Brain – based Brain – based learning. learning.

Session 1Session 1

Planning, Decision Making.

Where am I? Where is

that? Who is that?

VisionSpeech, Sounds

Moving MusclesCerebellum

Brain StemHousekeeping –

automatic pilot

Hippocampus - decides which ideas

to put into long term memory.

Thalamus - Processes sensory input (except smell,

which goes to the Amygdala) & decides what

is important.

Amygdala - Emotions - links

memories & emotion.

• Stand up find a partner and share your question with them – if they answer it congratulate, if not coach.

• Let the partner share their question with you – you answer

• SWAP CARDS• Raise your hand and find another partner to share

with

•On one side of the card write a good question about any of the ideas that we’ve looked at. • Answer on the other side.

Implications for Implications for learning?learning?

• Now we have good evidence to make sure that we start with ideas that are familiar, and try to make learning relevant.

• The structures most responsible for processing information into long term memory are emotional.

• Don’t be refrigerator hum!

Doggy fashion

The adolescent The adolescent brainbrain

• The neurons in a child’s brain make many more connections than those in adults’ brains

• Information is entering the brain through windows that open and close at various times.

• The richer the environment, the greater the number of interconnections that are made – consequently, learning takes place faster and with greater meaning.

The adolescent The adolescent brainbrain

• Is used to greater variety of stimulation• Responds quickly to novelty• Demands relevance• Practices ‘continuous partial attention’• Has a smaller working memory• Has an immature frontal lobe but

mature emotional response – responds instinctively.

Jot thoughts slide:

Words to RememberWords to Remember

•Night•Dream•Comfort•Snore•Wake•Bed

•Rest•Awake•Tired•Eat•Slumber

What words did you What words did you remember?remember?

Are you sure?Are you sure?

•Night•Dream•Comfort•Snore•Wake•Bed

•Rest•Awake•Tired•Eat•Slumber

PrimacyPrimacy & & RecencyRecency

Means that we remember:BEST what comes FIRST

SECOND BEST what comes LAST

LEAST what comes JUST AFTER THE MIDDLE

0 10 20 30 40

Deg

ree o

f re

ten

tion

Time in Minutes

Prime time 1

Down time

Prime time 2

Retention during a learning episode.

New Information

Practice

Closure

Approximate Ratio of Prime-time to down-time in different

length learning episodes

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100

25 min.

50 min.

100 min.

Le

ss

on

Le

ng

th

Prime time 1 Down-time Prime-time 2

Approximate ratio of prime-time to down-time in different

length learning episodes

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100

25 min.

50 min.

100 min.

Le

ss

on

Le

ng

th

Implications for Implications for TeachingTeaching

• Teach new material first• Avoid asking students if they know

anything about a new topic• Don’t use prime-time for classroom

management tasks• Use down-time for practice or

discussion about the new learning• Use prime-time 2 for plenary

Implications for Teaching Implications for Teaching 22

• Break lessons up into learning segments 20-25 minutes long

• If you want to lead the teaching of a new idea, use the first section for this, then shift the burden to the students in the other sections

• Go off task / change methodology between sections

5%Lecture

Reading

Audiovisual

Demonstration

Discussion Group

Practice by doing.

Teach others / Immediate use of learning

Average percentage retention after 24 hours.

10%

20%

30%

50%

75%

90%

9217053

4915082637

What does this show?What does this show?

The limits of working memory:

•on average, 7 chunks of information

•20 minute attention span

Changes in Capacity of Changes in Capacity of Working Memory with AgeWorking Memory with AgeApprox.

Age Range in

years

Capacity of working memory (chunks)

Minimum Maximum Average

Younger than 5

1 3 2

Between 5 and 14

3 7 5

14 and older

5 9 7

A model of how the brain A model of how the brain worksworks

Working Working MemoryMemory

• Place where conscious processing takes place

• Where we can build, take apart and rework ideas for eventual storage somewhere else

• Items in working memory demand our attention

• Most activity in the frontal lobes• Limited capacity, limited time scale

Is sense and meaning Is sense and meaning present?present?

Yes

Moderate to High

Very high

No

Very low Moderate to high

No Yes

Is m

ean

ing

p

resen

t?

Is sense present?

TransferTransfer

•The effect that past learning has on new learning

•The degree to which the new learning will be useful to the learner in future

Combined learningFor future use

New Learning

Past Learning

From immediate

memory

From Long term

storage

Working Memory

Positive and Positive and Negative Negative TransferTransfer

•Positive – past learning which helps new learning

•Negative – past learning which interferes with new learning

Working Memory

Long term

storage

Store by Similarity

Retrieve by difference

Find someone Find someone who . . .who . . .

•Try to find someone who can answer one of the questions in a box. The person who answers the question initials the box.

•No one can initial the same sheet twice.

End of session 1

Brain – friendly learning.

Session 2Session 2

Teacher ATeacher A – Focussed Questions and Answers.

Teacher BTeacher B – Open-ended discussion.

Teacher CTeacher C – Brain-friendly structure.

Ritalin & the brain. Ritalin & the brain.

shoulderface

questionthink time

record

gives

share develop

indicate

develop bestanswer

severalexamples

Why is this Brain Friendly?Why is this Brain Friendly?

Think time – important that it is there.

Accountability – everyone has got to get involved.

Working memory – revisiting points in order to free up extra space & move ideas into long term memory.

High fives – emotional linkage improves chances of long term retention.

The learners are doing the teaching – peer sharing of ideas & the teacher is learning, assessing what students know.

Safety – people who are working together need to feel safe – how does this work?

In groups of 4

1 Person stands and is interviewed by the others for 1

minute.

Interviewers must use open ended

questions.

When time is up interviewers thank

interviewee.

Next student stands.

Interviewee stands so that everyone gets to look up –

equalizes status.

Amygdala is a threat sensor –looks for facial expressions &

tone of voice. A detected threat causes stress

hormones & fight or flight reflex, constricting

perception & cognition. High levels of stress may make it

difficult to lay down new memories.

Information processing

Emotional Investment

Nourishment

Social Involvement

Safety

Engages Kinaesthetic intelligence.

Engage multiple memory systems – there is “memory in the muscles” – that which we do makes it more likely that we will recall it.

Place information in more places in the brain to increase recall -

Standing up & going through the motions activates the motor cortex.

Speaking & hearing

activates the Temporal Lobe.

Seeing each other do

this activates

the Occipital lobe.

Using all of these & the links between them, exponentially increases the probability of

recall.

Opens up working memory.

Everyone takes part, safely.

Places ideas into long term memory.

Retrograde Memory Enhancement – attach an emotional link to an idea, by giving a high five at the end, can help the information be selected by the Amygdala as suitable for long

term memory inclusion.

Increases energy in a tired group (purely by getting them to stand up!)

Why is this Brain Friendly?Why is this Brain Friendly?

Novelty

Social

Info-processing

Activates multiple intelligences

Safe

Why is this Brain Friendly?Why is this Brain Friendly?

What does 3 step do?What does 3 step do?

1)Brain – Helps to reduce stress, novelty allows for Episodic Memory.

2)Activates Multiple intelligences

3)Thinking Skills

4)Teamwork Skills.

5)Academic Achievement.

Team statementsTeam statements1)Think time.

2)Pair discussion with shoulder partner.

3)Individuals write down their idea.

4)Roundrobin - sharing their ideas with no feedback, one at a time.

5)Team discussion, seeking an underlying source.

6)Consensus

7)Feedback.

State

ments

should

not b

e all

the

individ

ual ones a

dded togeth

er,

but som

ethin

g that c

apture

s the

essence

!

Learning needs Learning needs to be…to be…

Kagan structures & the Kagan structures & the “Hidden Curriculum”.“Hidden Curriculum”.

Traditional Curriculum

““What”What”

Maths Science English

Languages Etc.

Hidden Curriculum

““How”How”

Multiple intelligences, Thinking Skills, Active Learning, Social Skills, Emotional Intelligence,

Teamwork Skills, Citizenship Etc.

Kagan Structures.

All the features of the Hidden Curriculum become ways of delivering the “Traditional

Curriculum”.

““What”What”

Maths Science English

Languages. Multiple

intelligences, Thinking Skills, Active Learning,

Social Skills, Emotional

Intelligence, Teamwork

Skills, Citizenship

““How”How”

Kagan Structures

Structures allow us to deliver the Hidden

Curriculum through the traditional Curriculum, with

increased effectiveness.

StructuresStructures

ExperimentingExperimenting

Common Approach Common Approach

ChampionsChampions

SAMSAM

Ass

ess

ment

for

learn

ing

.

Gen

eri

c Targ

ets

Kag

an

Str

uct

ure

s

New

Aim

s

Acc

ele

rate

d learn

ing

Th

inki

ng

Ski

lls

Assessment for learning.

Generic Targets

Kagan Structures

New Aims

Accelerated learning

Thinking Skills

End of Session 2End of Session 2