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Monday, June 7, 2010

Plastic Brains

Is your brain plastic?  Definitely not.  It might feel like it is made of silly putty after hours at a park, but rest assured your brain is regenerative and amazing. 

It used to be thought that as we get older, the connections in our brains become fixed.  However, newer research tells us that the brain has the ability to reorganize itself and form new neural connections.  This is great news for learning.


The more information we discover about our brains and how we learn, the better.  Discovering that our brains never stop making new connections promotes hope for change and improvement.

For example, a Carnegie Mellon University study showed that “Remedial Instruction Rewires Dyslexic Brains, Provides Lasting Results” .

The research gives me hope that with enough remedial instruction I may be able to call my son by his correct name on the first try rather than going through a litany of names, "Dad, Paul, Matt, Charlie, ahhhh you!"  

I'm off to start working on my neural connections.

1 comment:

Carmela Martino said...

Yes, I've been encouraged by some recent research that says we may even be able to create new brain cells as we age. And I find it interesting that exercise may be one of the keys to keeping our brains young. One more motivation for me to fit regular workouts into my schedule. :-)