Extra Credit: Jill Stamm

What?
Jill Stamm is a professor at Arizona State University, a lecturer on infant learning and cognition and is also president of a company called New Directions Institute in Arizona - a company which collects the newest scientific research on brain development in infants up to age three. With the data collected the company educates new parents and caregivers about the importance of healthy brain development and the impact they have on their child's brain development. She points out that it's not about the toys and the stuff, it's about the relationship with mom and dad. It's about one on one time, eye contact, face-time and having their needs met quickly. Doing these simple things helps a child feel secure and once a child feels secure they can go on to learn other things. Her company has created the "Baby Brain Box" which is a practical application of toys that help a baby's brain develop through using the:

Three ABC's of Early Learning
- Attention
- Bonding
- Communication

According to Jill Stamm, what infants need for optimal brain development is attention, bonding and communication. All the interactions between an infant and parent or caregiver, as simple as returning a smile to an infant while having eye contact, or narrating daily activities, are extremely important in early brain development. She also points out that the number of words an infant hears within their first 3 years of life has a direct correlation to later I.Q. scores - hence the importance of narrating daily activities and talking to infants from the time their born.

Despite the hype, she pointed out that current research is showing that videos claiming to help a the brain development of infants (such as Baby Einstein) do not have the benefits consumers think. She said, "We need to get real and understand that what children need is people." The impact of the television on the developed brain is totally different than the impact on an adult brain. She referred to the Academy of Pediatrics which states a child under age 2 should not watch television. As the brain is growing itself in those first little years, it grows itself through repetitive use and through experiences that the child is having. So at age 2 and under, TV has a detrimental affect, (an example was delayed speech) whereas at age 5, it can be used as an educational tool.

She gave an excellent example of how quickly the brain grows in an infant. She said an infant heart is a fully developed organ. It functions the same as an adult heart. However, the brain is least developed at birth and develops so quickly that first year that if the child's body grew as quickly as it's brain in that 1st year, the child would weigh 170 pounds at age 1. That is incredible!! Although the brain develops quickly between the ages of 0-3, the brain stays pliable and plastic throughout our lifetime. So, it is never too late to begin showing a child attention, bonding and communicating with them.

So What?
Learning this information makes me realize that unintentionally I may have done something right in the early years of raising my daughter. I would incessantly talk to her and tell her what I was doing. I didn't know I was doing anything for her brain, I have always talked to myself and having someone, even an infant, to talk to made it seem less crazy so I did it all the time. It's amazing and also startling to learn that the brain is so active and is learning so much in those first couple of years and the great responsibility and influence we have in our child's brain development. It's also important to know this as a future teacher. One of the most wonderful things about the brain I am learning is how pliable it is. It is not fixed and unchangeable. That means it is never too late!

Now What?
As a parent, and hopefully future parent of another young infant, I will be a better parent knowing this information. Although I did the three ABC's of Early Learning with my first daughter, I didn't realize the impact of it. Just knowing and being aware of the importance I believe, will make me a better parent. It is important for me as a future teacher as well. I will have students from all kinds of different circumstances and likely have students in my class who don't receive attention, face-time, bonding, etc. from parents. And although students I will be teaching will be between the ages of 6-12, I can have an influence because of the fact that the brain is changeable and pliable. I think it will be important for the success of each and every student to feel they are given attention, have a bond and that there is good communication between myself and the student. It will be especially important for those students who may come from circumstances where they don't get that necessary time with their parents or caregivers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baek--_1ZfU (part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XV1u56fDyTg&feature=related (part 2)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHnH-YPHRuk&feature=related (part 3)