SUMMER IS HERE! : SUMMER BRAIN DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES FOR PRE-SCHOOLERS

The brain does not like to be bored and children will let you know that!! Summer is an opportunity for LOTS of family fun! The warm weather brings the chance to enjoy lots of learning opportunities outdoors. Even though we are in tough economic times, there are many ways to enjoy fun and cost free time together.

Up In The Air
Provide a blown up balloon for me to play with. Have me bat it in into the air and try to keep it from touching the ground.
----- My brain is developing the ability to better coordinate my visual skills with my advancing movement abilities.

Listening Walk
Take me on a “listening walk”. While we are out walking have me listen for and talk about all the sounds I hear. Ask, “Do you hear a bird, a car horn, the wind,” etc. After the walk have me draw a picture about what I heard.
----- My brain needs to learn to focus on specific sounds while other sounds are screened out. This helps me focus and will help me to hear the sounds in words when I learn to read.

Follow the Path
Using a piece of chalk outdoors, make a path of dots for me to follow. Ask me to step on the dots and suggest different ways for me to move; hopping, jumping and so on!
----- Movement activities help get more oxygen to my brain. My brain uses over 20% of my body’s nutrients and oxygen.

Ball of Fun
When outside, create a game of accuracy by having me toss a small ball into bowls or paper cups at various distances. Help me count the number of times I get the ball in the cup or bowl. Count in English then count in Spanish.
------ At this age I can count, but my mind does not understand the amounts that go with these numbers. My brain will start understanding what numbers mean when I have practice counting real objects.

Enjoy a wonderful summer helping your child’s brain develop while having lots of fun!

Adapted From: Play With Me While I’m Three and Let’s Learn More While I’m Four, by Deborah McNelis found at www.braininsightsonline.com

Looking for Child Care with Brain Development in Mind

The need for quality child care is frequently discussed and written about recently. (Thankfully!) However, why quality care is so important is not always fully understood. Knowledge of early brain development provides the answers. The following information can help parents ensure the care their child receives is quality care.

First as a caring parent, it is extremely important that you understand that 90% of your child's brain develops before kindergarten. It is the experiences your child has that primarily influences how the brain is wired. It has been found that child care professionals with higher levels of education often have more knowledge of overall child development. You need to ask about the education and training of the providers.

Relationships are critical to brain development. Loving interaction is what wires the brain best. Due to this, it is essential to look for child care that provides high numbers of teachers to the number of children. This allows the child care professional the time to provide the caring interaction and nurturing a child needs throughout the day. In addition, the brain does not like chaos. If the caregiver is responsible for too many children this may create too much stress for a child.

Children are born ready to learn and explore. Children's developing brains need fun, hands-on experiences. Learning is best when all of the senses are used through exploration of real objects. A child care setting needs to recognize and provide this type of environment for optimal learning.

Research has shown programs that consider the parents as partners in the child's development are the most effective. It is important that you feel welcome and included as a part of your child’s care and development.

Regular routines, a safe and healthy environment, nutrition, and sleep are all very important to the child's brain development as well. These are additional areas of inquiry as you look for quality care.

You are going to feel so much better about where you leave your child while at work, when you know the loving, fun, safe, and interactive care your precious child's brain needs is provided!

Photo by Anissa Thompson

CELEBRATE!— The Week of the Young Child – April 19 – 25

It is so terrific that the National Association for the Education of Young Children dedicates a week to the importance of the early childhood years! This week provides us the opportunity to realize how our society benefits from optimal development in the pre-school years.

This week highlights the knowledge gained from scientific research that demonstrates that the experiences young children receive in the first three years of life are crucial to brain development. These studies prove that brain development is determined by the daily environment and experiences, rather than genetics alone. This as so exciting to realize, it means we can easily ensure each child has a well developed brain!!

Our increasingly technically and socially complex society cannot afford to continue to allow large numbers of children to miss out on the positive experiences they need in infancy and early childhood; the costs of lost potential and increased rates of emotional and behavioral problems, are too high. Brain research show us what children need; we just need to guarantee that every child receives it!

Celebrate the Week of the Young Child by making a difference. Simple ideas to promote this week are to tell your friends, family, coworkers, and neighbors what you've learned about brain development, donate books or a game to a preschool program, contact your representative to encourage support of programs for children and families, read to a child waiting at a food pantry, or simply compliment a parent you observe having a positive interaction with their child.

Happy Week of the Young Child!

INTERACTION IS BEST FOR EARLY BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

I could not be more thrilled! There is an increase in the amount of information demonstrating the importance of play and interaction in the media recently!

An article printed in Health & Science on March 3rd titled, TV for Babies: Does It Help or Hurt? points out the value of interactive experiences.

The article supports the recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics for no television time for toddlers younger than 2. Two different studies on the effects of television on children’s development are discussed in this article. The researchers from both studies state, “TV exposure in babies younger than 2 doesn't do any good.”

Christakis, a researcher on this issue states, “if you want to stimulate your baby’s brain try simply playing with him.” In a recent study, Christakis showed that basic activities like playing with blocks, can improve an 18-month old’s language skills six months later.
Experts worry that time spent watching television and even baby designed DVDs will continue to replace what babies need most in the first months of life, which face time with human beings. “Every interaction with our child is meaningful,” says Christakis. “Time is precious in those early years, and the new born is watching you, and learning from everything you do.”

The goal of Brain Insights is to make the understanding of early brain development common knowledge! It is exciting to see the awareness increasing!

Brain Insights activity packets provide the type of ideas parents are looking for to easily provide fun interactive learning experiences in everyday life. For more information on these unique packets visit www.BrainInsightsonline.com

BRAIN DEVELOPMENT HAPPENS THROUGH FUN!

Isn't it great that learning doesn’t have to be serious? Scientific research proves the importance of play in early brain development! Watching this video clip demonstrates the valuable learning that can take place while have lots of fun. (You will probably have fun yourself just from watching this!)

This clip shows the valuable interactive experience this baby is having through simply ripping paper! It illustrates that to provide learning experiences a child does not need to have expensive, flashing toys. Many connections are made in this baby’s brain through a very fun and repeated activity that costs nothing.

Play and laughter activates the care and thinking areas of the brain. These important brain areas are strengthened by having these types of experiences often. It is apparent through watching this, the baby is learning. You can see, through repetition he learned what to expect before the paper was ripped.

WHY IS BRAIN DEVELOPMENT AWARENESS SO IMPORTANT?

The experiences young children receive in the first three years of life are crucial to brain development. When a child receives loving care and stimulation, connections are formed between brain cells. These connections physically wire the brain. It is primarily the early experiences that largely determine the strength and function of the brain's wiring system. Warm responsive parents, who cuddle and talk to their children and provide fun learning experiences, promote healthy brain development for their children.

Technology allows the study of the brain, like we've never seen before. Scientific research demonstrates that a child's early development is determined by his daily environment and experiences, rather than genetics alone. For us to provide the best for all children, we must all understand how a child's brain works and develops. It is critical that this information becomes common knowledge.

Our education system and entire society cannot afford to continue to allow large numbers of children to miss out on the positive experiences they need in infancy and early childhood; the costs in terms of lost potential and increasing rates of emotional and behavioral problems, are too high. Brain research show us what children need; our challenge is to ensure that every child receives it!

Photo by Anissa Thompson

HAPPY BRAIN AWARENESS WEEK!

Creating awareness of early brain development is so much fun! Through the increasing numbers of presentations I have been invited to do, I get the wonderful opportunity to share what I am finding people are VERY interested in learning. People are often amazed to realize that 85% of a child’s brain develops from birth to age three based primarily on the experiences in a child’s environment!

Throughout this week I am asking everyone that cares about young children to help create further awareness!! It is so important that everyone understands the fantastic opportunity we have to positively impact the development of young children’s brains.
All it takes is loving interactions and opportunities to play with the people in a child’s life!!

Imagine a world where this knowledge is applied for every child! What a difference it would make now and in the long term. We all benefit from children with well developed brains!!

This week start the habit of talking to people you work with, your neighbors, your family members, and even the person that cuts your hair about the importance of early brain development! Have fun!!

To do my part in creating awareness about early brain development, I will be posting a series of blogs regarding brain development research each day during Brain Awareness Week. To make sure you don’t miss out, subscribe to the blog. Also, during this week, I will be offering a 25% discount on brain development activity packets. Learn more about the packets at http://www.braininsightsonline.com/

Happy Brain Awareness Week!

Photo by Paulo Correa