Mindup brain video driver#

Willis' emphasis on teaching practices that engage the heart and mind to challenge all students to their highest potentials. She has been interviewed by USA Today, Euronews, The Wall Street Journal, NBC News Education Nation, ABC Australia Radio, Lateline Australia, Popular Mechanics, Neurology Today, USA Today, Washington Post, Education Week, Medscope Neurology, Parenting Magazine among others, and writes staff expert blogs for NBC News Education Nation, Edutopia, Psychology Today, and The Guardian. In 2011 she was selected by Edutopia as a “Big Thinkers on Education.” She also consults for the World Bank about education design in developing countries, focused on Vietnam. Willis is on the adjunct faculty of the Williams College and travels nationally and internationally giving presentations, workshops, and consulting about learning and the brain. She then taught in elementary and secondary school for 10 years.ĭr. She practiced neurology for 15 years before returning to university to obtain her teaching credential and Masters of Education degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She remained at UCLA and completed a medical residency and neurology residency, including chief residency. Judy Willis, a board-certified neurologist combined her 15 years as a practicing neurologist with ten subsequent years as a classroom teacher to become a leading authority in the neuroscience of learning. With her unique background as both in neuroscience and education, she has written ten books and more than 200 articles about applying neuroscience research to classroom teaching strategies.Īfter graduating Phi Beta Kappa as the first woman graduate from Williams College, Willis attended UCLA School of Medicine where she was awarded her medical degree. This website features the insights, publications, and presentation schedules pertaining to parent and teacher strategies to ignite student learning.ĭr. When a Neurologist becomes a classroom teacher, Brain Learning Research promotes teaching strategies. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.See March Newsletter for discussion of cooperative learning Prins’ third graders exercise their bodies to grow their brains.Īdd Streams of Consciousness to your RSS feeds to stay up to date with the latest posts. Next week The Education of Character-Jumping Jacks for The Mind. Also: Listen to me discuss the topic on NPR's On Point with Tom Ashbrook: 'Reading, Writing and Character.' In the video below, Marianne Prins, a third-grade teacher at Sir William Van Horne Elementary in Vancouver, demonstrates the amygdala shake-up and explains how it’s useful.įor more on social and emotional learning, see my feature article “Schools Add Workouts for Attention, Grit and Emotional Control” in the September/October Scientific American Mind. And the use of brain science as a tool for social and emotional learning is a signature aspect of MindUp. In modern times, however, fast reactions usually create more problems than they solve.) The amygdala shake-up is a lesson in self-regulation, a skill useful in many facets of life. (The rapid response system is better suited to situations involving real danger in which speed is essential.

This simple sketch shows kids why it is usually a good idea to stop and take a breath after an event that makes them mad, sad or annoyed.

Once the glitter and sand are mixed, she rights the bottle and waits for the sand and glitter to settle, explaining that the wait represents the time it takes the amygdala to calm down enough so that a person can make a good choice. Then, in front of the class (or a single student), she turns over the bottle and shakes up its contents to show what happens when a person gets stressed or upset. For this activity, a teacher creates a crude model of the amygdala from a soda bottle filled with water, sand and glitter.

Some educators believe that such a skill should be taught to everyone at a very young age.Ī curriculum called MindUP conceived by actor Goldie Hawn includes an activity called the amygdala shake-up designed to help children understand the need for this sort of patience. Ideally, we would all pause long enough for rational thought to take over-say, after someone cuts us off on the road or criticizes our efforts at work or at home. When it’s in high gear, feelings tend to rule the neural roost, blocking the ability to rationally consider the best course of action. An almond-shaped structure in the center of the brain called the amygdala is a hub for emotional responses. Virtually everyone has had the experience of reacting in the heat of the moment only to later regret his or her words or deed.

Mindup brain video driver#

Emotion is a powerful driver of behavior, sometimes too powerful.