt the conference was affirming one of the practices in which we are committed to at Lake Highland, that of teaching the whole child. I have included some of the facts shared with our faculty.
Art/Music/Physical Education
Brain research shows not only does the teaching of art, music, and movement enhance learning in specific disciplines such as math; but the teaching of these subjects early in the day also oxygenates the brain. Students then are better equipped to study longer, and more effectively into the afternoon.
Foreign Language
The ability to learn foreign languages diminishes during puberty, but if foreign language is taught in the early years and then not spoken for years, the knowledge will “come back” after this period. Also, learning one language early in a child’s development assists with learning multiple languages in future years.
Television/Video Games
Activities in the classroom should change every 22 minutes. Children who have been exposed to many hours of television have shorter attention spans. Children’s programming meets the average attention span of 2.5 minutes, but does not allow the children to develop longer attention spans.
Emory University completed a study on bullying and found children who have spent more time with TV or video games did not learn the ability to read facial cues and therefore, often demonstrated excessive physical aggression.
Children who play video games for long lengths of time, have more trouble falling asleep because of the way the brain is stimulated by the game.
Language
In most people, the left hemisphere of the brain is slightly larger than the right hemisphere. As a brain approaches symmetry, language suffers. Brain symmetry is more common in males and language deficiencies in males become evident in the classroom. On the average, males speak 2000 words a day and females speak 7000 words.
Math
Math should be taught as patterns first, then numbers. Children who are good at hearing, understanding and story telling tend to perform better in math. There is a high correlation between story telling and the ability to think abstractly. Learning to play a musical instrument also helps with success in math.
Hydration/Nutrition
The brain is 80-85% water. If an individual experiences a 2% dehydration a 20% decrease in energy level results. Children need whole fruits, nuts and fruit juice to maximize brain efficiency.
The Brain Research workshop is only one example of the on-going professional development which is encouraged at Lake Highland. This continued education not only ensures greater educational experiences for your child, but also supports the Lake Highland mission which honors lifelong learning.
Sincerely,
Debbie DeLoach
Lower School Director