Interesting articles for the ones interested in our wonderful human brain.
http://mybrainnotes.com/evolution-brain-maclean.html
Sunday, 13 December 2015
Saturday, 12 December 2015
Thursday, 29 October 2015
Benefits of bilingualism
The cognitive benefits of speaking more tan one language
It has been said that speaking more than one language not only helps you to communicate with more people and get better jobs but it also helps you to improve your cognitive skills. It can also help you to regulate emotions and prevent brain deterioration.
These are some of the benefits that bilingual people have:
• Speaking two languages can help people to regulate negative emotions. When bilingual people shift from one language to the other, they also change their perceptions about how they experiment those emotions. If you are immersed in a negative emotional state, speaking a foreign language will help you to feel better as you feel kind of detached from the emotion.
• Bilingual people can delay the onset of Alzheimer because when they shift from one language to the other, they are using more their brains and keeping them active. It seems that constantly controlling two languages is like a workout for the brain. It challenges our grey cells and keeps them from degenerating.
• Bilinguals have better working memory. Studies by York University showed the bilingual children outperformed monolingual children on a series of tests that challenge executive functions such as working memory. For example, bilingual children could better remember the sequence in which a series of items was presented.
• Researchers from a University in Chicago discovered that when people solve problems in a foreign language, they were more practical, and rational. Speaking another language helps us to see the problem from different perspectives and as a result be more objective. This is because a foreign language does not have an emotional baggage which is present in our native tongue.
So because of all of this, we can conclude that learning another language not only will help us to get better job opportunities but it also will help us to keep our brains active and functioning at a higher level.
It has been said that speaking more than one language not only helps you to communicate with more people and get better jobs but it also helps you to improve your cognitive skills. It can also help you to regulate emotions and prevent brain deterioration.
These are some of the benefits that bilingual people have:
• Speaking two languages can help people to regulate negative emotions. When bilingual people shift from one language to the other, they also change their perceptions about how they experiment those emotions. If you are immersed in a negative emotional state, speaking a foreign language will help you to feel better as you feel kind of detached from the emotion.
• Bilingual people can delay the onset of Alzheimer because when they shift from one language to the other, they are using more their brains and keeping them active. It seems that constantly controlling two languages is like a workout for the brain. It challenges our grey cells and keeps them from degenerating.
• Bilinguals have better working memory. Studies by York University showed the bilingual children outperformed monolingual children on a series of tests that challenge executive functions such as working memory. For example, bilingual children could better remember the sequence in which a series of items was presented.
• Researchers from a University in Chicago discovered that when people solve problems in a foreign language, they were more practical, and rational. Speaking another language helps us to see the problem from different perspectives and as a result be more objective. This is because a foreign language does not have an emotional baggage which is present in our native tongue.
So because of all of this, we can conclude that learning another language not only will help us to get better job opportunities but it also will help us to keep our brains active and functioning at a higher level.
Monday, 2 February 2015
Wednesday, 31 December 2014
The right brain teacher (part 1)
Which part of your brain do you use most? Are you more rational than intuitive? Do you look at parts or at wholes?
It is said that . The left hemisphereof the brain is more analytical and rational , it is dominant in language processing , logic and maths while the right hemisphere is in charge of spatial abilities, music processing anf face recognition, It heps us to understand visual images and make sense of what we see. However, both brain's hemispheres are interconnected , they give and receive information form the opposite side so both sides work together all the time to produce one consciosusness.
One of the pillars of education since the Industrial revolution has been the importance given to logic reasoning and maths. Intelligence was and it is still defined in terms of verbal and mathematical reasoning. So, we've come to the conclusion that rationalist forms of thinking are superior than creaitivty and emotions.
So what happens in the classroom? Do teachers encourage students to use both sides of the brain equally? Do we give importance in class to music, arts and creative expression? In most of the cases we can say , that the emphasis is put on the left side of the brain and everything connected to words and numbers which is fine, but what about other thinking styles?
Howard Gardner a Harvard psychologyst claims that there are multiple types of intelligences, Linguistic, musical, mathematical,spatial, kinesthetic, interpersonal (relationships with others), and intra-personal (knowledge and understanding of the self) intelligence. He claims that these types of intelligence have the same importance though some might be “dominant” while others are “dormant.” He also says that we all have different strengths in different intelligences and that education should treat them equally so that all children receive the same opportunities to develop their unique individual abilities.
The Right Brain teacher.
These are just some ideas to incorporate in the classroom to encourage right brain thinking.
The right brain teacher encourages activities that promote creativity and the use of visual imagery so instead of giving students long pages of information to memorize they can help them make a mind map to summarize key concepts.
Art projects are great fun and really motivating for students. If they are in the English class learning the parts of the house and the furniture, you can give them the task of creating their dream home with different sizes of boxes. Once their home is ready they present it to their teacher and classmates using the linguistic itemes presented and studied in class.
In one of my classes my students prepared a news programme in which they had to prepare the script, think of the name of the programme, arrange the setting and then film it to present it in class. They really enjoyed doing this activity since they were in control of the task and the teacher (me) just helped them with the pronunciation of some words or the grammar.
It is a good advice to tell our students that we are all unique and we have strenghths and weaknesses. Tell them that you do not expect them to be perfect in all the activities and that the main role of the projects in class are to help them feel free, use their imagination and creativity in order to make their learning process a meaningful experience.
It is said that . The left hemisphereof the brain is more analytical and rational , it is dominant in language processing , logic and maths while the right hemisphere is in charge of spatial abilities, music processing anf face recognition, It heps us to understand visual images and make sense of what we see. However, both brain's hemispheres are interconnected , they give and receive information form the opposite side so both sides work together all the time to produce one consciosusness.
One of the pillars of education since the Industrial revolution has been the importance given to logic reasoning and maths. Intelligence was and it is still defined in terms of verbal and mathematical reasoning. So, we've come to the conclusion that rationalist forms of thinking are superior than creaitivty and emotions.
So what happens in the classroom? Do teachers encourage students to use both sides of the brain equally? Do we give importance in class to music, arts and creative expression? In most of the cases we can say , that the emphasis is put on the left side of the brain and everything connected to words and numbers which is fine, but what about other thinking styles?
Howard Gardner a Harvard psychologyst claims that there are multiple types of intelligences, Linguistic, musical, mathematical,spatial, kinesthetic, interpersonal (relationships with others), and intra-personal (knowledge and understanding of the self) intelligence. He claims that these types of intelligence have the same importance though some might be “dominant” while others are “dormant.” He also says that we all have different strengths in different intelligences and that education should treat them equally so that all children receive the same opportunities to develop their unique individual abilities.
The Right Brain teacher.
These are just some ideas to incorporate in the classroom to encourage right brain thinking.
- Mind maps
The right brain teacher encourages activities that promote creativity and the use of visual imagery so instead of giving students long pages of information to memorize they can help them make a mind map to summarize key concepts.
- Projects
Art projects are great fun and really motivating for students. If they are in the English class learning the parts of the house and the furniture, you can give them the task of creating their dream home with different sizes of boxes. Once their home is ready they present it to their teacher and classmates using the linguistic itemes presented and studied in class.
- Group Work
In one of my classes my students prepared a news programme in which they had to prepare the script, think of the name of the programme, arrange the setting and then film it to present it in class. They really enjoyed doing this activity since they were in control of the task and the teacher (me) just helped them with the pronunciation of some words or the grammar.
- Tangrams for fast finishers
Tangrams are puzzles with seven pieces called tans The objective of the puzzle is to form a specific shape (given only an outline) using all the seven pieces. It is said that this game was invented in China during the Song Dinasty.
They are really useful to teach kids about spatial relationships.
- Mandalas
Mandalas are often kaleidescopic images with a centre rotating inward or outward creating a kind of wholeness, A possible activitiy could be to show students a simple mandala for some seconds and then hide the picture. Students should try to memorise what they've just seen and try to reproduce it. Another possibilty could be to give students copies of mandalas and give them free will to colour their mandalas as they want. Then students show their work to the rest of the class and talk about the colours they used, shapes, etc.
It is a good advice to tell our students that we are all unique and we have strenghths and weaknesses. Tell them that you do not expect them to be perfect in all the activities and that the main role of the projects in class are to help them feel free, use their imagination and creativity in order to make their learning process a meaningful experience.
Thursday, 23 October 2014
Monday, 22 September 2014
More games in the classroom
The importance of playing in the classroom
The reason why incorporating games in our daily lessons is so important is because during games the control of learning is transfered from the teacher to the students. The protagonist is the student as his or her unique way of learning is the one that is developed.Another reason is that playing and exploration trigger the secretion of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a substance that is essential for the growth of cells.What's more, imagination and social play support the development of attention, self control and cooperative learning skills.In a previous post I mention some of the games I use in my classroom. Today, I'd like to share with you more games that can be beneficial to your students' learning and at the same time you can have a lot of fun!
1. Line up according to....The game involves groups of students lining up in order, depending on the criteria you choose, whether it's their birthday, height or any number of other options. Explain that they must line up in order using only English to communicate with each other, teams caught cheating will be disqualified from that round. When a team finishes, the person at the front of the line puts their hand up and you walk down the line checking that they are in the right order.Examples of the teacher's instructions: Line up according to.... your age, the day they were born, the time you woke up this morning, the number of brothers and sisters, the number of pets, etc.
2. Car Race: Arrange flash cards in a long line with a starting and a finishing point. The first student throws the dice and moves his/her counter. The student must say the word on the flashcard he/she lands on. If the student makes a mistake, he/she goes back to the his/her previuos place.
3. Charades: the class can be divided into any number of teams depending on the amount of students the teacher has. The teacher whispers a word to the students who are going to mime the word for their teams. The team who first guesses the word is the winner.
4. Do what I say: The teacher gives commands to the class to revise vocabulary. For instance....touch something blue....or touch your head, sit down, stand up....This typical TPR activity is a great excercise to charge batteries and get students in the right mood.
5. Musical Chairs: Line up the chairs and place a flashcard on each one. Play some music and have the students walk, hop, jump around the chairs. When the music stops, the students should sit down on a chair and shout out their flash cards. You can also remove a chair and make the student without a chair sit out until the next round.
6. Get the word now!: Divide students into groups. Assign to each member of the group a number. Place in the middle of the classroom flashcards with the linguistic items you want to revise. The teacher says a number and one of the words in the flashcards. The students with the number assigned by the teacher are the ones who are going to run to the flashcards and get the one the teacher said. The first one to get it gets a point for his/her team.
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