When reading this chapter I couldn't help but to think of where I work and what our goals are for the children. I am the Health Personnel at a Child developmental center. Its called Inspire Child Developmental Center. We care for children from 6 weeks all the way up to 5 years old. We are a short term center and only run from early June to late August, but what we can do with these children in these few short weeks is amazing. Especially the 4 and 5 year olds. We prepare these children for kindergarten any way we can. We help them learn, and at the same time observe how they learn. We then talk to their parents and explain some strategies that may use at home to interact with their child and also so their child can learn. Its always fun to read more about something that you are already doing and take notes to maybe improve your ways of teaching children.
What I found interesting was the memory section of this chapter. I can say from experience the best way to get something "transferred" from working memory to long term memory is repetition. The more your brain hears it or sees it the easier it will be to remember something. I took a class a couple quarters ago, reading 85, and in the text book for that class is a section on memory. I remember it comparing memory to a jungle, but before you can get to the jungle you have to go through a savannah. The savannah in this scenario is the working memory because memory doesn't stay here long its easy to maneuver through and is easier to get out of. Once you have crossed the savannah and go into the jungle its much bigger and more complicated to get out. So like working memory that is short term the savannah is a simple, short stroll before you reach the jungle ( long term memory). Now the jungle is large, filled with vines and trees, which make it more complicated to leave the jungle. Which makes the jungle like long term memory, its hard to forget long term memory.
Wow, what a great analogy for memory. That would have helped me so much last year when I took Cognition at Western.
ReplyDeleteI agree repeatition is a great strategy and for little kids when their brains are so easy to digest information that we throw at them it is amazing what the brain can do.
Thank you for sharing your insight. :)
Monica really good repsonse this week. It is very intresting to hear from people who have your kind of experiance as you said you work with children and see them every day. This chapter seemed very relavant to you that made it a joy to read for me. Great detail and thanks for sharing!
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