I’ve mentioned before that with a kid, there is no pause button. Especially with having a 3 and a half year-old son, his mind (and body) have to be constantly be moving.

Sure, that’s just how little boys are.

But I think it’s important to consider this from a scientific perspective. This new infographic, “What’s Going On Inside Your Child’s Brain?” does a great job of helping me understand.

The short version of it is that children are constantly learning and maturing…. at a faster rate than us adults. According to the infographic, we stop maturing by age 25, for the most part.

Contrast that with a child, who seems to need constant attention as compared to an adult, and it makes a lot of sense.

Check it out…

 

What’s Going On Inside Your Child’s Brain?

 

Children vs Adult Brains:
A child’s brain has completely different priorities than an adults.
Children think, behave, and learn differently –
Meaning parenting and teaching can be a challenge

Below we see how different sections of the brain trigger behaviors in children and adults.

Most active areas in children:

1. Brain stem
The brain stem is the part of a child’s brain that controls heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature.
2. Midbrain
The midbrain stimulates “arousal,” appetite/ satiety and sleep.

Most active areas in adults:

1. Limbic system
The limbic system controls sexual behavior, emotional reactivity and motor regulation.
2. Cortex
The cortex is responsible for concrete thought, affiliation and attachment.

 

The Brain Basics

 

1. Neurons:

• Building blocks of the brain

 

• Nerve cells that specialize to form brain sections

 

• Communicate messages throughout the brain

 

 

2. Synapse:

• A connection between 2 neurons

 

• Each Neuron has thousands of synapses

 

• Creates connections between thousands of neurons.

 

 

3. Myelin:

• An insulating sheath that covers the length of mature neurons

 

• Necessary for clear, efficient, electrical transmission

 

• Increasing connection effectiveness by 3000x

 

 

Synapse Time Line

 

Brain development throughout stages of life:

 

[Newborns]

• Developing automatic functions, the 5 senses, and motion

 

• Brain is 25% of its future adult weight

 

• Implicit (or unconscious) memory allows recognition of mother and family

 

 

[Toddlers]

• Brain develops up to 2,000,000 synapses per second

 

• Building the architecture for future functioning

 

 

[by Age 3]

• Brain already weighs nearly 90% of it’s future adult weight

 

• Explicit (conscious memory) develops

 

• Future capacities for learning, social interaction, and emotional abilities are already largely established

 

 

[4 through 10 ]

• Children’s brains are more than twice as active as adult’s brains.

 

• Of the body’s total O2 intake, the adult brain consumes 20%A child’s brain consumes up to 50%

 

 

[by Age 8]

 “Logic” abilities start to form

 

 

[Age 11 into adulthood]

• “Use it or Lose it”

 

• Pruning: deleting lesser-used synapse connections making other pathways more efficient

 

 

[Age 14]

• Myelination begins in the Frontal Lobe (higher learning)

 

• Reasoning, planning, emotions, and problem-solving skills significantly develop

 

[Age 16] Drive a car

[Age 18] Vote

[Age 21] Drink Alcohol

 

[Age 23]

 Pruning completes

 

• Nearly half of the child’s synapses have been deleted

 

 

[Age 25]

 Myelination completes

 

• The brain is finally fully matured
  Insurance rates drop – Not a coincidence

 

 

[Beyond:] 

Brain Composition

 

• Continually changes as learning occurs throughout lifespan

 

No matter what your age, when it comes to brain functions, it’s literally “use ‘em or lose ‘em”

Sources:
http://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/briefs/inbrief_series/inbrief_the_science_of_ecd
http://www.cyf.govt.nz/documents/info-for-caregivers/fds-cd-stages-of-brain-dec11-hu.pdf
http://hrweb.mit.edu/worklife/youngadult/brain.html
https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/issue_briefs/brain_development/how.cfm
http://www.academia.edu/6089683/REFLECTION_ON_LEARNING_AND_THE_STAGES_OF_DEVELOPMENT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXnyM0ZuKNU
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK28194

Source: Early-Childhood-Education-Degrees.com