How to ensure maximum development of your child’s brain

Sometimes back scientists asserted that brain dvlpmnt was determined genetically & brain growth followed a biologically predetermined pattern but latest study reveals that dvplpmnt of brain depends on many factors like-
Genetics
Food & nutrition
Daily experiences
Responsiveness of parents
Physical activity
Love & care
At birth a baby has as many nerve cells or neurons as stars in the Milky Way Galaxy, but then these neurons haven’t yet made any pattern of wiring among them,i.e they haven’t made their connections.The experiences which a child gains through 5 sense organs in early childhood have a decisive impact on the formation of these connections which guide the dvlpmnt of one’s brain.An infant’s mind is all set for learning but it requires early experiences to wire the neural circuits of the brain that makes learning possible.A single neurocell can connect with as many as 15000 other cells.This network of connections is referred to as the circuitry or wiring of the brainA large no. of connections are formed during the first year of life. If a parent repeatedly calls a kid by a particular name then connections will be formed which allow the child to recoznize that name over time as referring to him & he will learn to give proper response.The brain is constantly forming these connections that are responsible for an individual’s habits,thoughts,consciousness,memories & mind.
A baby’s brain has formed about 1000 trillion connections by the age of 3 that is almost double of the no. of connections in an adult’s brain.A child’s brain is super dense & remains this way till the age of 10 yrs. A baby’s brain starts to shed extra connections from the age of about 11 yrs through a process called pruning gradually making order out of a thick tangle of wires.The interactions of parents with their offspring stimulates growth of these connections in the brain.Repeated experiences of any activity like learning anything like dancing,singing,acting, make these connections strong.It is quite interesting to know that an infant’s brain can form new learning connections at a rate of 3 billions per second.The number & organization of connections in the brain influence every thing from the ability to recoznize letters of the alphabet to handling social relationship.When a connection is used frequently in early years it becomes permanent ,i.e when adults repeat words & phrases as they converse with babies , they learn to understand ,speak & language connections are strengthened.If any connections are not used they are eliminated based on use it or lose it principle.As brain functions in accordance with use it or lose it theory so overpruning of connections can occur when a kid doesn’t gain normally expected experiences of any activity in early years due to which a baby can not perform those activities satisfactorily in later yrs. Around the age of 10 yrs the growth rate of brain almost stops.Over the next yrs the brain ruthlessly destroys its weakest connections preserving only those that have been magically formed & then strengthened through repeated experiences. These connections remain largely stable in adulthood giving each person a unique pattern of mind , thought & emotion. This pattern determines our characteristic identity & influences our thinking & learning as adults. After pruning is over at the age of about 10 yrs the brain’s plasticity declines by dint of which a child should be made to gain a number of experiences of a wide variety of activities which may be academic,extracurricular or social.
A kid’s capacity to understand a language solve problems & get along with others is greatly influenced by what he experiences as an infant & a young child.
Environmental factors such as way of bringing up , love stimulation proper nutrition as well as experiences have a direct impact on psychological, physiological & cognitive dvlpmnt of a child. Early stimulation through a variety of experiences enhances brain function lack of it leads to lack of brainfunction.Hence kids who get opportunity of being exposed to a greater no. of learning experiences in early life make more connections due to activities like music, art, exercise, books & play stimulate a kid’s brain, so exposure to these activities in early childhood aid his brain dvlpmnt whereas stress drugs, anger & abuse produce stress hormones in a child’s brain that withers braincells & reduces connections.
Thus parents should consciously strive to expose their baby to a no. of useful activities which will help in making a no. of connections in his brainthus ensuring maximum brain dvlpmnt & which in turn will lay the foundation for moulding the child in to a multiskilled versatile personality in adulthood.

 

Dear Vijaya,Corallux &SriVidya
Thanx a lot for your encouraging comments.I will try my best to pass on infrmtion as to ways & means to increase concentration power & ensure maximum dvlpmnt of a child's brain.LOVE
Deep2008