Edward C. Taylor, Ph.D.
Child and Adolescent Psychologist

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Socially and Cognitively, Neither Here Nor
There
High Volume of Data Presented Rapidly
Rapid Shifts in Topic or Place
Compressed Speech
Environmentally Directed Awareness
Digital and Visual Data
Multi-Tasking

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Every experienced event modifies the brain’s structure and processing style
The brain is plastic into old age
All behavior comes from the brain

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Musicians who became music teachers engaged in solitary, intense, reflective music practice 9 hours per week or 4000 hours total by age 20.
Musicians who became expert performers practiced 24 hours per week or 10,000 hours total by age 20.
The brain becomes expert by practice, practice, practice and by trying to improve in each practice session, until automaticity is achieved, by storing information and patterns in long-term memory and constantly reflecting upon one’s performance.

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Divided controlled attention
Heightened reactive attention
Heightened arousal
Frequent shifts from one topic to another
High volume of data
Inadequate time to reflect and evaluate
External rather than internal direction
Multisensory experience
Limited physical activity

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Reacting, Not Planning or Reflecting
Someone else is making decisions about what, where, how, how long, and how much.

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Control over emotions
Impulse resistance
Planning
Plan execution
Execution monitoring and self-evaluation
Task persistence

1940
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3 year olds 0 minutes
5 year olds 3 minutes
7 year olds a long time
2001
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3 year olds 0 minutes
5 year olds 0 minutes
7 year olds 3 minutes

PLAY IN FIRST HALF OF 20 TH
CENTURY
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Unsupervised
Child directed
In groups
Imaginative
Activity focused
Improvisation
Symbolic toys
Kids made the rules
At home and at school
PLAY IN SECOND HALF OF 20 TH
CENTURY
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 Adult organized and directed
Toy or object focused
Real toys with a specific purpose or theme
Rules are given
TV, video games, or lessons
Schools focus on cognitive skills development to pass the test

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Imaginative play promotes self-regulatory self-talk
Self- regulatory self-talk promotes
 Control over emotions
 Impulse resistance
 Planning
 Plan execution
 Execution monitoring and self-evaluation
 Task persistence

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The Rule of 7
Divided attention
Superficial engagement
Continuous partial attention leads to staying busy without truly focusing on anything
Limited opportunity for reflecting and planning
Continually in the “on” position; stimulus seeking; increased cortisol production
Are we producing an ADD style of living ?

Country
Japan
Korea
China
United States
International Average
2000 2003
557(1 st ) 534(4 th )
547(2 nd ) 542(2 nd )
550(1 st )
493(18 th ) 483(24 th )
500
(32 Countries)
500
(39 countries)

Country
Singapore
Korea
China
Japan
U.S
International
Average
1995
609(1 st )
1999
604(1 st )
2003
605(1 st )
581(2 nd ) 587(2 nd ) 589(2 nd )
569(4 rd ) 582(4 th )
581(2 nd ) 579(5 th )
586(3
570(5 rd th
)
)
492(18 th ) 502(19 th ) 504(12 th )
519
(23 Nations)
487
(38 Nations)
466
(45 Nations)

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“Technology… The knack of so arranging the world that we don’t have to experience it.”
Max Frisch, architect and author
Decreased capacity for social perception
Decreased tolerance for social interchange over a period of time
Lower scores on memory testing
More ADD-like in relationships
Derivatives traders

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Pilot induced oscillation
Heal thyself first

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List your priorities
Allocate your time accordingly
Schedule your time
Power naps
Alternate tasks
Pause, reflect, summarize, plan before moving on
Set limits
Watch your speedometer
Slowly build multi-tasking ability

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Mind you mind
Consciously engage your mind
Increase the interest value of the task
Minimize distractions
Manipulate the environment
Be a noisy learner
Frequent breaks
Power naps
No phones at the dinner table, etc.

 Simon Says
 Thinking
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 Impulse inhibition
Complex Imaginative Play
 Sustained for 30+ minutes
 Of the 1940’s style

 Activities requiring planning
 Games with directions and goal seeking
 Construction activities
 Pattern recognition activities
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 Cooking
Joint Storybook Reading
 Process the characters self-regulatory behavior promoted modeling
 Mastery models not Expert models

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Model self-talk
Encourage self-talk
Internalize, do not externalize, the conflict

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Classroom routines
Classroom rules
Classroom organizational systems
Learning strategy training
Classroom process meetings
Managing developmental angst
Watch your language

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Explicit instruction in learning processes
Modeling
Post-mortems to discuss why the patient lived or died
Post-mortems to define the “next level’ and how to get there. Then, go do it.
Practice, practice, practice with a focus on attaining a specific level of proficiency or grade

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iBrain, Gary Small, MD and Gigi Virgan
The New Brain, Richard Restak, MD
The Overflowing Brain, Torkel Klingberg, MD
Learning and the Brain Conference,
November 2009, Boston, MA