Defiance, Tears, and Tragedy

The Extremes of Young AdolescentsPresentation by Robin Lowe, Flagstaff Academy

Classic Middle School

Middle Schoolers are…• Emotional

•Hormonal

•Excitable

•Changeable

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

• Rapid gains in height and weight

• Development of secondary sex characteristics

• Ongoing brain development

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

•Advanced reasoning skills

•Abstract thinking skills

•Ability to think about thinking (meta-cognition)

PSYCHO-SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT

• Establishing…• Their identity• Autonomy• Intimacy

• Becoming comfortable in their sexuality

What

doyou

see?

Pre-frontal Cortex• CEO of Your Brain• Social Control• Future consequences of current

actions• Prediction of outcomes• Right from wrong

Reference: www.brainwaves.com

AMYGDALA• Hysteria• Arousal• Controls autonomic responses

associated with fear• Emotional responses• Hormonal secretions

Neural PathwaysH

owLearningTakesPlace

Use it OR Lose it!• Billions of pathways develop as we

learn and experience new things• Adolescence is a time for pruning

and strengthening

• MYELIN• Effectively conducts electrical signals from one

neuron to anther• Decreased myelination in adolescents

Implications• Often misread facial

expressions• Seeing Sadness or Anger instead of

Fear

• Leads to communication miscues between adults and adolescents

What can we do?• Emphasize choices – help

students follow set steps to decision making

• Emphasize the immediate consequences

Provide Experiences…• Involving moral and abstract

reasoning and planning• Allowing students to see

awareness of consequences • Showing the effects of one’s

word and actions on others

Provide Experiences…• That are relevant and

contextual• In cooperative learning and

collaborative experiences• For students to articulate

thoughts and feelings

The adolescent brain will pay attention to the information

if it has…

MEANINGand

CAUSES AN EMOTIONAL RESPONSE

Neural Networks are formed in 3 ways…

•Concrete experiences• Symbolic learning•Abstract learning

Which is the strongest?

• Concrete Learning

• Abstract thought processes don’t fully develop in late adolescence (age 18-20)

Teaching for the adolescent brain…• Reflect on learning

• Link new knowledge to existing knowledge

• Establish what is true and accurate

• Challenge what knowledge is untrue and inaccurate

Teaching for the adolescent brain…• Teach students how to study• Establish, teach, and practice

consistent expectations and routines• Use graphic organizers to assist with

visualization• Clearly articulate benchmark timelines

– tests, projects, etc• Chunk material

Teaching for the adolescent brain…

• Practice / rehearsal is critical to learning for the long term.• Socratic Methods• Frequent Checks for Understanding• Mnemonics• Analogies, Metaphors & Similes• Simulations• Storytelling• Rhythm, Rhyme, & Rap

Teaching for the adolescent brain…

• We take in more information visually than through any other sense.• Visuals & Graphics• Storytelling• Hands on activities

Learning for our social brain…

• Think-Pair-Share

• Simulations

• Reciprocal Teaching

For our emotional brain…

• Use Wait Time• Think-Pair-Share• Reading Buddies• Storytelling• Rhythm, Rhyme, & Rap

Interactions…• Brain responds to groups of three…• Count to 10• Be specific in your requests• Bring it back to three basic

questions:• What were you doing?• What were you supposed to be doing?• What are you going to do now?

Whatever you do, don’t take it personally!

This is NOT about you.

There are reasons middle schoolers don’t

DRINKDRIVE

orVOTE!!

Robin Lowe

Flagstaff Academy2040 Miller DriveLongmont, CO 80501

rlowe@flagstaffacademy.orgwww.flagstaffacademy.org@robilowe

References

• American School Counselor Association. (2000). Normal adolescent development. Retieved from http://life.familyeducation.com/puberty/growth-and-development/36357.html.

• Cornell University. (n.d.). Teens and understanding emotions. Retrieved from http://www.human.cornell.edu/actforyouth.

• Forster, K. (2015). Secrets of the adolescent brain. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015

• Huebner, A. (2000). Adolescent growth and development. Retrieved from http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/family/350-850/350-850.

• National Institute of Mental Health. (2008). Teenage brain: a work in progress. Retrieved from : http://www.nimg.nig.gov/healthy/publications/teenage-brain-a-work-in-progress.shtml.

• Powell, E. (2004). Studying functional differences in the adolescent brain may provide evidence that the nervous system is responsible for behavior. Retrieved from http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro04/web1/epowell.html.

• S.P.O.T.S (n.d.). The adolescent brain – learning strategies & teaching tips. Retrieved from http://spots.wustl.edu/SPOTS%20manual%20Final/SPOTS%20Manual%204%20Learning%20Strategies.pdf

• Wallis, B. (2004). What makes teens tick? Time Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/printout/0.8816.631970.00.html.

• Yurgelum-Todd, D. (2002). Inside the teenage brain. PBS Frontline. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/interviews/todd.html