3. The Early Years Matter
The biological 'code' of success in life is built by all the sounds,
sights, touches, thoughts and emotional interactions that children
experience in their first few years (Clyde Hertzman).
4. But what we are
really doing is
human
development .
No where has
there been
greater
understanding
and clarity over
the last several
years than in this
work of human
development.
6. The development
of these three
capacities occurs
largely in the
frontal lobe of
the brain, and
relies on the
interrelated
neural circuits to
function properly
throughout the
life course.
(AB Family Wellness, 2013)
10. Grad Rate
about 98%
More than 80%
of students
going to post-
secondary
In the 100th
percentile on all
provincial
assessments
11. It is about
smart AND
caring
As we approach our
country’s 150th
birthday, Canada’s
Governor General, the
Right Honourable David
Johnston, has
challenged Canadians
to imagine our country
as it could be – a smart
and caring nation that
holds promise for all.
12. Kids Today
compared with 5
years ago:
• Make better decisions
• Drink less alcohol and
using fewer drugs
• Feel safer at school
• And also need more
sleep and feel stressed
14. Infancy Mastery over sensory functions.
Regulation is provided by caregiver -
predictability/stability
Toddler Beginning to participate in managing their
responses
School age Increasing autonomy to manage within
institutions
Teen Self-regulation is devolved within
institutions/society
15. (A. Diamond, 2009)
School activities that give rise to the pleasure surge
& prompt the release of dopamine include:
• Participating in acts of kindness
• Collaborating with peers
• Making choices & solving problems
• Engaging in physical activities such as
sports, dance and play
• Enjoying creative efforts and
disciplines such as music, art, drama,
storytelling and reading.
MindUp Curriculum, 2011
18. Thank you for
coming – to
support your
children, and
our
community’s
children – we
want the best
for all young
people in our
community
Hinweis der Redaktion
Early brain development involves a complex dance of genetic and environmental events that interact to adapt the brain to fit a particular environmental context. Development represents more than a simple unfolding of genetic blueprint. How do we GROW BRAINS???
In turn, these three capacities provide a foundation for many of the activities that support later child development such a making friendships, going to school and learning how to cope with stressful situations.
Sensory Regulation is the resource for learning. If arousal levels are too high or too low then you may not have the resources to pay attention.We all strive to be calmly focused and alert because we have the most resources to allocate to attending.
When we are happy and engaged in activities that we find pleasurable (everything from painting to playing), our brain is flush with dopamine, a neurotransmitter that also helps lubricate our information filter and rev up high power thinking in our prefrontal cortex. Dopamine helps get our brains ready for peak performance. The dopamine pleasure surge is highest when students are fully engaged with their learning and brimming with positive feelings such as OPTIMISM, HOPE, GRATITUDE & AN OVERALL SENSE OF WELL-BEING.
Renewed curriculum and assessment supports the development of deeper learning by:focusing less on imparting facts and information-based details and more on the big ideas, concepts and content, and competencies that students need to succeed in their education and their lives considering literacy and numeracy as essential for deeper learning in all years of schooling considering all areas of learning to be important to the growth of deeper learning and to the development of educated citizens providing consistency in curriculum structures so that the “horizontal connectedness” or connections within an area of learning are evident as are those ideas that transfer across areas of learning and to the real world