July, 1999Leader/Trainer Materials

COOPERATIVE EXTENSION SERVICE . UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-EXTENSION

Developed by: Reviewed by:Karen K. Hintz Gay E. Eastman, Ph.D. andFamily Living Agent David A. Riley, Ph.D.Door County UW-Extension Extension Child Development Specialists

UW-Madison

The first years

Last Forever

2 Talk

3 Read

4 Smile

5 Sing

6 Count

7 Play

1 Touch

7 WAYSTO BUILD YOUR

BABY'S BRAIN POWER

1

ObjectivesThe objectives of this program are to help parents, grandparents and caregivers:

• Gain a basic understanding of recent research findings about brain development.• Identify and discuss implications for parenting young children.• Learn ways to promote positive brain development and utilize that knowledge to help

strengthen a child’s brain development.

Teaching Resources� Video - “Ten Things Every Child Needs,” Robert McCormick Tribune Foundation� Video – “The First Years Last Forever”, I Am Your Child/The Reiner Foundation, with

“Ten Tips for Raising Happy, Healthier Children” fact sheet� Lincoln Logs - including windows, door and roof� Color Chart� Bookmarks – “7 Ways to Build Your Baby’s Brain Power”, Wisconsin Council on Children

& Families, Inc.� Overhead 1 Brain Quiz� Overhead 2 Eric Jensen, Teaching with the Brain in Mind� Overhead 3 Neurons, Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.� Overhead 4 Synaptic Density in Brain, I Am Your Child� Overhead 5 Brain: Side View, Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.� Overhead 6 Touch, Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.� Overhead 7 Power of Language, Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.� Overhead 8 Support Opportunities for Learning� Brochures on local programs (i.e. Birth to 3, Healthy Families Home Visiting, Parenting

The First Year Newsletter, Infant Massage)� Samples of children’s books and toy items for discussion activity� The First Years Last Forever Feedback Form� The First Years Last Forever Options for Using the Educational Package

Sources of InformationThe Wisconsin Council on Children and Families provided some overheads and information forthis training packet. They have “7 Ways to Build Your Baby’s Brain Power” bookmarksavailable. Call toll-free 1-877-232-7246; write Wisconsin Council on Children and Families, 16N. Carroll St., Suite 600, Madison, WI 53703 or use the internet to reach them at www.wccf.org.

The “I Am Your Child” campaign is the source of “The First Years Last Forever” booklet andvideo that can be used in this program. Visit the “I Am Your Child” website atwww.iamyourchild.org or write to I Am Your Child, P.O. Box 15605, Beverly Hills, CA 90209 forordering information.

The video, “Ten Things Every Child Needs, “ is available for a cost of $12 from: The McCormickFoundation, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 770, Chicago, IL 60611, Attn: 10 Things.

The “Building Baby’s Brain” Series was used in the development of the program materials. Theseries was done by the University of Georgia/College of Family and Consumer Sciences:www.fcs.uga.edu/pubs.

The first yearsLast Forever

2

Teaching Outline

Icebreaker:Either as a response toroll call OR have eachperson introduce him orherself and briefly givetheir memory. If thegroup is large, havethem pair up tointroduce themselvesand share their memory.

Brain Quiz overhead #1Read statements andseek responses fromthe group.

Refer group to ProgramMaterials, page 1“Building Baby’s Brain:Old and New Thinking”.

Eric Jensen overhead #2

Introduction

A. This program is all about babies and their brains!To get us tuned into this topic I want you to recallyour last memorable time with a baby or toddler.

B. As a mother feeds her child, she gazes lovinglyinto his eyes. A father talks gently to his newborndaughter as he changes her diaper. A caregiversings a child to sleep. These everyday moments,these simple loving encounters, provide essentialnourishment. Just as their bodies need food togrow, science tells us that the experiences thatbabies have in the earliest years are equallynecessary for the growth of a healthy brain.

C. Brain Quiz: As scientists learn more about howthe human brain develops, many of our old ideasabout the brain are being challenged. Let’s takethis Brain Quiz to find out more. Answer TRUE orFALSE1. At birth the brain is fully developed, just like

one’s heart or stomach.2. The brain’s development depends entirely on

the genes you are born with.3. A toddler’s brain is less active than the brain

of a college student.4. Talking to a baby is not important because

he can’t understand what you are saying.5. Children need special help and specific,

educational toys to develop their brainpower.The answer to all of these statements isFALSE. These are all myths and theexplanations are given in the ProgramMaterials on page 1 “Building Baby’s Brain:Old and New Thinking”.

D. While there are a number of factors that influenceearly brain development, this program will focus onlove and nurturing, providing interesting andvaried, everyday experiences and giving childrenfeedback.

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Show “10 Things EveryChild Needs” Video (first5 minutes)

Refer group to ProgramMaterials, page 2“Building Baby’s Brain:How the BrainDevelops”.

Neurons overhead #3

Demonstrate asynapse/connectionwith another person byusing hands as axonsand dendrites.

E. As recently as 15 years ago, some scientiststhought the brain was genetically determined atbirth and brain growth only followed a biologically,predetermined path. Now we know that earlyexperiences impact the development of the brainand influence the specific way in which the circuitsof the brain become “wired.”

II. How the Brain Develops

A. A baby’s brain is a work in progress. Itsdevelopment is shaped by the outside world that isabsorbed through the senses—vision, hearing,smell, touch, and taste. For example:1. The smell of the mother’s skin (smell)2. The father’s voice (hearing)3. Seeing a face or a brightly colored toy

(vision)4. The feel of a hand gently caressing (touch)5. Drinking milk (taste)

Experiences taken in by the five senses help buildthe connections that guide brain development. .Early experiences have a decisive impact on thearchitecture of the brain.

B. Normal sensory experiences direct brains cells totheir location and reinforce the connectionsbetween brain cells. We are born with over 100billion brain cells or neurons; we will not growmore. That’s about ten times the number of starsin the entire Milky Way and twenty times thenumber of people on the planet. Neurons are thefunctioning core of the brain. Each cell body isabout one-hundredth the size of the period at theend of this sentence. A neuron has branches ordendrites emerging from the cell body. Thesedendrites pick up a chemical signal across asynapse and the impulse travels the length of theaxon. Each axon branch has a sac containingneurotransmitters at its tip. The electrical impulsecauses the release of the neurotransmitters which,in turn, stimulates or inhibits neighboring dendrites,like an on/off switch.

C. These connections are miracles of the humanbody. But to understand their power, you have tomultiply this miracle by trillions. A single cell canconnect with as many as 15,000 other cells. The

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Synaptic Densityoverhead #4

Color Chart ExerciseGive a couple people orthe whole group thechallenge of namingcolors off a chart youhave made. However,the trick is that you writethe word of a color witha different coloredmarker than the wordsays!

incredibly complex network of connections thatresults is often referred to as the brain’s “circuitry”or “wiring”. Experience shapes the way circuitsare made in the brain. There is remarkableincrease in synapses during the first year of life. Itis through the development of these synapses orconnections, that the brain develops a functionalarchitecture, without which there would be nohabits, no thoughts, no consciousness, nomemories, no mind. From birth, the brain israpidly creating these connections. By the timeshe is three, your baby’s brain has formed about1,000 trillion connections—about twice as many asadults have. A baby’s brain is super-dense, andwill stay that way throughout the first decade oflife. Beginning at about age eleven, a child’s braingets rid of extra connections, gradually makingorder out of a thick tangle of “wires.” The “wiring” itends up with is more powerful and efficient.

D. As the synapses are strengthened throughrepeated experiences, these connections andpathways are forming the structures that will allowa child to learn. If they are not used, the pathwayis eliminated based on the “use it or lose it”principle. It also means that things you do a singletime, either good or bad, are likely to have noeffect. When a connection is used repeatedly inthe early years it becomes permanent. Forexample, when adults repeat words and phraseswhen they talk to babies, babies learn tounderstand speech and strengthen the languageconnections in the brain.

Let’s test out your brain connections for naming colorsand reading. Tell me the color as I point to it.

(Here’s an example of words to put on the chart:)Blue Green YellowPink Red OrangeTan Black PurpleGrey White Brown

This exercise shows that an adult has strong brainconnections for reading. A 4-year old would easily namethe actual colors, because the brain connections forreading have not yet been made.

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Brain: Side Viewoverhead #5

Build Lincoln House asan analogy of building abrain (log connectionsare like brain cells; buildfrom foundation to roof,like brain stem tocortex; add windows,like opportunities fordevelopment). Also, likethe brain, once thearchitecture is in place,you can continuelearning and “add on” or“decorate.” But, if youhave to move a wall oradd a window, it is moredifficult and expensive,than if you would havedone it earlier in thebuilding process.

E. The brain grows in sequential fashion, from bottomto top, or from the least complex part (brain stem)to the more complex area (cortex). If you draw aline from the forehead to chin and open the brainfor a side view, this is what you would see.1. The brainstem is at the base of the skull and it

controls most basic life activities, includingblood pressure and body temperature.

2. The midbrain is at the top of the brainstem andit controls motor activity, appetite and sleep.

3. The cerebellum is behind the brainstem and itcoordinates movement and balance.

4. The limbic system is in the central part of thebrain and it controls emotions, attachment andmemory.

5. The cortex is the top layer of the brain aboutthe depth of two dimes placed on top of eachother. The cortex is the “executive branch” ofthe brain that regulates decision-making andcontrols thinking, reasoning and language. Itcontains 80 percent of the neurons. Becauseit’s the least developed at birth and keepsdeveloping, until adolescence, it’s moresensitive to experiences than other parts of thebrain.

F. Brain development proceeds in waves, withdifferent parts of the brain becoming active“construction sites” at different times. The brain’sability to respond to experience presents excitingopportunities. While learning continues throughoutthe life cycle, there are “prime times” or “windowsof opportunity”, when the brain is a kind of “supersponge”, absorbing new information more easilythan at any other time in life. This is trueespecially in the first three years, but continuesthrough about age twelve. For example, youngchildren learn the grammar and meaning of theirnative language with only simple exposure. Whilelearning later is possible, it is usually slower andmore difficult. Some improvement in most skills ispossible throughout life.

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Refer group to ProgramMaterials, pages 3 and 4“Building Baby’s Brain:Opportunities forLearning”.

Touch: An Infant’sLifeline overhead #6

Distribute “7 Ways toBuild Your Baby’s BrainPower” Bookmarks.

The Power of Languageoverhead #7

Support Opportunitiesfor Learning overhead#8 or pull examples outof a bag or toolbox (i.e.box of large crayons,nursery rhyme book,stuffed animal, puzzlepiece) to symbolize eachguideline.

III. Opportunities for Learning

A. It makes sense to take advantage of these primetimes for learning by providing children with thethree things they need for optimal braindevelopment.

1. Your baby needs YOU!Infants need close, positive relationships withadults. Babies experience their parent’s lovethrough gentle touches and responses toneeds for food and comfort.

2. Your baby needs BRAIN-BUIILDINGEXERCISES.Real life experiences: touching, talking,listening, tasting, smelling, playing – buildyoung children’s brains.

3. Your baby needs CONVERSATION.Children need to hear language from birth –long before they can speak. Toddlers, whosemothers talk with them as infants have biggervocabularies and a solid basis for laterlearning.

B. Here are some guidelines for supporting primeopportunities for brain development.Provide a variety of interesting activities.Because infants are so primed to learn fromwhatever experiences are provided, the importantthing isn’t providing specific experiences at specifictimes, but providing a variety of interestingactivities over time. For example: With a baby,provide something interesting whenever she’sawake and alert, like a new picture to look at orsome time to wiggle on the floor. Limit the timetoddlers spend with television or pre-programmedmechanical toys.

.

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Show a video clip from“The First Years LastForever” video (i.e. babyreacting to mothersinging “Twinkle,Twinkle Little Star” incommunication section).

C. Give lots of opportunities for practice.Telling the same stories and singing the samesongs over and over may feel boring to you, butnot to children. They learn through repetitionand repetition of an experience tends to setneural connections. The pathways in the braindealing with emotions are built andstrengthened when parents respond day afterday to a newborn’s smiles by smiling back or bypicking the child up. For example: A childwhose parents have read to her for only tenminutes a day from six months on has a brainthat has received over 300 hours of this type ofstimulation by kindergarten!

D. Respond to your baby’s cues.Infants can’t use words to communicate theirmoods, preferences, or needs, but they sendmany signals: sounds they make, the way theymove, their facial expressions and the way theymake (or avoid) eye contact. Children becomesecurely attached when parents and othercaregivers try to read theses signals andrespond with sensitivity. Research has shownthat parents of children whose development iswell above average don’t use specialtechniques or programs to push their childahead. Instead, they follow the baby’s lead andrespond in ways that encourage continuedlearning matched to the child’s capabilities andinterests. For example: When reading to atoddler, choose stories or pictures the childenjoys, read only as long as the child seemsinterested, and involve the child by askingquestions or inviting her to tell the story.

E. Provide some challenges.Young children learn most efficiently whenthey’re provided with some opportunities towork slightly above their current ability with theassistance of an adult. For example: Provide alow table for a new walker to grab until he’sconfident enough to take his first steps and helpa preschooler to find the first few pieces in anew puzzle.

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Refer group to ProgramMaterials, pages 5 & 6“Building Baby’s Brain:What Parents Can Do”.

Have large group breakup into smaller groupsand pass out examplesof baby/toddler toys anddiscuss how these itemswould help a child’sbrain develop (OR haveeach person share oneexample of a toy oractivity that worked wellin their relationship witha young child).

IV. What Parents, Grandparents & Caregivers CanDo

A. Recent reports of brain development researchmay lead you to think that there are specificthings that must be done at specific times, if achild’s brain is to develop properly. But thereare no simple, quick fixes. The brain isdeveloped by the child’s total experience ofdaily life over time. Many of the things youalready do as a parent contribute to your child’sbrain development.

B. Create a safe environment and reduce yourbaby’s stress by removing any physical threats(i.e. unsafe toys, abusive caregiver); respondwhen he cries; and create predictable dailyroutines so that he learns what to expect fromhis world.

C. Provide enriching experiences. Exposing yourchild to new things helps the brain strengthenold connections and make new ones.

Have each group report back answering:

“How would you use this ________ with a____month/year old child?” and “Whatwould it stimulate?”

(Ideas for toys and play materials:Books, including board books; ImaginativePlay, including puppets, dress-up costumeitems; Water Play, including plastic cups,shampoo bottle; Math, including stackingtoys, blocks, puzzles; Music, includingclassical music cassettes and player,homemade instruments; Creative, includingart materials).

D. But beware of overstimulating your child.Some parents are so concerned with braindevelopment that they buy expensiveeducational toys, videos, and language tapes.But there’s no evidence that these toys, bythemselves, will make your child smarter. Toomany new experiences all at once may causestress, which would hinder his braindevelopment.

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Refer group to ProgramMaterials, page 7:“What Communities,Parents and OtherCaregivers Do toPromote Infant BrainDevelopment?”

Encourage sharing ofexamples of communityprograms and parentalactions. A flip chart oroverhead sheet could beused to list examples.

Share brochures onlocal communityprograms and showparent education toolsavailable.

V. What Communities Can Do

A. A hostile or sterile living environment coupledwith inattentive, emotionally unpredictable orchanging caregivers can leave a child withdiminished potential. So an infant or toddlerwho is severely neglected, isolated from evenminimal stimulation and interaction, actually canhave a brain that is 20-30% smaller, than achild who is loved, nourished and interactedwith. If critical times of development aremissed, the parts of the brain regulating theseactivities do not develop appropriately.

B. Now that we know the importance of earlydevelopment, what can we do to protect andpromote the development of those growingbrains?

1. Let’s use the worksheet on page 7 of theprogram materials. On the left areseven key influences on braindevelopment. Can you give examplesof community programs and actionsthat parents or caregivers can take tohelp each influence? (See sampleworksheet on page 11 for examples.)

VI. Conclusion

A. Clearly, loving, nurturing care provided by aconsistent caregiver during the first years oflife can go a long way to ensuring optimal braindevelopment in a young child. A child has agreater chance to reach his or her fullpotential, when the environment is rich withinteresting things to do and with visual andlanguage opportunities. Loving interactionswith parents and other caregivers andcommunity programs that support families, arekeys to brain development.

B. Although it is true that “the first years lastforever” in terms of the rapid development ofyoung children’s brains, the actual first years ofa child’s life go by very quickly. So touch, talk,read, smile, sing, count and play with yourbaby. It does more than make you both feelgood. It helps her brain develop!

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h h h h h h h h h

References

Bales, Dr. Diane W. (1998). Better Brains for Babies: Publication No. FACS 01-,2,4,6 & 7. Universityof Georgia, College of Families and Consumer Sciences.

Bower, Dr. Don (1998). Better Brains for Babies: Publication No. FACS01-3 & 5. University of Georgia, College of Families and Consumer Sciences.

Eastman, Gay (1999). “Brain Development Research and Its Implications for Parent Education”Position Paper. UW-Extension, School of Human Ecology, Madison, Wisconsin.

I Am Your Child Campaign. (1999). Website: www.iamyourchild.org Beverly Hills, California.

Jensen, Eric (1998). Teaching With the Brain In Mind. Association for Supervision and CurriculumDevelopment, Alexandria, VA.

“The First Years Last Forever” Booklet. I Am Your Child Campaign, Reiner Foundation, BeverlyHills, California.

Thomas, Peg, (1998), I Am Your Child Early Childhood Brain Development. UW-Extension Dane County, Madison, Wisconsin.

Wisconsin Council on Children and Families. (Jan. 1999). Brain Watch: GreatBeginnings: The First Years Last Forever. Vol. 1, Issues 1-4.

Wisconsin Council on Children and Families. (1998). Great Beginnings: TheFirst Years Last Forever.

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What Can Communities, Parentsand Other Caregivers Do To PromoteInfant Brain Development?Now that we know the importance of early development, what can we do to protect and promotethe development of those growing brains?

On the left we list the key influences or causal processes, based on what the research tells us sofar. On the right, you can list the community programs and actions by parents and othercaregivers, which could affect each key influence.

Key Influences ProgramsWhat communities can do

to help parents

ActionsWhat parents and other

caregivers can do.1. Prevent Head Injuries Car seat loan program. Insist on consistent use of car

seat.

2. Prevent ChemicalExposures, for exampleexposure to prenatalalcohol and other drugs,and post-natal exposure tosmoke, lead, and othertoxins.

Prenatal health outreachprogram.

Paint over old lead paint.

3. Developmental Screening,in particular for earlyvision and hearing.

Community-wide EPSDTprogram (Early & PeriodicScreening & DevelopmentalTesting).

Parents or child care staffnotice delays and seekmedical advice.

4. Prevent Child Abuse andNeglect.

Parents anonymous group. Parents learn from and helpeach other.

5. Promote SecureAttachment relationshipsof babies with theirprincipal caregivers(sensitively responsive,reliably availableinteraction).

Home visiting program. Carry baby in a snuggly pack.

6. Promote Early Languagestimulation that isinteractive, elaborative,responsive to the child(not audio tapes, TV, etc.).

“First Books” reading program. Talk with baby whilediapering, describing what youare doing.

7. Promote an intellectuallyenriched environment foryoung children:opportunities to explore atown pace and manipulateobjects in the company ofsupportive, sensitivelyinteractive caregivers.

High quality child care. Give baby “floor freedom” outof crib and chair.

University of Wisconsin-Extension, David A. Riley, Ph.D. 1999.

EXAMPLES

BRAIN QUIZ: TRUE OR FALSE?

At birth the brain is fullydeveloped, just like one’sheart or stomach.

The brain’s developmentdepends entirely on thegenes you are born with.

A toddler’s brain is lessactive than the brain of acollege student.

Talking to a baby is notimportant because he can’tunderstand what you aresaying.

Children need special helpand specific, educationaltoys to develop their brainpower.

T F

T F

T F

T F

T F

Overhead #1

The first years

Last Forever

Key Factors That Influence Early BrainDevelopment and Academic Achievement

Overhead #2

Adopted fromEric Jensen,Teaching with the Brain in Mind

Everyday Experiences(playing, talking,

reading) Love

Feedback

Nutrition

Exercise

Genes

Overhead #3Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.

NEURONS

dendrites

myelinsheath

axon

cellbody

Synaptic Density in theHuman Brain

Overhead #4“I Am Your Child” Campaign Website

At Birth 6 Years Old 14 Years Old

BRAIN: SIDE VIEW

Overhead #5Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.

limbic system

cortex

midbrain

brainstem

cerebellum

Touch:An Infant’s Lifeline

Deprive an infant of touch

and the body and brain

will stop growing!

Physical stroking helps premature

babies gain weight more quickly,

and helps healthy babies to

digest food better.

Babies cry less when they are

held and carried more.

Overhead #6Adopted from Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.

The Power ofLanguage

� Research has shown that:

the number of words that a baby

hears and the tone in which they

are spoken profoundly affect a

child’s ability to think conceptually

by age four.

-By age four, it becomes

increasingly difficult for education

or intervention programs to help

children with deficits catch up.

Overhead #7Adopted from Wisconsin Council on Children & Families, Inc.

Support Opportunitiesfor Learning

Provide a varietyof interestingactivities.

Give opportunitiesfor practice.

Respond to yourbaby’s cues.

Provide somechallenges.

Overhead #8Building Baby’s Brain “Opportunities for Learning”

Feedback