Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/consider-this-we-still-grow-brains-in-2022!/5026488/
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Over 10 years ago, my colleagues and I published an article in Exchange titled “We Grow Brains” (Rike, Izumi-Taylor, & Moberly, 2008), in which we discussed the importance of early childhood educators being proud of their professions, because we are not only caring for and educating young children, but also growing their brains. More than a decade later, I am still strongly advocating for the importance of “growing children’s brains.”
Everything we do for children affects their brain development. We are informed that a newborn has almost 86 billion neurons. Neurons are connected by roughly 50 trillion neural connections, called synapses. During the first year of life, the network of synapses grows rapidly, and continues to develop during toddlerhood. These synapse connections determine the development of a child’s behavior and cognitive functions.
We also know that we can make children’s neural pathways stronger and richer by providing developmentally appropriate early care that is responsive and warm. ...