EDUC 2130 Lesson 4

In this lesson we had another podcast done by Anita. In this lesson she talks about the brain and how if you don't use it that you may lose materials you had learned, hence the phrase "use it or lose it". In this lesson we also discussed Bloom's taxonomy. I found this part very interesting. I thouroughly enjoyed this lesson.

What are some basic findings concerning the brain mentioned by Anita?
- The first basic finding mentioned by Anita is that the brain has nerve cells that send out branches to reach out to cells from other parts and all the neurons communicate. Children have many more synapse then they’ll ever use and way more than adults. The synapse’s that aren’t used are pruned away. This synapse is a structure that permits the neuron to pass through them into other cells.

What does Anita mean when she says "Use it or Lose it?"
- Anita uses the phrase “Use it or Lose it” because the unused synapses in the brain are pruned off like a tree. If you’re not constantly using these things that will stop working. Anita says that you must use the brain to its full potential or you will lose it little by little. If your brain is not being fully used you will find yourself not being able to use it as much because it will slowly go away. It is also easier to retain or remember information that is in a constant remembrance state.

Why does Anita mention Taxi drivers in the podcast?
- A certain part of the brain grew larger in taxi drivers because they were constantly using a specific part to navigate around the city. The study also showed that the taxi drivers who had been driving the longest also had a larger portion in their brain than the ones who had not been driving for as long. This study reinforces the study that states that if a specific part of the brain is constantly firing it will grow to a greater size. Anita mentions this because the brain study showed different studies involving the brain and this reinforces the study. That is why Anita mentions it.

According to the podcast, why is it important to learn different methods in solving math problems?
- It is important to learn different ways to solve math problems because if your initial way gets blocked then you are unable to do anything. This is just like someone who only knows one road if that one road is blocked then they can’t get to where they need to be. This is also true in our everyday life in many different instances the way we may rely on the most may be blocked and we have to use our problem solving techniques to solve problems. This process is very important because it helps to keep more than just one area of the brain working.

Explain "Bloom's Taxonomy".
- Bloom’s Taxonomy is a way to classify the different objectives that teachers set for students. This study is divided into three different categories cognitive, affective, and psychomotor. This is also knowing/head, feeling/heart, and doing/hands. This is used to help students draw lines between all the different areas of the classroom. The knowing is put with the head knowledge while the feeling is with the heart with shows that the students and teachers do care about the subject. Finally the doing or the hands part is the hands on activities that pull it all together and show the real life situations that it can be used.

Summary:

Throughout this lesson I learned a lot about the brain and how the brain works. I had always heard that of you didn’t use your brain you would lose it but I never really understood the saying. Through listening to the podcast by Anita I found the reason as to why that will happen. I also didn’t know that the more you use a certain area of the brain the larger that portion will become. I learned a lot of things that I didn’t know before by doing this lesson.

Research Question: How can I grow my brain?

Reference: http://www.radiolab.org/story/235337-how-grow-your-brain/

Research Analysis:

Through doing this lesson I grew very interested in as to how I could grow my brain. I went out searching and researching as to how I could grow my brain. I found this article about how to grow the brain and I was very surprised by what I found. Many of us have learned through growing up that our brain will stop growing by the age twenty but this is not true. I found that even an old brain can grow new neurons and grow larger.

There are many different ways that the brain can be grown and through many different activities. The first way to grow your brain is to run. When you run you are forming more brain cells in a rat anyway. This study was done using rats and when they ran on the hamster wheel they grew brain cells. Another way to grow your brain is to be near trees. It has been shown by studies that when trees are places within cages or the cages have things that they can climb on their brain grows more and more.

One way to me that seemed especially surprising was the fact that when we have a seizure our brain grows. When one has a seizure is causes the neurons to begin to go crazy which causes the brain to grow. Another way which to me was really common sense is to just simply think. When we think our brain fires more and whichever area of the brain is being used will begin to fire and that part of the brain will grow. These are all ways to grow the brain and these are all ways to make the brain work better.

Research Summary:

Through this lesson I learned a lot about the brain and how the brain works. I also became interested in to how I could grow my brain and the brains of my future students. Through the research I found numerous ways to grow the brain. These ways included running, being near trees, having a seizure, and by simply thinking. I was pleased with my research and thought it very interesting as to knowing just how easy I could grow my brain. Maybe one day when I have my own classroom I can get one near a tree so I can grow the brain of my students.