What We Know About Learning & The Brain: The Foundation for Differentiation for Gifted Children

1. What We Know About Learning & The Brain:The Foundation for Differentiation for Gifted Children Richard Cash, Ed.D. www.nrichconsulting.com 952-447-7668

2. “We are now at a point where we must educate our children in what no one knew yesterday, and prepare our schools for what no one knows yet.”Margaret Mead R.Cash, Ed.D.

3. “The educator’s job is not to prepare kids to do well in school but to do well in life.”Elliot Eisner R.Cash, Ed.D.

4. Objectives: • Gain a better understanding of the basic structure of the brain and processing modes. • Develop strategies that apply the Four Principles of Brain-Based Learning to improve educational experiences for gifted, talented and creative children. • Share effective learning experiences to enhance cognitive and meta-cognitive growth of gifted, talented and creative children. R.Cash, Ed.D.

5. We are all natural-born learners • The brain knows how to learn • Most learning occurs in 4-6 stages • Motivation • Beginning practice • Advanced practice • Skillfulness • Refinement • Mastery • For learning to be successful, “natural-learning” opportunities need to be provided/expected • Getting from beginner to advanced stages= practice, effort, time, support, perseverance… Adapted from: We’re Born to Learn, by R. Smilkstein. Corwin Press, 2003 R.Cash, Ed.D.

6. How Do People Learn? • Think of one thing you are good at that you learned outside of school (hobby, sport, art, skill…). • Write down how you: • started learning it • then knowing it, • then “mastering” it. R.Cash, Ed.D.

7. 3 Findings of Learning Research • Students come to the classroom with preconceptions about how the world works. • To develop competence in an area of learning, students must have both a deep foundation of factual knowledge and a strong conceptual framework. Experts are more than just “smart.” • Strategies can be taught that allow students to monitor their understanding and progress in problem solving. • From: How people learn: Bridging research and practice by the National Research Council, 2003. R.Cash, Ed.D.

8. Four Principles of Brain-based Learning • Safe and non-threatening environment • Stimulating and varied input • Active, meaningful learning • Accurate feedback R.Cash, Ed.D.

9. The Basics of Brain-Based Learning EMOTION DRIVES ATTENTION DRIVES LEARNING R.Cash, Ed.D.

10. The Three Levels of the Brain • Brain Stem= Reptilian Brain • Controls the body’s involuntary system • All information pass through initially • Fight or flight • Mid Brain= Emotional Center • Applies emotional attention for long-term storage • “Relay” station • Under GREAT development during adolescents • Neocortex= Cognitive Processor • Higher order thinking • Only conscious portion--2% (98% of brain is unconscious) R.Cash, Ed.D.

11. The Mid-Brain • Cerebellum: Motor movement, basic procedural memory and rote memory. • Thalamus: Receptacle--collects the information and sends it out to the proper area. • Amygdala (almond): The emotional gate--Emotions are the unconscious series of events regulated by body and brain. Feelings occur when the cortex is aware of a bodily state and the brains reaction/read-out. • Hippocampus (seahorse): Switch board between short and long term memory--isn’t completely formed until age 2 or 3. R.Cash, Ed.D.

12. The Prefrontal Cortex • The association cortex: information is synthesized from inner and outer sensory worlds. • Critical for emotional self-regulation: evaluate and regulate the emotional impulses emanating from the lower centers of the brain. • “…the most common determiner of failure to self-regulate emotional responses is the lack of emotionally consistent parenting in the early years” (Siegle, 2000, as quoted in Wolfe, 2001). R.Cash, Ed.D.

13. Two Types of Cells • Neurons (string): Make up 10% of brain cells. They are the basic functional unit of the nervous system. These cells do not regenerate--you are born with the full compliment. • Glial (glue): Makes up the other 90% of brain cells. These cells DO reproduce. R.Cash, Ed.D.

14. Neural Efficiency • Repeated firings of neurons makes successive firing easier and, eventually, automatic=>memory is formed! • Over time-larger associations are created • Neural circuits associations to other circuits and speed of building new circuits= Neural Efficiency • “If an important aspect of intelligence is speed of learning, then it is likely that individuals born with a predisposition for developing neural circuitry rapidly are destined to be gifted in some way. (Sousa, 2003) R.Cash, Ed.D.

15. Important Facts • During the 9 months of fetal development there is a massive proliferation of neurons. They develop at the average rate of 250,000 per MINUTE! • In the cerebral cortex, the brain has its full complement of neurons at birth…approximately 100 billion. • At birth the brain weighs about one pound. By one year it has doubled in size and reaches 90% of adult size by age four. • In the adult brain there are at least one million billion connections between neurons…that’s one quadrillion! R.Cash, Ed.D.

16. Brain research and the young adolescent • Adolescent brains go through a period of circuit refinement, pruning unused connections and strengthening more heavily used synapses--predominant in the prefrontal cortex (critical to information synthesis) • Early adolescents’ brains are undergoing profound changes that are not only a necessary part of growing up, but also signal a shift in how children approach learning • Hippocampal volume increases with age for females while amygdala volume increases with age for males • Whatever connections are made during the teen years will hard wire the brain (i.e. music, sports, academics, laying on the couch) R.Cash, Ed.D.

17. Gender, competition, and stress: A caution! • Exposure to stress seems to have opposite effects on males and females: • Females: stress inhibits learning • Males: stress facilitates learning • For all students a physically and safe environment is essential: free from belittling and humiliation • Students must find it acceptable to make mistakes or take risks: teachers should not judge students by their mistakes-but by their successes R.Cash, Ed.D.

18. Rehearsal for long-term memory • Rote Rehearsal= remembering and storing information exactly as it is entered into working memory (factual) • Elaborative Rehearsal= remembering and storing information to associate new learning and to detect relationships (contextual) R.Cash, Ed.D.

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21. Four Principles of Brain-based Learning • Safe and non-threatening environment • Stimulating and varied input • Active, meaningful learning • Accurate feedback R.Cash, Ed.D.

22. Implications for the classroom • Hold student attention through sensorimotor experiences--teachers need to engage the senses and emotion throughout the entire unit of study • Use inquiry and problem based learning--encourage students to ask questions that interest them • Develop curriculum around essential questions R.Cash, Ed.D.

23. Implications for the classroom • Design project based units of study where students ask critical questions, and develop their own projects to answer those questions • Use simulations to involve students in understanding various points of view--court, legislatures, debate • Play music that links memory to specific learning tasks • Have students write reflectively every day to reiterate and consolidate learning R.Cash, Ed.D.

24. Implications for the classroom • Pose visual and work problems or puzzles to challenge thinking so that students learn there are many ways to solve a problem • Use physical challenges to solve problems and build collaboration • Involve students in real-life apprenticeships • Use peer collaboration or cooperative learning • Develop integrated curriculum that encourages students to raise issues and concerns and then weave those thematically into all disciplines R.Cash, Ed.D.

25. Implications for the classroom • Establish curriculum themes • Connect complex/challenging, REAL-world projects to students’ personal interests • Provide for choices • Use stories, myths, and metaphors (the brain loves patterns) • Provide multi-sensory representations (use of multiple learning styles) • Consider the physical surroundings R.Cash, Ed.D.

26. Implications for the classroom • Provide for social relationships and community to develop • Know where students are (ability, interests, life background, learning styles) and plan accordingly to take them to the next step • Provide water (the brain is 78% water!) • Limit processed sugar! R.Cash, Ed.D.

27. Implications for the classroom • Use elaborative rehearsal--the more senses used the more reliable the associations. These strategies include: • Paraphrasing--restating ideas • Selecting and note taking--deciding what is critical and noting • Predicting--predict what’s to come • Questioning--students generate questions • Summarizing--making connections to other areas • Creative thinkingstrategies--develops mental imagery & decision making • Higher level thinking--develops in-depth problem solving skills R.Cash, Ed.D.

28. Implications for the classroom • Assist learners in recognizing strengths and making the most of them, while at the same time recognizing weaknesses and finding ways to correct or compensate for them (Successful Intelligence). • Assist learners in adapting to, shaping, and selecting environments where they can achieve success (Practical Intelligence). • Allow students to encounter challenges and appropriate amounts of stress, to encourage divergent ways of knowing (too much/too little is NOT good). • Provide enriched environments to develop creative and critical thinking skills. R.Cash, Ed.D.

29. Implications for the classroom • Praise children on effort and hard work ->focus will be on learning goals and strategies for achievement and not on intelligence as a fixed trait that can not be developed or improved. R.Cash, Ed.D.

30. What do you do to teach for learning? What will you change? How is/are your classroom/ lessons designed to teach learning? What will change? Reflection R.Cash, Ed.D.

31. Resources • Costa, A.L. (Ed.) 2001. Developing minds: A resource book for teaching thinking. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Givens, B.K. 2001. Teaching to the brains natural learning systems. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Jensen, E. (2001). Arts with the brain in mind. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Jensen, E. (1997). Brain compatible strategies. The Brain Store, Inc. San Diego, CA. 800-325-4769 • Jensen, E. (2000). Brain-based learning. The Brain Store, Inc. San Diego, CA. 800-325-4769 • Jensen, E. (1998). Introduction to brain-compatible learning. The Brain Store, Inc. San Diego, CA. 800-325-4769 • Jensen, E. (1998). Teaching with the brain in mind. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Jensen, E. (1995). The learning brain. The Brain Store, Inc. San Diego, CA. 800-325-4769 • Mamchur, C. (1996). Cognitive type theory & learning style. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Marzano, R.J., Pickering, D.J. & Pollock, J.E. (2001). Classroom instruction that works. ASCD, www.ascd.org • The National Research Council, (2003). How people learn: Bridging research and practice. The National Academy Press. • Silver, H.F., Strong, R.W., Perini, M.J. (2000). So each may learn; Integrating learning styles and multiple intelligences. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Sousa, D.A. (2003). How the gifted brain learns. Corwin Press, Inc. Thousand Oaks, CA. 800-499-9774 • Sprenger,M. (1999). Learning & memory; The brain in action. ASCD, www.ascd.org • Sylwester, R.(2000). A biological brain in a cultural classroom. Corwin Press, Inc. Thousand Oaks, CA. 800-499-9774 • Wolfe, P. (2001). Brain matters: Translating research into classroom practice. ASCD, www.ascd.org R.Cash, Ed.D.