Parents: Paying Attention Early Pays Off

It’s pretty common for many parents to begin introducing their child to learning concepts only after they have started speaking. Even though it may satisfy the parental desire to be understood by and understand their children, this may not be the most effective plan for educating a young mind. Parents who wait to begin educating their children could be missing out on a small but critical window of opportunity that can make their child’s transition to formal education much easier.  Furthermore, the lack of appropriate mental stimulation may even inhibit a child’s ability to adequately learn and focus in the future! This is why establishing healthy learning habits at an early age is crucial to the success of a young mind.

The minds of babies and children are like sponges and they absorb everything they are exposed to, be it positive or negative. The younger the mind, the greater capacity they have for learning.  

Don’t Miss the Small Window of Opportunity!

So here’s the science behind why early education is so important. Research has shown that at birth an infants mind is not yet fully developed, but by age two a toddler has over 1,000 trillion, yes, TRILLION synapses! That is twice that of an adult! If these synapses are not activated and reinforced, by adolescence over half of these synapses will have been eliminated. Its a “use it or lose it” situation.

During the first three years of a child’s life the production of these synapses, or connections in the brain is at its highest point than at any other time in a human beings ENTIRE life!

This is why family literacy plays such a critical role in the PERMANENT retention of synapses and the life-long academic/wholistic development of a child. A child must have stimulating early experiences in order to activate the neural pathways that lead to the synapses in their developing brain. Consistent stimulating experiences strengthen those pathways. If the pathways have been consistently reinforced, during the small window of opportunity,  the synapses is not eliminated and is allowed to become permanent.

Activating Your Child’s Mind

Its a lot easier than you may think. Creating a strong bond with your infant by talking, singing  and reading to them daily in a nurturing way, enables the infant’s developing brain to activate the pathways–but it doesn’t end there. The marvelous happenings in a child’s mind is what makes this “window of opportunity” an ideal time to introduce early learning concepts!

Parents who leave their babies/children at the mercy of mindless television shows, sitting alone with little to no interaction, etc are most likely sabotaging the otherwise bright future of their children.

It might be argued that a 4 year old child who can rap Rick Ross to perfection is talented in other ways. Yes, to be sure, precious neural pathways are being activated and synapses reinforced, but to what purpose? How can it contribute to that child’s academic success?

With all of the early learning tools available to parents, there is simply no excuse for children not to be exposed to various types of educational stimuli. Every moment is an opportunity to educate our children!

If a child enjoys music, there are fun, age appropriate, educational cds and dvds as well as books, games and activities that will have them dancing, singing movin’ and groovin’ while also teaching them just about anything under the sun! By preparing our children now we are  giving them the tools that will allow them enjoy great success in the lifelong pursuit of education.