Easy, simple ways to build up your child’s brain power

Centuries ago, midwives and mother ’s advised pregnant women to stay happy, listen to music, be around nature, and embrace good health. Now Well-advanced research in child development shows that brain development in children does not occur after birth but begins in the womb itself.

So, it is important for both parents but especially mothers to avoid smoking, alcohol, and substance abuse when pregnant and to adopt a healthy lifestyle. It is just not about food and exercise. It is about staying positive in thoughts, keeping a happy frame of mind, exposing the child in the womb to wonderful happy thoughts and music. There are parents who talk to the unborn child and swear that their child is clever and an achiever because of this. Try it, ask your doctors about it.

While a great part of intelligence i n s genetic or inherited, there exist ways and means by which the brain power of a child can be built up. It is important for you as parents to understand how intelligent a child is and that this intelligence can be nurtured by giving a child love, care, and understanding. It is crucial for us as parents to adapt our life to suit the needs of a child and not expect the child to be a teeny weenie bit of in our crowded life.

The golden key is to focus on the child as a whole. A rounded and clever child is one who knows he is safe and secure, and has plenty of opportunities to run and play, dance, build with blocks, enjoy music, write stories, create pictures, do role playing, run his hands through sand and water, touch leaves, pluck flowers and fruit, and care for animals and birds.

Plenty of love, great amounts of support, quality time with parents, as well as diverse and enriching experiences is what contribute towards an ideal environment for a child to grow in. The ABCs of boosting brain power lie in learning-attention, bonding, a diet that contains brain food, and communications.

Changes in Routine Help

Babies as well as toddlers and older kids respond to the stimulus offered by experiences in their home and environment. Did you know , that the brain of children is stimulated by the variety of sensations encountered each day?

So, you can set the wheels in motion by introducing activities within the house as well as outdoors. These will promote learning and interactive experiences. Talk to the child as much as you can. Maintain eye contact and allow the child to absorb your facial expressions. Savor every attempt at communication made by the child be it a hand extended towards you, a gurgle, or smile. Create a rapport between you and the child and you will be surprised to see that the child understands and responds.

Many mothers treat the baby like a friend and talk about what happened, what they are going to cook and so on. Even while bathing the baby, you could introduce the child to concepts of cleanliness by saying “Ah, lovely bubbles will carry the dirt away.” Or, while changing a nappy give a step-by-step commentary—”. Now the wet nappy comes off, let’s clean up nice and fragrant, here is some cool powder that will keep you dry.” Activities such as these expand the child’s mind and their understanding of what is happening increases along with expansion of while expanding their vocabulary.

Think back to your own childhood and you will find songs your mother and grandmother sang to you are what you remember with great clarity –the words as well as music.

All children big and small are like sponges that absorb experiences, so expose the child to the great outdoors. Let him feel the breeze, watch sparrows hop, leaves dance, and a crow nest in the trees. Take the baby for a walk and talk to him about where you are going and what he is looking at. Introduce the child to other children and pets as well as adults. Interactions are important and socialization is crucial.

Be sure to vary the routine and make an effort to widen the experiences—take the child to a park. Let him watch and try out the slide, swings, and round about. Go to the beach and let him touch his toes in the surf, feel the sensations of sand between his toes, feel the sand trickle through his fingers.

Make an effort and you will find your child has absorbed and retained every positive as well as negative experience. And, children who have had a great variety of experiences do better at school and in society.

Food for Thought

It is not just brain - stimulating activities that boost brain power, the food a child eats affects its thinking as well as actions. Did you know, a brain needs plenty of carbohydrates, fats, as well as proteins, vitamins and minerals for both repair as well as function? In fact, many mothers are witness to mood swings and erratic behavior in their children after the consumption of chocolates or junk sugar foods like candy, icing, syrups, and packaged baked products. The sugar highs and lows caused by certain kinds of foods can make a child fidgety, irritable, inattentive, and sleepy.

The best brain foods that you can feed your child are brain friendly carbs like: grapefruit, apples, cherries, and oranges—eaten whole is more beneficial than juice; oatmeal and bran as well as spaghetti and rice; legumes like soybeans, kidney beans, chick peas, and lentils; milk and yogurt. Introduce foods that have a low glycemic index into your little one’s diet.

Meals in schools should be nutritionally appropriate. And fast foods and caffeine filled sodas are to be avoided. Schools must promote health foods and encourage children to drink juices and milk. Make the use of a chart to determine what happy foods are and what sad foods are for your child and plan the meals accordingly.

To maintain their systems children need frequent meals. The gap between t wo meals should not be long. So, encourage snacking in between meals.

Sharpen the Intellect

Thinking skills are the most crucial in the technological world of today. Educators firmly believe that it is not the volume of knowledge but the ability to assimilate and make sense of information that is essential. Children must know how to find solutions to problems and situations.

The goal of education is to teach children to be effective thinkers ---as you know, this is what equips them to stay ahead in situations where solutions need to be found at the snap of fingers. So, you must focus on cognitive development and higher order thinking.

As a parent there are a great many ways in which you can work towards the goal of effective thinking and higher reasoning. Technology has made available several computer programs, software CDs , and DVDs that are fun to use and place the children in more and more difficult situations, which they need to solve. The focus of companies such as Smart Neurons are educational teaching aids and toys which fulfill the goal of enhancing thinking, mathematical abilities, and problem solving in children.

One of the best ways you can use to develop cognitive as well as social skills is play. If your child is exposed to different types of play then this will enhance thinking, creativity, effective communication, and social development. When you observe your child at play you will find that he or she often dons several pretend roles—perhaps that of mother, father, or teacher, the behavior is largely imitative. You will also notice that interaction with other children or with you is more relaxed and forthcoming when at play as the child is relaxed and in a happy frame of mind.

Allow your child the luxury of borrowing CDs and DVDs from your library. Or, if you can afford it, buy some from the many choices available; introduce video games, as well as other skill building toys. When a child plays video games , the ability to visualize and manipulate objects is enhanced. The child also acquires the skill to think quickly for solutions as the game progresses. Games teach children problem solving, strategies, logical reasoning, and more.

Allow the child to choose his or her own toys but be sure to guide them. Toys alone will not teach the child much. What is needed most is playtime with friends, as well as parents. A warm, dependable, and loving relationship with parents is what molds a child.

It is the circle of love and care given by you the parent that forms the basis for learning.

Exercise Clears Cobwebs

Our grandmother ’s used to say that fresh air will clear the cobwebs in the mind—they were absolutely right. Physical activity, fresh air, and exercise help stimulate the brain and enhance learning.

Children need sustained physical exercise and as a parent you need to ensure this by taking the child to a park or play ground where he can run and play. Allow the child to climb the jungle tree, sit on swings, play ball with others.

Introduce physical exercises as a part of the daily routine—exercise along with the child -make it a “group activity.” Many parents join aerobics or other forms of exercise and the time spent together strengthens both love as well as understanding.

Exercise aerates the brain cells. When a child exercises , blood courses through the veins and arteries and the brain too receives more nutrients and the flowing blood takes away metabolic waste by- products away for disposal.

Physical activity you will find, promotes clear thinking, boosts creativity, and stimulates learning. It also keeps the brain cells working, increases energy, and mental concentration, helps develop motor skills and coordination, introduces positivity , and reduces depression in children as well as adults.

Music Creates Geniuses

Wow! Did you know that music majors stand a higher chance to at becoming doctors and most successful techies at s Silicon v Valley are practicing musicians ---don’t be surprised to hear this but music it is well known to creates geniuses.

Listening to music and learning music enhances retentive powers and vocabulary. Music nurtures the brain and stimulates overall growth. Have you read or heard about the “Mozart effect” --did you know Studies show that listening to Mozart’s piano sonata K448 for just 10 minutes increased spatial scores in IQ tests.

Many parents now expose even newborn babies and older children to recorded classical music as it is firmly believed that it helps infants think better.

Children who learn music display a 48% boost in their spatial IQ, which is indicative of higher brain functions, which enhance the ability to tackle complex and advance mathematics as well as science.

So, expose you child to music as it makes your child smarter.

It is parents, caregivers and teachers who play a critical role in the development of a child. The brain of a child is shaped in the first 10 years of life –this is when the brain is most receptive and can be nurtured to boost intelligence. Music, games, art, and lifelong skills are best taught during these formative years. With patience, care, and knowledge one can create positive, content, and happy children.

Author Information:

Article was contributed by Smart Neurons www.smartneurons.com . Smart Neurons offers kids’ educational software, video and other educational aids. Our products encourage critical thinking, imagination and leadership skills and are targeted to enhance a child’s educational experience. Children are encouraged to explore the world around them through fun and engaging activities. Through our products and software, Preschool children use their observations to expand their understanding of the world and develop their ability to express themselves.