This is a popular song that mommies sing to their little girls. The song goes:
When I was just a little girl,
I asked my mother, what will I be?
Will I be pretty, will I be rich?
Here's what she said to me.
Que Sera, Sera.
Whatever will be, will be.
The future's not ours to see.
Que Sera, Sera.
What will be, will be.
While parents are not able to predict the future of our children, parents certainly play a pivotal role in harnessing our children's potential from an early age. You might have heard advice from your friends on starting children early, typically at preschool-age of 3 to 6 years. The question often centres on which pre-school to choose - those that focus on learning through play; those that run academic boot camps; those that let children choose their own curriculum, to even those that focus on building self-esteem.
The Critical First 3 Years
However, if you wait till pre-school age, that is probably too late! Research has long shown that early life experiences have a significant effect on whole brain development. In particular, developmental neurobiology has found that the critical period for learning is in the first 3 years of life. This is the time when the brain shows the most neural plasticity. What Professor Makoto Shichida, a leading expert in early learning, espoused appeals to the cognitivist in us - the purpose of education is not to cram students with knowledge, but to empower a child to tap into the innate mental powers (eg photographic memory, perfect pitch, rapid-calculation ability, speed processing, etc) that are already present in his brain, specifically his right 'genius' brain.
Why are the first 3 years so critical? The secret is in the way the brain develops. When your child is a baby or toddler, he will use the right side of his brain far more than the left. However, between 3 to 6 years, there is a gradual transition from right-brain dominance to left-brain dominance. By the time he is 6 years old, the transition to left-brain dominance is complete. This leaves us with the critical window of birth to 3 years - only 3 precious years to unleash the 'genius brain.' The rationale is that by stimulating the right brain before it gets overwhelmed by the left, the whole brain can be harnessed to its fullest potential.
Left Hemisphere
The left brain is known for its mathematical and language abilities. Analytical thought, logical thinking, sequencing, categorising, planning, speech and spelling are linked to left-brain functioning. In our schools today, more emphasis is given to left-brain activities like mathematics and spelling, as compared to right-brain activities like creativity and music. This explains why school-going children tend to have more highly developed left brains than right brains.
Right Hemisphere
The right hemisphere is responsible for emotions, creativity, music and rhythm. Experts have also accrued the 'softer' aspects of personality and behaviour to the right brain. The right hemisphere, often known as the "image" brain, works through visual stimulation. It can enable a child to learn subconsciously and process large amounts of information at high speed.
When I was shopping for a smart phone recently, the salesperson recommended those with dual-core and even quad-core functions, explaining, "The processor is the brain of the smartphone." Using this analogy, when you harness the powers of the right brain, you are not merely loading new data, but actually increasing processor speed from single core to dual-core or even quad-core! The right brain soaks up information like a sponge and is capable of processing data all at once. So much of formal education nowadays focuses on inputting information. All the more we need to grow our children's brain processors and their inherent capacities, in order to match the exponential demands of the 21st century.
Stimulating The Right Brain
Some of you may be aware of the many merits of the right brain; but what most people do not know is how the right brain gets stimulated. It is best activated by visual images, high speeds and a stress-free mood. What does this mean for educators and parents? The answer is simple - we adapt our teaching processes to help our children get in touch with their 'genius brain'! It means that in the early years, we should be harnessing right-brain strategies to teach, even on subjects that are typically accessed by the left brain such as languages and mathematics.
A Right-brain Strategy: The Flashcard Method
There are many activities that can help to develop children's right brains. One of the more common methods is using flashcards. The method of teaching babies with flash cards was pioneered by Glenn Doman, a child brain development specialist and founder of the Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential. It involves either physical or digital flash cards which you show rapidly to your child. Flashing cards (at a speed of less than one second per card) is an effective method of teaching babies for the simple fact that information presented at high speed is more easily apprehended by the right brain. Learning in this way occurs unconsciously and effortlessly.
Teach Reading With Flashcards
If you are using flashcards to teach reading, start with words that are familiar and often used around the house; and progress from single words to couplets, phrases, sentences and finally books! When making your own cards, ensure that the words are big and clear. In order for a baby to understand language through his ears, spoken words have to be loud, clear and repeated. By the same token, in order for a baby to read a language, written words must be large, clear and repeated -- as explained by Glenn Doman. An interesting variation to Glenn Doman's method is to include pictures to reinforce the meaning of words, particularly words that are new to your child.
Teach Mathematics With Flashcards
Flashcards with dots on them to represent numerical quantities can be used to teach mathematics. Utilising their right-brain function, very young children have the innate ability to "subitize' quantities, i.e. instantly perceive the number of items in a set, without counting or guessing. As a parent, you could start by flashing dot cards to your child regularly, before progressing to numerical recognition, equations and problem-solving.
Recipe For Success: Love & Consistency
Of course, be it words, pictures or dots, a lively tone and an enthusiastic disposition when reading the cards will go a long way to sustain your baby's interest. It is also important to flash the cards regularly, at least once a day, as children learn best through consistency and repetition. Finally, it cannot be over-emphasised that right-brain education is only effective if your child has a close, loving relationship with you and learns in a relaxed state. Without positive emotions like feeling happy, loved and secure, learning is stifled in the right brain. Your baby should never feel coerced to learn. This will drive both you and baby into a state of stress, which is counter-productive for successful learning.
At the end of the day, you do not have a crystal ball to predict the future, or dictate what your child makes out of his life, but you are certainly putting him head and shoulders above others by endowing him with the unique gift of early learning! So when the day comes that your precious darling asks of you, "What will I be? Will I be handsome, will I be rich?", you can confidently answer "Que Sera, Sera. Whatever will be, will be."
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8099319
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