Brain Development

& Function

Rylee Knips

To the educators of the world

It is our responsibility to understand the next generation

in order to teach the next generation. If we want to
reach the next generation, we must understand the
brain, its development and function, and the people
the brain belongs to. Please explore this brochure and
ten important aspects of the brain that may help you to
understand the next generation and relate it to
educational practice.
 1. The importance
of relationships
Our brains development of
neural connections
depends on the
connections we make with
other humans. We are very
social creatures, and we
should emphasize the
importance of
collaboration in our schools.
Relationships not only teach
children how to feel and
deal with their emotions,
they teach children what it
means to contribute to a
community. By building
relationships with our youth,
we are able to model
respectable behaviors and
proper communication
skills.
(Siegel, 8 9 33)
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(Teacher and Student, n.d.)
2. Brain Plasticity
A brain may not necessarily be
plastic, but it is definitely able to
change its shape in a way that a
plastic would. Especially during a
childs younger years, the brain is
able to connect its neural networks
easily. Through experience and
repetition, a child learns. Since
children are more susceptible to
learning this way, we should
implement a curriculum that focuses
on real world experiences.
(Siegel, 24)
1

Memory

(Empathy, n.d.)

3. Past events 4. Emotion and Memory

effect future events
Children have an easier time
remembering events and information
As kids are going through experiences,
they are creating long-term memories. when it is linked to emotion. It is much
After these long-term memories are
easier to remember the significance of
created, students will think of situations
in the same way until this new way of Shakespeares words, To be, or not to
thinking is altered. This is a change in a
be from Hamlet because we understand
childs perspective of the world they
live in. Until this perspective is altered, that Hamlet is deciding whether or not to
children will connect present and
take his life. We relate to his words on an
future events to ones that they have
experienced in the past. If the ate emotional level, feeling his pain.
broccoli and hated it, then they will
However, we dont remember his line,
avoid it in the future. This is important to
consider as an educator because if a Two houses, both alike in dignity, in fair
child has a poor learning experience in
Verona, where we lay our scene from
the beginning of his school career,
then he will have a negative attitude the beginning of Romeo and Juliet since
towards learning until this point of view
is changed. it doesnt mean much to us on a personal
level. Teachers should teach students to
(Siegel, 46 48 49)
empathize with work to make it more
meaningful and generalizable.

(Seigel, 72 73 74)

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5. Memory
and Groups
We have learned so far that
experiences can affect
memory and that emotions
can affect memory, so just
think of what can happen if
we combine the two!
Working with others greatly
helps students memorize
pieces of knowledge that
can be spoken about. The
students are able to listen to
each other and teach one
another with their own
language. This helps a
students learning go
beyond a desk and a lecture
and enter a new area of
experience of working with
the minds of those around
him. Group-work should be
used in our schools
curriculum to help promote
this way of learning.
6. Stress
Although we said that emotional experiences
help memory, this can be false. The amount of
stress in a childs life can be very influential on
a childs learning. If a child has a low amount
of stress, the learning is unaffected. If a child
has a medium amount of stress, the child has
an easier time learning material. However, a
large amount of stress in a childs life can be
extremely detrimental to a childs learning. In
fact, large amounts of stress can actually
damage the part of the brain that creates
long-term memories. Stress can come from
many different areas of a childs life. They
might feel overwhelmed by the classroom or
have problems at home that carry over to the
classroom. It is important to know, as
educators, how much stress our students are
under. We dont want them bored, but we
dont want to overwhelm them either. This can
be achieved by creating relationships with
students and their families to learn their habits
and situations.
(Siegel, 74 75 76 77)

(Siegel, 69 71)
(Stress, n.d.)

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 7. Attachment and
Shaping the Brain
Attachment is very important
when it comes to shaping how
children learn. As educators, we
must realize that, especially for the
infant and young child,
attachment relationships are
important factors in the childs
environment that influences their
learning. For teaching younger
students, the teacher should take
on more of a caregiving role. This
will give the child a positive
experience and will encourage
future learning.
(Attachment, n.d.)
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8. Experience and Mirror Neurons
Mirror neurons are cells in our brain that allow
us to empathize with other people. They are
in a system that learns from experience. This is
the part of learning that allows children to
understand how others are feeling. This system
is important to educators because it is not
normally a part of the curriculum. Educators
must go out of their way to set up modeling
to give a child experiences that will help their
mirror neuron system grow.
(Siegel, 164 165 166)
9. Understanding
Emotion
Schools often times find labeling
mathematical proportions more important
than labeling emotions. It is important as
educators to remember that we are
teaching students more than the three Rs.
We are teaching them not only how to be
scholars, but how to be people as well.
Being able to keep their emotions organized
will allow a child to keep the structure of
their lives organized as well. They will then
know how to deal will stress, anger, jealousy,
and sadness, and will be able to celebrate
happiness. Helping students understand their
emotions increases their quality of life.
 10.Disorganized and Disoriented Attachment
Children with disorganized/disoriented attachment styles are high in
avoidance. Although this mainly effects parents, this is important in
schools because of the effects of this attachment style later in life,
whether it be emotional, social, or cognitive impairments. Because
their attachment style is disorganized, they never learn organization in
the way it is needed for emotion, cognition, or social situations. The
point to this section is to show that some kids come into school with a
disadvantage. If educators continue to reward the advantaged while
the disadvantaged fall behind, the gap between the two groups will
grow larger and larger as the children age.

(Siegel, 134 135 136)

Bibliography
Attachment. (n.d.). Attachment Styles Throughout Life [Photograph]. Retrieved on March 5, 2014.
Retrieved from http://blog.lib.umn.edu/meriw007/psy_1001/2011/11/

Empathy. (n.d.). Charter for Compassion [Photograph]. Retrieved on March 5.

Retrieved from http://charterforcompassion.org/node/6322

Teacher and Student. (n.d.). Wauwatosa Public Library [Photograph]. Retrieved on March 5, 2014.
Retrieved from http://wauwatosalibrary.org/childrens/about/teachers.cfm

Siegel, Daniel J. (2012). The Developing Mind: Mind, Brain, and Relationships: The Interpersonal
Neurobiological Perspective. Memory. Attachment. Emotion.

Stress. (n.d.). Speech Language Pathology in the Schools [Photograph]. Retrieved on March 5, 2014.
Retrieved from http://www5.esc13.net/thescoop/speech/2011/04/28/stressed-out-here-are-
some-things-to-try/