Neurophysiologist and author Carla Hannaford wrote the book, Smart Moves: Why Learning Is Not All In Your Head. This was a fantastic book to read and I recommend it for anyone interested in learning more about the connection between physical movement and learning…at any age. What do we enjoy about music? First of all, it triggers emotions, feelings, laughter and tears but it also assists in the development of the limbic system and its connection to high level reasoning and memory (Hannaford 1995). The earlier children are introduced to music, dancing and exploring movements, the more their brains develop and can express emotions in healthy ways. Dopamine is important to cognitive processing because it activates the amygdala around emotions having to do with new, exciting experiences, which are necessary in learning and memory (Hannaford, 1995). When a child hears a song they have heard before, their bodies start moving and they get excited. Isn’t that how we all feel when a Bruce Springsteen song comes on...Or is that just me? How about Taylor Swift? Hannaford talks about rote learning-which is a memorization technique based on repetition. The idea behind rote learning is one will be able to recall the meaning of the material the more they repeat it. Movement is necessary to gain the thought and build the nerve networks (Hannaford, 1995). Using gestures, body movements, or any other movement associated with what one is learning can highly benefit. I can directly relate to this as I have found that teaching the terms horizontal and vertical to first graders was extremely effective when I put my arms out (horizontally) and then straight up (vertically). We have a little song that goes with it- and its great to teach oblique lines, perpendicular and so on. Now lets take our focus back to the brain. We all know that nerves are fibers that transmit sensations to the brain and then on to our muscles and organs. There are three parts that make up your brain: The cerebrum, the cerebellum and the brain stem. The cerebrum encourages remembering, problem solving, thinking, movement and feeling. The cerebellum is at the back of the head and controls coordination and balance. Finally the brain stem connects to your spinal cord. This controls automatic functions like breathing, digestion, heart rate and blood pressure. Movement anchors Thinking and learning. “The cerebellum possesses the fasted conducting pathways between itself and the neo-cortex adding 5-10% to the speed with which the cortex can put together information and reason. Thus moving while learning increases the learning” (Hannaford, 1995 p. 110). Another chapter I found very intriguing associating movement and the brain is the vestibular system. A quick review on the vestibular system: A sensory system that provides contribution to the sense of balance and spatial orientation for the purpose of coordinating movement with balance. I saw a student dragging her hands up against the hallway. Another teacher, in passing, firmly told the students to get their hands off the wall. I walked along in silence thinking, “Hmmm, was she upset the wall might be dirty now?” Then a seminar I attended a few months after had an occupational therapist talk about certain things children do, how to help and what to be cautious of. She mentioned the hallways and students dragging their hands against the wall. My ears perked up immediately. I found it astonishing that children are trying to find a balance. They need to feel the structured wall in order to find their “place” in the world. The spatial connection to our body’s movements and our brains are connected and influence each other in so many ways! The more they develop their sense of balance and their entire vestibular system, in turn affects their hearing, attention, language, and all learning.” (Hannaford, 1995) Involving cross lateral movements directly stimulate the vestibular system by strengthening it. When I have a brain break, I make sure to add in their the cross lateral movements. Those precious brains need as much exposure to movements and understanding their bodies. Learning is experience. Everything else is just information. -Albert Einstein Reference: Hannaford, C. (1995). Smart moves: Why learning is not all in your head. Arlington, VA: Great Ocean.
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This article explores the hypothesis that fundamental benefits of performing arts involvement make up an important contribution to learning (Jensen, 2000). Science says that theatrical involvement during learning facilitates the maturation of the brain’s cortical systems. (Allman, 1999) Movements such as spinning and body rotation can have an effect of the formation of brain areas responsible for controlling spatial, visual and auditory functions which in turn enhance learner maturation and brain function (Jensen, 2000). I found this to be very interesting, as in my classroom I incorporate multiple brain systems throughout my lessons. One that came to mind is an exercise to remember what horizontal and vertical mean. We have a song that goes along with movement of using our arms to show vertical and horizontal. Anytime I need to get their attention, I can do the movement and immediately they lip-sync the words as they do the movement. Activating one part of the brain can activate another part of our brain, which helps with cognition. This article also talks about how movement increased the standardized testing scores of the National Reading Exams. The graph below illustrates that success. I found it interesting that Jensen mentions pantomiming and how it is a great tool for teaching social skills. It allows for the development of nonverbal skills, combining thoughts and acting out something when prompted. This article also supports motivation and brain neurotransmitters. Students that show helplessness in a classroom often suffer from a chronic depletion of the chemicals-acetylcholine, dopamine, GABA, norepinephrine and serotonin. These neurotransmitters are the fuel for thinking, planning, feeling good and taking action (Jensen, 2000). These specific students would definitely benefit from movement incorporated into their lessons. Therapy can also aide in this disability, but Jensen’s research states that, “re-wiring the brain is more effective in feeling successful and rebalancing the brain through active movement.” When it comes to cognition, Jensen mentions a study in which students had to remember all 50 states and they did that by running around the room to each state that was placed on the floor. Did they remember where they were? Yes. In my classroom we incorporate spelling with sounds of a drum. Students use the parts of the brain that stimulates body movement and in turn, the correct spelling. We use clapping and catchy songs to aide in that cognition. The difference in telling students that we use a “ck” after a short vowel and coming up with a song and snapping fingers to trigger those important brain systems in powerful! The orbitofrontal Cortex is the part of the brain that aides in cognition, sensation and emotion (Jenson, 2000). Emotions play a huge role in overall intelligence. What we can control is how we regulate that system. Movement is a key factor in expressing our human emotion. The brain is a beautiful thing. Understanding its components and how to best use the brain systems to better understand our students in education can be so powerful. References: Allman, J.M. 1999. Evolving Brains. New York, NY: Scientific American Library. Jensen, E. 2000. Learning with the Body in Mind. San Diego, CA: The Brain Store, Inc. Palmer, Lyelle. 1980. Auditory discrimination through vestibule-cochlear stimulation. Academic Therapy. September. 16(1): 55-68. |
About:Welcome to my blog! If you are interested in learning how music, movement and the brain work together, check out my summaries and reviews based on peer reviewed and research based articles. I have loved reading and learning more about how music, exercise and movement help the brain learn. I hope you enjoy it too! Archives
March 2017
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