Power up your child's brain
By Sameh Fahmy
Nashville Tennessean
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| Gannett News Service |
But that's not to say you can't boost your kid's brain power.
"I would define boosting brain power as essentially maximizing a child's potential for learning and understanding," says Stephen Camarata, deputy director of the Kennedy Center for Research on Development and Disabilities at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.
With school back in session, we asked Camarata and other experts for tips that might make learning a little easier for your child.
Here are a few:
Exercise
A lack of exercise is at least partly to blame for the epidemic of obesity that we keep hearing about, but research suggests that a sedentary lifestyle can also make children inattentive.
"We've had a number of studies show that when a child exercises for even brief periods of time, that for 15 minutes to a half-hour after the exercise, they actually have a higher attention level," Camarata says.
Exercise helps in two ways: It triggers the release of brain chemicals called endorphins, which has a calming effect, and increases activity in the part of the brain that's associated with learning and memory. You don't need to make your children lift weights or do anything intense, however, Camarata says. Just allowing them to play outside should do the trick.
Eat smart
Dr. Stephen Reisman, director of the Mind-Body Medical Center in Nashville, says parents shouldn't overlook the role good nutrition has in learning.
"Anything that affects general body chemistry will affect brain chemistry," he says.
The general idea is to feed your child a diet that's rich in protein, fruits and vegetables while avoiding caffeine, sugar and fried and fatty "junk" foods, he says.
Proteins supply the body with amino acids used to make brain chemicals. Fruits and vegetables provide a variety of vitamins and minerals. Caffeine and sugar have obvious destabilizing effects on a child's attention.
Reisman says the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish also can help boost brain power by supplying the brain with the raw materials for the fatty sheaths that line nervous-system tissue and work like insulation around an electrical wire.
Sarah White, executive director for school nutrition for the Tennessee Department of Education, urges parents to feed their children a nutritious breakfast. "If a child comes to school hungry, he can't concentrate," White says.
Research backs that up. Studies have found that children who eat breakfast do better academically, pay more attention and spend less time in the principal's office.
Imagine a better brain
Camarata, a father of seven, is convinced that encouraging children to imagine helps them build a better brain.
Think about it: When children are imagining, they are actively creating visual imagery and going through scenarios in their minds. Scans that watch the brain as it's working show that the parts of one's brain that are involved in memory light up when people are imagining.
When your kid is watching the tube or playing video games, he or she is passively absorbing information and doesn't get that stimulating effect.
Make it meaningful
Who can honestly say that they've never sat in a class and wondered, "How could this information possibly be used in my life?"
Camarata says parents can make learning easier by helping children see how new information is relevant to their lives and interests.
A high schooler might struggle with Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," for example, but ask them to find a modern-day equivalent. What if one of the Bush daughters was in love with Al Gore's son, for example.
Engage the youngsters
If your child sees a large spider web outside the window and says, "come look at this" then Camarata says you have what's called a teachable moment.
You could use this moment to:
- Pick up a broom and kill the spider.
- Hand your child a book on spiders.
- Ask your child a question such as, "Why do you think the spider is building the web there?"
Camarata recommends the latter, which he did when his 7-year-old daughter asked about the spider that set up camp near their window. She was eventually able to reason that the spider built its web near the light, which attracts moths and other insects and makes that spot prime real estate.
