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Research -- StepUp to Learn

Children Use Both Brain Hemispheres to Understand Language, Unlike Adults

Children Use Both Brain Hemispheres to Understand Language, Unlike Adults

Whereas adults process most discrete neural tasks in specific areas in one or the other of their brain's two hemispheres, young children use both the right and left hemispheres to do the same task. The finding suggests a possible reason why children appear to recover from neural injury much easier than adults.

Posted in Language, Movement & Exercise, Neuroscience, School Readiness, Speech & Language

Children Will Wait to Impress Others—Another Twist on the Classic Marshmallow Test

Children Will Wait to Impress Others—Another Twist on the Classic Marshmallow Test

When it comes to self-control, young children are better able to resist temptation and wait for greater rewards if they take into consideration the opinions of others, a new study finds.
Posted in Neuroscience, Social Development, Social Skills

Visual-Spatial Learning Disorder Is More Common Than Thought

Visual-Spatial Learning Disorder Is More Common Than Thought

Nonverbal learning disability (NVLD), a poorly understood and often-overlooked disorder that causes problems with visual-spatial processing, may affect nearly 3 million children in the United States, making it one of the most common learning disorders.
Posted in Education, Health & Wellness, Mathematics, Memory, Movement & Exercise, Neuroscience, Reading Skills, Social Development

Naming Guides How 12-Month-Old Infants Encode and Remember Objects

Naming Guides How 12-Month-Old Infants Encode and Remember Objects

Even for infants just beginning to speak their first words, the way an object is named guides infants' encoding, representation and memory for that object, according to new research. Encoding objects in memory and recalling them later is fundamental to human cognition and emerges in infancy. Evidence from a new recognition memory task reveals that as they encode objects, infants are sensitive to a principled link between naming and object representation by 12 months.

Posted in Memory, Neuroscience, Speech & Language

Why Some Words May Be More Memorable Than Others

Why Some Words May Be More Memorable Than Others

Results suggest our brains use internet search engine strategies to remember words and memories of past experiences.
Posted in Education, Memory, Neuroscience

A Fair Reward Ensures a Good Memory

A Fair Reward Ensures a Good Memory

By studying the brain’s reward and memory networks, neuroscientists find that memory requires a system of reward delivery. A new finding highly relevant for a variety of learning situations.

Posted in Education, Engagement, Memory, Neuroscience, Speech & Language

Enrichment Programs Help Children Build Knowledge

Enrichment Programs Help Children Build Knowledge

New research suggests enrichment programs help children solidify the information they have added to their wall of knowledge and may help prevent summer slide.
Posted in Education, Engagement, Handwriting, Memory, Movement & Exercise, Neuroscience, Speech & Language

Testing During Studying Improves Memory and Inference

Testing During Studying Improves Memory and Inference

Learning something new? Take a test! Research shows that taking a test is more effective than other ways of studying when learning and making inferences.
Posted in Attention, Education, Engagement, Memory, Neuroscience

Mother Nature: Reshaping Modern Play Spaces for Children’s Health

Mother Nature: Reshaping Modern Play Spaces for Children’s Health

A world first review of the importance of nature play could transform children’s play spaces, supporting investment in city and urban parks, while also delivering important opportunities for children’s physical, social and emotional development.
Posted in Attention, Engagement, Health & Wellness, Neuroscience, School Readiness, Social Development, Speech & Language

A Smart Jump­suit Provides In­for­ma­tion on In­fants’ Move­ment and De­vel­op­ment

A Smart Jump­suit Provides In­for­ma­tion on In­fants’ Move­ment and De­vel­op­ment

A new innovation makes it possible, for the first time, to quantitatively assess children’s spontaneous movement in the natural environment.
Posted in Attention, Movement & Exercise, Neuroscience, Speech & Language, Technology

Digital Games May Beat Mindfulness Apps at Relieving Stress

Digital Games May Beat Mindfulness Apps at Relieving Stress

Highly engaging digital games which provide opportunities for mastering new skills and allowing users to feel in control may relieve stress at the end of the day more effectively than mindfulness apps.
Posted in Attention, Engagement, Health & Wellness, Neuroscience, Social Development

Aerobic exercise improves cognition, even in young adults

Aerobic exercise improves cognition, even in young adults

Aerobic exercise training increases cognitive processes important for reasoning, planning, and problem-solving. 
Posted in Attention, Memory, Movement & Exercise, Neuroscience