Brain Facts # 2 – What do neurons do?
The average brain contains approximately 100 billion brain cells called neurons. Another category of cells in the brain called glial cells are even more numerous and help neurons function normally. Neurons have a specialized ability to manage bioelectrical information and to communicate with each other by exchanging chemical information in the form of neurotransmitters through connections with other neurons, known as synapses. Each neuron can have up to 10,000 synapses with other neurons, for a total of many hundreds of trillions of neural connections in the brain.
All brain functioning is the result of neurons exchanging information and the functions we depend on emerge from large groups of connected neurons working together as networks. For instance, hitting a key on your computer is only possible because a network of neurons responsible for this command all start firing together in your frontal lobe when you decide to do so. In the same way , when you try to remember what you did last Thursday morning, networks of neurons in the temporal and frontal lobes start firing and exchanging information.
Such networks of neurons are built following the principle that “cells that fire together, wire together”. In short, neurons that are frequently active at the same time tend to become associated and end up connecting with one another. This principle has major implications for brain fitness. First, the more a network of neurons is activated, the stronger the connections become. If a network supporting a brain function is repeatedly stimulated through practice and training, it will become stronger, contributing to the optimization of that brain function. Second, by contrast, the less a network of neurons is activated the weaker the connections become, and weak connections end up disappearing. This accounts for the popular idea “use it or lose it” – brain functions that are not stimulated end up losing their efficiency since the neural networks supporting them weaken or dissipate.
CLASSROOM & HOMEWORK TIPS for SPECIAL LEARNERS
Structure is the organizational foundation of the classroom. Structure establishes the atmosphere and tone of the classroom and paves the way for cooperation and learning. Structure clarifies your rules and expectations and as a result many conflicts and behaviour problems are prevented because the children know what is expected of them.