Writing on all matters development is a bit like peeling a onion. Every time you lift off a layer of new insights, you find another nuance or perspective underneath. Which is why my initial coverage of the brain and its relationship to learning and development has turned into a bit of a 'brain bootcamp'.

In my first post, I looked at research showing that parts of kids' brains, depending upon whether they were a boy or girl, developed at a faster or slower rate. This significantly impacts learning different skills, such as reading, writing and math, for boys and girls at different ages.
The big 'so-what's were:

• In the end, biologically, no one gender is actually better at a particular skill than the other. They just come into their own at different times. 
• Not knowing and accommodating for this, can create problems. So we can't cling doggedly to the 'one-size-fits-all' approach to learning, including our expectations of our child's progress.

All Are Created Equal

Related to this, are studies that show that newborn brains (irrespective of gender) have the same potential. Many neuroscientists estimate that only 20% of a person's outcome in life is linked to innate brain ability, with a staggering 80% being dependent on what happens after birth. 

Why? Because bar any malformation, biologically we are all born with our lifetime's allotment of base brain matter - about 100 billion's worth of neurons. 
Neurons, for those a bit rusty on high school biology, are nerve cells capable of communicating with each other electrochemically. They are the communication work-horses that allow us to react to everything around us. And like any big work-force, they can only work effectively if they are connected efficiently together.

Enter the dynamic element into the mix: synapses. Synapses are the connective tissues between neurons. They carry understanding and memory, or what we would term learning. The more you have and the more efficiently they connect, the 'smarter' you are.
The kicker is that synapses develop in direct proportion to what they carry, i.e. synapses carry and are created by learning. Hence, the more a child is stimulated after birth, the more connections that develop and the greater the brain's ability.

Nurture vs. Nature

This obviously brings up the controversial nurture-nature argument, except this time, nurture - particularly in the form of parenting and schooling - gets a far greater weighting. 

'Nurture' is multi-faceted concept.  It can be as simple as socio-economic factors. Numerous studies show that poorer or single parent households struggle more to provide the same degree of one-on-one parenting, healthy food and environment than a more wealthy or dual family can, with oft negative impacts on literacy levels.
Or it can be as subtly complex as instilling self belief in your child's capabilities.  Believing that you can do it, often allows you to do it.

The staggered brain development phenomena offers further complication into the mix and perhaps a greater emphasis on 'nurture'. By knowingly tailoring a child's development to his 'brain' age, or consistently plugging away as an involved parent, your child will probably reach their potential.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

All this talk about actively promoting your child's development can be a little overwhelming. The research places no small pressure on parents and teachers alike.  Does it mean that if we don't do enough, for what ever reason, in our children's early years, they are doomed forever? It's the stuff of nightmares!

The good news is: it's not.  The brain, being the amazing organ that it is, can be re-wired or re-stimulated to get 'smarter'.  This (discussed in the next post) does require some dedicated effort, but its light at the end of tunnel!

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