Since strong brain connections are made through repetition, I am going to say it again..... young brains develop best through play! Brain pathways for learning are made through being read to, imaginative and self-directed play, positive interactions with caring adults, outdoor play with other children, and exploring real objects.
I am extremely enthused by this wonderful article from the New York Times, The Movement to Restore Children's Play Gains Momentum. Most of the information shared in this article is the same message I share when doing brain presentations on, "Learning About Learning". So, it is so exciting for me to see the emphasis on the benefits of play increasing! It is thrilling to frequently become aware of new programs, projects, and initiatives to promote play. This article shares the amazing response to one effort:
"To try to reach more parents, a coalition called Play for Tomorrow this fall staged what amounted to a giant play date in Central Park. The event, known as the Ultimate Block Party, featured games like I Spy, mounds of Play-Doh, sidewalk chalk, building blocks, puzzles and more. The National Science Foundation was closely involved, advising organizers — and emphasizing to parents — the science and the educational value behind each of the carefully chosen activities. Organizers were hoping to attract 10,000 people to the event. They got more than 50,000."
Additionally, it is wonderful to know that the value and science behind each activity was shared with parents. In my experience adults benefit from understanding the way in which early experiences impact brain connections. It is helpful and reassuring to realize how the interactions or activities children are engaged in support neural development.
One of the many reasons I developed Brain Development Activity Packets is to promote the type of play mentioned in this article. Busy parents need ideas right on hand to encourage fun activities through out the day, I am so anxious for the day when children's days are primarily filled with play. Let's do all we can to make that day come soon!!
I continuously promote how critical it is for children have the opportunity to play and explore outdoors. Increasing research demonstrates the benefits nature and playing outdoors has on the developing brain. For example, studies reveal that children regularly exposed to green spaces for play have better motor coordination, fewer attention-deficit disorders, and have more ability to concentrate.
Additionally, not only does science show us the benefits gained from time outdoors, but numerous sources are revealing the detrimental impacts the lack of nature plays.
With this focus I am thrilled to share a guest post from Sue Atkins *.
Sue states: I am passionate about making life with children easier and more rewarding, and I am extremely enthusiastic about helping you to bring up happy, confident, well-balanced adults; today's children - tomorrow's future.
This article written by Sue Atkins, was posted yesterday on the blog, Love Outdoor Play, in support of the campaign by the same name. You can find out more information about the campaign here.
Sue Atkins: I Love Outdoor Play Because........
Outdoor play, climbing trees and riding bikes
I used to love taking my kids to the park when they were young and watching them run off to chase our dogs, jump, hide, shout, whistle, climb and explore the natural world.
Wrapped up warm with jumpers and wellies they always arrived back home with rosy cheeks, a healthy glow and a big smile.
Playgrounds are places where children’s play can take off and flourish.
Purpose of outdoor play
I think that there are two fundamental reasons why outdoor play is critical for young children.
Firstly, children develop their fine and gross motor gross skills through playing outside, as well as their dexterity and balance, all through exploring and risk-taking and having fun in the fresh air.
Secondly, children of today are growing up with so much technology, excessive TV and computer use that playing outside is really important and mustn’t be sidelined or lost, because it develops a child’s imagination, their physical stamina as well as keeping them fit.
Enjoyment of the outdoors
Ask any adult about what they loved to play as a child and you will bring back happy memories of making mud pies, jumping in puddles or climbing up trees.
Outdoor play is one of the things that characterises childhood.
Children need opportunities to explore, experiment, manipulate, explore, change, marvel, discover, practice, dam up, push their limits, yell, sing, and create.
Learning about the world
Young children learn lots of things about the world from playing outside:
How snow sounds when you pad about on it when it has first fallen.
How ice sounds when you crunch over it.
How autumn leaves feel and sound when you run through them on a sunny October day.
They learn to explore the natural world by trying to stand sticks in sand.
They learn how plants grow.
How mud feels.
How it feels to run down a hill.
How fast they can go on their bike with the wind blowing in their face.
Learning outside is fun !
And through playing kids are learning about maths, science, ecology, gardening, nature, birds, mini beasts as well as the feel of the seasons, local weather and how to entertain and occupy themselves easily and enjoyably.
Learning about self and the environment
To learn about their own physical and emotional capabilities, children must push their limits.
How high can I swing?
Do I dare to go down this big slide?
How high can I climb I wonder?
I wonder if I can go down the slide headfirst?
To learn about the physical world, the child must experiment with the physical world.
Letting of steam
As a former Deputy Head and class teacher for 22 years I found kids needed to “let off some steam” regularly from the sitting and listening mode of a classroom and going outside to play was a very important part of helping them concentrate and learn both in and out of the classroom.
Health
Also surveys have shown that children who learn to enjoy the outdoors have a much higher likelihood of becoming adults who enjoy hiking, gardening, jogging, bicycling, golf, tennis or other outdoor activities.
Also I think playing and being active plays an important role in keeping children from obesity.
Allowing children to be children
So if you are a stressed out, tired and tense adult – get yourself and your kids down to the park to play this weekend! Join in with the running, jumping, climbing, swinging, racing, yelling, rolling, hiding, and making a big mess – let your BIG KID come out – you’ll laugh, release tension, have fun, get some exercise and relax !
You’ll also build some memories that will last all your lifetimes!
Isn’t what childhood is all about?
If you are interested in promoting or providing outdoor learning you will enjoy knowing about : Naturally Developing Brains
. * Sue Atkins is a Parenting Expert who offers practical guidance for bringing up happy, confident, well behaved children. She is also the author of “Raising Happy Children for Dummies” one in the black and yellow series published worldwide and the highly acclaimed Parenting Made Easy CDs. She regularly appears on BBC Breakfast and The Jeremy Vine Show on BBC Radio 2 and her parenting articles are published all over the world.
Playing and pretending helps children develop critical cognitive skills. Through play children develop skills called, executive function. The main aspect of this higher level brain skill is the ability to self-regulate. When this area of the brain is well developed, children are able to control their emotions and behavior, and are better able to resist impulses, and have a greater amount of self-control.
Self-regulation is a necessary skill for success in life. Children need unstructured play time to develop these abilities. Sadly, most children spend more time, watching television, playing video games, attending academic focused programs or adult directed lessons. It is much more beneficial to be playing with friends outdoors, creating with various materials, building with blocks or playing make-believe.
"Through play, children learn to take turns, delay gratification, negotiate conflicts, solve problems, share goals, acquire flexibility, and live with disappointment. By allowing children to imagine walking in another person's shoes, imaginative play also seeds the development of empathy, a key ingredient for intellectual and social-emotional success.
The real "readiness" skills that make for an academically successful kindergartener or college student have as much to do with emotional intelligence as they do with academic preparation. Kindergartners need to know not just sight words and lower case letters, but how to search for meaning. The same is true of 18-year-olds.
As admissions officers at selective colleges like to say, an entire freshman class could be filled with students with perfect grades and test scores. But academic achievement in college requires readiness skills that transcend mere book learning. It requires the ability to engage actively with people and ideas. In short, it requires a deep connection with the world.
For a five year-old, this connection begins and ends with the creating, questioning, imitating, dreaming, and sharing that characterize play. When we deny young children play, we are denying them the right to understand the world. By the time they get to college, we will have denied them the opportunity to fix the world too."
For extremely easy ways to ensure children get the play their growing brains need even during your busy everyday life, get the unique Brain Development Activity Packets to have fun ideas right on hand! www.BrainInsightsonline.com
I am thrilled to share a guest blog today. Janet Lansbury is a beautiful writer. Through her blog posts she shares wonderful stories, and valuable information for the benefit of anyone who cares about young children.
Janet states,"Parenting is definitely the hardest, most rewarding job I’ve ever had and has led to even more joy helping other parents. I hope my adventures as a parent and teacher, and whatever wisdom I’ve gained along the way, will help you, too."
It is my opinion that she succeeds in helping many through every piece she posts! It is my hope that you will enjoy this one.
You’re off and writing. You’ve cracked the blank page and the keyboard’s clicking. Time melts away, as does the chirping bird, the sound of distant traffic, the tick of the clock, and the discomfort of the broken wicker desk chair you’ve been meaning to replace for months. Suddenly the doorbell jars you. It’s a neighbor friend. She snaps you out of ‘flow’, and back into reality. You love her dearly, but your concentration is broken nonetheless… Babies experience these interruptions all the time.
We don’t think twice about interrupting infants and toddlers, mostly because we don’t think to value what they are doing. At the same time, we want our children to be learners and achievers. We want them to be able to listen patiently in the classroom and have the tenacity to solve difficult problems and pursue their dreams. We want ‘paying attention’ to come naturally, learning skills to come joyfully and easily. The first years of life are formative for developing focus and concentration.
Here are 7 ways to foster a long attention span:
1) Minimal entertainment and stimulation. Babies are creatures of habit and can become accustomed to expect entertainment rather than doing what comes naturally — occupying themselves with their surroundings. Constant stimulation leads to an exhausted parent and an easily bored, over-stimulated child. Infant expert Magda Gerber taught that babies do not naturally become bored. Parents do. Babies are entranced by the way their bodies can move, and the sights, sounds, smells, nooks and crannies of life that we adults take for granted. They need uninterrupted time to experience those things and assimilate them.
2) No TV or videos. TV and videos are the most drastic way to undermine your child’s developing attention span because they engage and overwhelm a child’s attention rather than encouraging the child to actively flex his focus muscle. Imagine the powerful pull of the TV screen in a restaurant. You can be sitting with the most fascinating people in the world, and still you find your eyes drawn to the damn TV. (For an in-depth study on the TV issue, I highly recommend Endangered Minds: Why Children Don’t Think - And What We Can Do About It, by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D.)
3) A safe, cozy “YES” place. In order to remain occupied for extended periods of time, a baby must have a safe place. This can begin with a bassinet or crib, and grow with the baby to be a playpen, and finally a cordoned-off or gated play area. A too large area where there are unsafe objects available to a child is not the relaxed environment the baby needs for extensive concentration. Babies cannot play for long periods of time when they are distracted by the tension of parents worried about safety and the interruption of “NOs”.
4) Simple, open-ended toys and objects. Unless distracted, babies are inclined to examine every inch of a simple object, like the pattern on a cloth napkin, and then experiment, i.e. wave it, mouth it, place it over their faces, and scrunch it into a ball. They are apt to tire of, or become over-stimulated by objects that they either cannot comprehend (like rattles and other mysterious noisemakers) or toys that they passively watch, listen to, and have a single function: like musical mobiles or wind-up toys. Those toys grab the child’s attention rather than strengthening his ability to actively focus and investigate, similar to the way TV and videos do.
5) Observe. And don’t interrupt. Observing the way our babies choose to spend their time makes us realize that they are not just lying there, but actually doing something. That something might be gazing towards a window, at the ceiling fan, or grasping at dust particles in the sunlight. Every time we interrupt our baby’s musings we discourage his concentration. When we observe we can see when there is a break in the action, i.e. the baby averts his gaze from the wiffle ball he was prodding with his fingers and turns to look at us. We can then ask to pick him up for a diaper change without diverting his attention and interfering with his train of thought.
6) Baby gets to choose. Simple fact: children are more interested in the things they choose than the things we choose for them. Therefore, allowing a baby to choose what to do in his play environment rather than directing him to our choice of activity (a learning game, puzzle or flash card) will better engage his interest, focus and heightened concentration. Children who are given plenty of opportunities to focus for extended periods of time on activities they choose are better able to pay attention in situations later (like school) where activities are adult-prescribed.
7) Don’t encourage distraction. It is common practice to distract a baby with a toy on the changing table to “get the job done.” But this trains babies to NOT pay attention. Diaper changes, baths, and feedings are not dull, unpleasant chores for babies. Babies are interested in all aspects of their lives. They want to be included in each step of a task that involves them and be invited to participate as much as they are able. When we teach a baby that he should not pay attention to activities he’s an integral part of, how do we then expect him to develop a healthy attention span?
The ability to spend extended periods of time delving deeply, seeking greater understanding of an object or situation, can be developed and strengthened like a muscle. I don’t pretend to be a PhD, but common sense tells me that a home environment conducive to focus and attention can have a positive impact on – and maybe even prevent — some attention deficit disorders.
Focus is power. A long attention span is essential for creative, athletic and academic achievement. Attentive listeners make the best friends, spouses and parents.
So next time you check on your baby, tiptoe in and peek before saying, “Hello.” Babies relish their “flow” time, too.
The video below (also posted in Infant Play – Great Minds At Work) demonstrates the positive effect that uninterrupted infant play can have on a child’s focus and attention span at age 2.
Due to the many myths that exist on the topic of early brain development, I am dedicating this week to sharing the realities of what children need. Each day throughout the week, one myth will be clarified. It is my hope that we can quickly make truth common knowledge.
Myth #4: Infants and Toddlers should be given skim milk to avoid obesity.
Truth: Nature provides all that the brain needs through breast milk. A mother's milk includes DHA which is essential to optimal cognitive and visual function. It is important when using infant formula to ensure it is fortified with DHA.
When a toddler is transitioned to cow's milk, whole milk is best. Toddlers need fat for nerve development. Myelin is the protective coating that covers communicating neurons. Myelin is very important for brain health. It helps the impulses between nerves travel faster. This insulating sheath is composed of 30% protein and 70% fat.
Zero to Three states the following:
"Because of the rapid pace of myelination in early life, children need a high level of fat in their diets--some 50 percent of their total calories--until about two years of age. Babies should receive most of this fat from breast milk or formula in the first year of life, and breastmilk remains an excellent source of liquid nutrition into the toddler years. However, whole cow's milk can be introduced after the first birthday, and provides an excellent source of both fat and protein for toddlers in the second year."
The bottom line: For the first 12 months a baby needs breast milk or infant formula with DHA. When a child is transitioned to cows milk the brain benefits most from the fat that whole milk provides.
Due to the many myths that exist on the topic of early brain development, I am dedicating this week to sharing the realities of what children need. Each day throughout the week, one myth will be clarified. It is my hope that we can quickly make truth common knowledge.
Myth #3: A Child is "spoiled" by responding to their cries and meeting their needs.
Truth: Meeting a child's needs is the opposite of spoiling. Through repeatedly and consistently meeting a baby's physical and emotional needs, the baby is calmed and feels safe. Over time the baby begins to learn what to expect due to these repeated positive experiences. Having an attuned caregiver who predictably meets a baby's emotional needs leads to the ability to process emotions, to delay gratification, to have empathy for others, and to form healthy relationships.
The bottom line: Healthy emotional development and the basis for relationships later in life begins through having the cycle of needs expressed and met.
Dr. Bruce Perry explains how responding to a babies needs leads to self regulation and healthy emotional development:
"The capacity for self-regulation matures as we grow. The first time your baby felt hunger, he felt discomfort, then distress, and then he cried. You responded. And after many cycles of hunger, discomfort, distress, response, and satisfaction, your baby learned that this feeling of discomfort, even distress, will soon pass. You helped him build the capacity to put a moment between the impulse and the action. With this ability, he will eventually learn to take time to think, plan, and come up with an appropriate response to a challenge.
As young children learn to read and respond appropriately to these inner cues, they become much more capable of tolerating early signs of discomfort and distress. When your child learns to tolerate some anxiety, she will be much less reactive and impulsive. This allows her to feel more comfortable and act more mature when faced with the inevitable emotional, social, and cognitive challenges of development."
You can read a full article on this topic by Dr. Perry here .
Due to the many myths that exist on the topic of early brain development, I am dedicating this week to sharing the realities of what children need. Each day throughout the week, one myth will be clarified. It is my hope that we can quickly make truth common knowledge.
Myth #2: Taking a child to many classes and scheduled activities will make a child smarter.
Truth: While the brain does like to be stimulated and does not like boredom a child does not need or benefit from too many classes. The brain needs unstructured time to explore, to try new things, imagine, build, run freely, and just play. The higher "thinking areas" of the brain are enhanced through self directed activities. In fact creativity comes from a relaxed state not through a structured environment. When children are over scheduled, they miss the chance to use their imagination and learn skills through discovery.
The bottom line: For optimal brain development a child needs unstructured time to play.
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