Understanding the teen brain. Adults-in-training. February 01, 2011

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Understanding the teen brain. Adults-in-training. February 01, 2011"

Meagan Webster
7 years ago
Views:

1 Understanding the teen brain Adults-in-training February 01, 2011

2 Understanding the Adolescent Brain 2

3 The Frontal Lobes Source Dr. Jean Clinton Thinking Brain Governing emotions Judgment Planning Organization Problem Solving Impulse Inhibition Abstraction Analysis/synthesis Self-awareness* Self-concept* Identity Spirituality Source Dr. Jean Clinton 3

4 Youth Brain Development The emotional brain shows earlier development than the thinking brain. The emotional brain seeks novelty and stimulation, sometimes met by risky behavior The emotional brain is often in charge in teens. The thinking brain is under construction. Source Dr. Jean Clinton 4

5 The Problem Frontal Lobe Development Source Dr. Jean Clinton Autonomy drivers license Average age of first sexual encounter in Canada 5

6 Made worse as group adolescent brains amp-up the levels 6

7 Four Basic Emotions Researchers generally agree there are four basic emotions and that all other emotions are created from combinations of these four. Fear Anger Sadness Joy 7

8 Emotions, the Amygdala and the Teenage Brain Any information received by the brain travels first to the amygdala The amygdala holds emotional memory - it tells you how you feel about things In the teenage brain, the amygdala is developing faster than the frontal lobes So, teenagers tend to be reactive not reflective ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 8

9 Reading Facial Expressions OISE/University of Toronto 9

10 Emotion drives attention and attention drives learning In her book Brain Matters, Pat Wolfe noted: The brain is biologically programmed to attend first to information that has a strong emotional content. It is also programmed to remember this information longer. ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 10

11 What happens when the brain gets hijacked by negative emotions? The body is readied for the fight or flight response. The body is primed with adrenaline preparing it for the fastest physical reaction. The hypothalamus activates the amygdala, which in turn produces anger, rage, or threatening behaviour. 11

12 Neurons that fire together, wire together! Learning is a matter of making connections. 12

13 The Process of Long Term Potentiation When information (stimuli) is received, a trail along a series of neurons is blazed making it easier for subsequent messages to fire along the same path. The more the path is re-fired the more permanent the message or new learning becomes. Each time an activity is repeated the bonds between neurons strengthen and expand, leading to an entire network developing which remembers the skill or information. ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 13

14 Considering how the brain learns......how and why is the behaviour of an adolescent similar to that of a 2 year old? ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 14

15 At both stages, the brain is responding to......a massive build up of connections and pruning away excess connections allowing for a more refined and efficient brain. ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 15

16 Brain Sculpting Imagine you have set out to capture the essence of who you are in a marble sculpture. Reflect back to what life was like at age 11 or 12. Walk yourself through the defining experiences of your adolescence. While doing so, imagine yourself chipping away the excess marble to allow for the emergence of your adult self. 16

17 Like your sculpture......the brain sculpts itself through its experience with the world. Teenagers need to realize that the brain is the only organ in the body that is sculpted through experience. What they are doing with their brain now is going to determine what their brain is going to become as an adult. 17

18 Remember that......if teens are doing music and sports and academics, that s how brains will be hardwired. If they are doing video games and MTV and lying on the couch, that will be how they are hardwired. Jay Giedd 18

19 How does the brain learn best? Through experiential learning requiring students to move from the concrete to the abstract Through problem solving and decision making Through allowing students to fail forward Scaffolding - do not ask an adolescent to multi-task until the learning has been internalized Physical and other activities that improve coordination These types of activities activate the area of the brain responsible for higher-order thinking. The more we do with adolescents which requires they solve problems, the more we assist in strengthening the area of the brain responsible for decision making. 19

20 Marching to a Different Circadian Rhythm! Teens begin to secrete melatonin, chemical neurotransmitter which makes us feel drowsy, 1 to 3 hours later and it lingers on later in the morning Teens sleep needs far exceed adults they need at least 9 hours Teens are the most sleepdeprived segment of North American society ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 20

21 Implications of Sleep Deprivation for the Adolescent Learning Do less well in school Experience a greater feeling of sadness and hopelessness Greater mood swings (less able to control emotions) Less able to process emotions and are therefore prone to raw emotional outbursts Causes an elevated level of the stress hormone, cortisol Impairs ability to process glucose which contributes to obesity and type-2 diabetes both on the rise among North American teens ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 21

22 Top Ten Strategies for Guiding the Adolescent Brain 1. Take care of the brain with proper sleep, hydration, nutrition and avoid caffeine after noon and beware the dangers of substance abuse. 2. Encourage extra curricular activities which develop social skills, physical fitness, problem solving, and encourage reading. 3. Be clear, explicit and avoid asking teens to multi-task. 22

23 4. Assist children in learning to chunk information. 5. Encourage problem solving, making connections, and involve children in identifying the problems in their actions and assist them in seeing the consequences. 6. Natural and logical consequences are preferable to punitive measures 23

24 7. Whenever possible, encourage children to build on their interests and talents remember that intelligence is the ability to solve problems or create a product of value. 8. Recognize that emotions dominate and that teens are more likely to react than to reflect assist them in making wise choices and avoid anger as a response. ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 24

25 9. Assist children in their learning by helping them move from the concrete to the abstract and remember that being there is the most powerful way to learn. 10. Above all, be patient remember teenage brain is a work in progress! ggininewman@oise.utoronto.ca 25

26 For More Information Teen Brain, Teen Mind: What parents need to know to survive the adolescent years, Dr. Ron Clavier, 2005 The Primal Teen: What the discoveries about the teenage brain tell us about our kids, Barbara Strauch,

Before the baby is born

Before the baby is born Understanding your child's behaviour Leaflet for parents Brain Development The brain is a very complex organ and with advances in medical science and equipment such as brain scans (MRIs) we now know much