Essential Questions

A study published in the Child Development Journal by Robert Bradley makes a strong case for the impact of parenting practices in terms of of child intelligence and school performance. The study found that parenting practices, observed through in-home assessments during the first 2 years of life “were substantially correlated with intelligence test scores at ages 3 and 4½” and noted that “variety of stimulation” in those early years was correlated with first grade test scores (emphasis mine). Furthermore, “Of all the HOME [Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment] subscales, ‘play materials’ revealed the strongest correlation with first-grade achievement.” In short, how parents engaged their children predicted their children’s future development and performance.

“Specifically, there is evidence that children’s early cognitive development is associated with such family environment factors as the language stimulation available to the child, the responsivity of parents, the emotional support given by parents, the number of toys and stimulating objects available, the extent to which the home is organized and safe, and the variety of out-of-home experiences provided the child.”

Connected with Zero to Three’s findings on brain development, it is fair to conclude that stimulation translates not only into neural development, but into real cognitive and language development.

Building a loving relationship with your child in the early by talking, reading, playing and exploring will pay dividends for the rest of your child’s life.

The first five years of life are the time of most prolific brain growth - from 25% to 90% of its adult size. That growth is due in large part to neurons forming branching dendrites (making connections to other neurons). This neural branching is activity-dependent, as explained by Zero to Three, a national nonprofit organization that informs, educates and supports adults who influence the lives of infants and toddlers.

clipped from www.zerotothree.org

Does experience change the actual structure of the brain?

Yes. Brain development is “activity-dependent,” meaning that the electrical activity in every circuit—sensory, motor, emotional, cognitive–shapes the way that circuit gets put together. Like computer circuits, neural circuits process information through the flow of electricity. Unlike computer circuits, however, the circuits in our brains are not fixed structures. Every experience–whether it is seeing one’s first rainbow, riding a bicycle, reading a book, sharing a joke–excites certain neural circuits and leaves others inactive. Those that are consistently turned on over time will be strengthened, while those that are rarely excited may be dropped away.

The implications the nature of activity-dependent brain development are tremendous for parents. The most significant brain growth occurs not during the school years under the tutelage of professional educators, but in the home, under the love and care of parents. The love that parents provide, they inquiry they encourage, and the exploration they support all influence which neural circuits develop, and which ones drop away. Parents have a high calling indeed.

At tumblon, we’re convinced that the quality of parenting has a significant impact on a child’s development. A recent study on the influence of income level and parenting quality in Child Development Journal drew this conclusion:

“These findings point to the importance of examining parenting resources and parenting quality as joint contributors to children’s development,” according to lead author Julieta Lugo-Gil.

Lugo-Gil also called for programs that enhance parents’ resources beyond income alone. “Strengthening the quality of parenting should also include services aimed at improving family literacy and education, reducing parental stress, and providing high-quality child care.” (Eurekalert)

Tumblon is committed to creating the best parenting resource that addresses family literacy and education through great children’s literature, reduces parental stress through wise parenting practices, and enables parents to provide high-quality child care. Moreover, we’re building our business to make this resource accessible to people of all economic and educational levels.

One of the ways that we’re growing is by listening to parents. If you see a way that we can better address the needs of parents,  please email us at support@tumblon.com. Together, we can help parents.

A study released yesterday in the Child Development Journal supports the claim that background television “is a disruptive influence on very young children’s behavior.” In simple terms, having the TV on makes it harder for kids to play, even if they’re not focusing on the TV. That’s not an altogether surprising conclusion: distractions tend to distract.

What should not be overlooked is the researchers’ observation: “These findings have implications for subsequent cognitive development.” If play is one of the primary means of cognitive development for children (and it is), then background TV can slow their cognitive development, which can in turn affect social and emotional development.

So when it is time to play, turn off the TV, and check out tumblon’s list of developmentally appropriate toys, books and activities. You might find yourself having so much fun, you unplug the TV!