Brain-Based Learning: Focus on Exceptionalities

Hosted by: Denise Collins, Ph.D.Peggy Semingson, Ph.D.Amber L. Brown, Ed.D.

University of Texas at ARLINGTONDept. of Curriculum and InstructionNew teacher WEBINAR: Fall ‘14

Recordings will be available of webinars. No names will be visible in the recordings.

The recording will be available on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/utanewteachers

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2014 1:00-2:00 PM, CST

These are our opinions and suggestions!

The opinions of each the presenters in the series are their own individual viewpoints and do not necessarily reflect the views of UT Arlington.

Our goal is for you to hear a variety of viewpoints to help support you in your first years of teaching! We have been down the road you are going!

• Support• Respect• Dialogue• Sharing

MISSION STATEMENT:Teacher Induction Project: Building Digital Community:

The purpose of the Teacher Induction Project is to build "digital community" for current students and alumni of the department as well as new teachers beyond UT Arlington in the global community.

• Open-access/mobile access• Web 2.0• “Real-world” topics and advice for teachers

Recordings are accessible via the blog and Facebook page

Archive/Social Media:

YouTube [video]: http://www.youtube.com/utanewteachers Slideshare [PowerPoints]http://www.slideshare.net/utanewteachers

Facebook Page [interaction/updates]: https://www.facebook.com/UTANewTeacherProject

SUMMER 2014!JOIN US!

Upcoming Events

• November 1, 2014 Webinar• Topic: Understanding Autism. Speaker to be announced.• • November 22, 2014 Webinar• Topic: Demonstration of Zeno, the robot intervention for autistic

children.• Book Club discussion on "The Autistic Brian" by Temple Grandin. Read

the book prior to the webinar.

Tips: Logistics/Technical

To maximize learning & dialogue• Ask questions along the way. •Main Q/A at the end.•Make a list of “Things to Google” later.• Use chat window often. •We will check it throughout it and respond

in “real time” as we can.

• Thanks for joining us! Please use the marker/pen tool to mark a small x below where you are at. You can also type it in the chat window

WHERE WE ARE NOW:Use the pen tool to mark your location

Poll question: • Where are you in your teaching career? • Select A-E Voting is optional! We will display the results!

• The drop down polling area is in the participants window next to the “hand” tool.

I am currently a:

• A. Pre-service teacher• B. 1st-3rd year teacher & UTA graduate• C. 1st-3rd year teacher & non-UTA graduate• D. 4th year+ teacher• E. Faculty or none of the above

Overview of the text tool: type a sentence about teaching and learning in the box below using the text tool.

Getting ready to learn: What do you know about the brain and learning?

Bio: Denise Collins, Ph.D.• Texas Woman's University,

PhD, Child Development

• Director, Office of Professional Development, The University of Texas at Arlington

Our Brains

• Understanding exceptionalities requires a basic understanding of how the brain works.

• We will focus on exceptionalities in future webinars.

• This webinar is designed to better understand the developing brain.

Why learn about brains?• Type at least one

response to the following question in the chat window:• Why do you think it is

important for teachers to understand how the brain works?

Why learn about brains?• If we understand the

needs of the child, and how the brain develops, we will know how to create a respectful, nurturing, environment.• The child stays attuned

and learns, the teacher can focus on increasing learning rather than guidance issues.

Brain Integration: the Ultimate Goal

• Children need to gain the ability to:• stop and start

themselves• stay attuned to their

emotions • focus on learning

= Self Regulation

The brain is always looking for answers.

• What is this?• Type your responses in the chat window.

• Two children, wearing party hats, walking behind a wall.

• If you weren’t told the answer you brains may continue to think about the question.

Answer:

Wolff, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia

All Brains have:

• Prefrontal Cortex• An Amygdala• A Hippocampus

• Yet all of our brains perceive things differently.

What is their basic role?

Amygdala = the security guard

Hippocampus = the memory keeper• \

Prefrontal Cortex = leader

The Brain Develops:

From the base to the top.

The Brain Develops:

From the back to the front.

The Brain Develops:

From the Right to the Left.

Some Brain Facts

• The Right Hemisphere is the emotional tsunami.• The Left Hemisphere is the emotional desert. It

focuses on logic.• The Hippocampus forms around 18 mos. It takes

the emotional data and combines it with experiences for explicit memories. • The Prefrontal Cortex is still developing at age

25-27 (remember it is the leader)

The Brain NeedsIntegration through experiences

Rigid

ity

Chao

s

Boat

Let’s watch Dan Siegel

•Mindfulness and Neural Integration: Daniel Siegel, MD • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiyaSr5aeho

• As you watch this video, be prepared to share one new thing you learned AND one way you can apply the things he says to your teaching.

References

• How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character by Paul Tough

• The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind by Daniel Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson

• The MindUP Curriculum: Grades PreK-2: Brain-Focused Strategies for Learning-and Living by The Hawn Foundation

UTA New Teacher Book Club• The Autistic Brain by Temple Grandin

• When Temple Grandin was born in 1947, autism had only just been named. Today it is more prevalent than ever, with one in 88 children diagnosed on the spectrum. And our thinking about it has undergone a transformation in her lifetime: Autism studies have moved from the realm of psychology to neurology and genetics, and there is far more hope today than ever before thanks to groundbreaking new research into causes and treatments. Now Temple Grandin reports from the forefront of autism science, bringing her singular perspective to a thrilling journey into the heart of the autism revolution. – Publisher’s Summary

• Link to TED Talk by Temple Grandinhttp://videosift.com/video/Temple-Grandin-TED-Talk-The-World-Needs-All-Kinds-of-Minds

Goodreads

You can join the conversation on Goodreads by joining the UTA New Teachers group at the following link.• http://tinyurl.com/UTANewTeachersBookClub

• We will post questions, ideas, and ah-ah moments to the group discussion board as we read the book. • Be sure to do the same!

• November 22nd Webinar will wrap up the book club discussion.

A Round of Applause for our Presenters!

•Questions?

What do you think?type in the chat window!

• What information stood out to you from The presentation?

• What questions do you have?

• “I hope to explore.…”• “I learned….”• “I want to know….”

UT Arlington Master’s in Mind, Brain, and Education

Our work at the SW Center for Mind, Brain and Education seeks to advance the quality of teaching based upon insights gained from the cognitive and neural sciences as well as contribute to research in this new and evolving field.

We build collaborative research relationships with schools, develop research trajectories that profit from the strengths of our faculty and students and maintain a working and teaching laboratory for researchers and graduate students.

1. Courses include: Neuroscience of typical and atypical language development Neuroscience of typical and atypical mathematical reasoning Complex dynamic systems Research design EEG research methodology

2. Individual work: Research-based capstone project encouraged - Conference presentations encouraged - Publishing in peer-reviewed journals

For more information on the Mind, Brain, and Education Master’s degree, please contact Dr. Marc Schwartzschwarma@uta.edu

Thanks to everyone for attending!Have a great weekend!

Be part of the knowledge network!We hope to see you again on the New Teacher Webinar series!

• Learn more!• Become a better teacher.• Stay encouraged.• Connect with other educators and UTA Faculty in an

informal, low key online setting!• Please let others know about our webinar series and

blog!

For questions or comments, email:Dr. Brown amber.brown@uta.edu or Dr. Semingson peggys@uta.edu

Webinar Survey

• To help us improve the webinars and learn more about your thoughts, we ask that you take a few minutes to complete a short survey about this webinar.

• Please go to the following link:http://tinyurl.com/UTAWebinarSurvey