By Eva-Marie Ayala
The nation’s mayors had a crash course in neuroscience this morning as brain expert Patricia Kuhl showed them how much early childhood education makes a difference.
The interaction and experiences children have from birth to five determine what kind of connections in the brain stay over a lifetime, said Kuhl, the co-director of the Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences at the University of Washington.
“The interesting thing for us – and for you as community leaders is to understand that you have to build a brain,” she said. “Brains come ready to learn, but it is we who have to supply the information.”
In this picture, Kuhl is showing how much more the brain is engaged when an infant has access to quality language engagement at 12 months old. The activity is increased when a child has a that engagement in more than one language, she said.
