Guiding Principles
Guiding Principles for Brain-Based Education. Seven initial principles are proposed for discussion and it is hoped that more will be added over time. Brain-based learning means understanding these principles.
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Brain Based Learning | Brain Based Experts
The Single Health Habit that Beats All Others, Hands Down
It’s time for our summer BrighterBrain® health issue. It’s likely you get more than your share of advice about health; friends, family, and the internet all have their opinions. But what if there was just one thing for you to pay attention to and manage from now on… Interested? If so, this issue is for you. Background In this post, we will discuss inflammation. Unless you lock in on this issue and...
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Admitting Mistakes: Ethics Says Yes, Instinct Says No
We have all had the experience of sensing when we were wrong about something. Maybe it’s our conscience speaking; but often we just let it go. Time heals all wounds. Others will figure it out. Right? But what if we are wrong twice? Wrong to hide the mistake and wrong to assume it will go away? Life happens pretty fast; let’s learn how to deal with mistakes and apologies a bit better. A more joyful...
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Does Your Brain’s Inner Chatter Matter?
Having the ‘voice’ in your head is nearly universal. Maybe you just said to yourself, “What voice?” Yes, you have that voice. For some it is a never-ending inferno of misery and for others, it’s a daily friend and valued conscience. A quality inner voice can be a valuable asset in your life. It is literally the difference between the slippery path downhill or a solid, joyful life. Interested in kn...
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The Relationship-Building Tool The Pandemic Cannot Take Away
The bell is about to ring. You’re standing in the doorway, offering each student a high-five. You enter your classroom and crouch down at a student’s desk for a quick individual check-in. You offer an encouraging smile and a quick side-hug. As you start class, your alarm goes off. You wake up, panicked. It was another one of those dreams. One where you remember all the magical moments of relations...
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Let’s Re-start Your Post Pandemic Life Painlessly
The cries of “Wagons Ho!” echoed through the morning air. It was just another day in her family’s long journey west along the Oregon Trail in 1850. Her oxen trudged along the 2,000-mile trail, following the predictable ruts left by other wagon wheels – in some places up to 5 feet deep. Traveling life in a “rut” can be efficient and convenient. But 2020 dropped an enormous boulder on yo...
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Why Movement is SO Hard for Most Everyone (except you)!
In the stone age tribe (circa 10,000 B.C.) of Bedrock, Fred and Wilma Flintstone lived with ‘modern-day’ amenities such as foot-driven cars, gimmicky kitchen appliances, and suspect telephones. Those wacky, colliding worlds made the show a beloved cartoon. Yet, there’s another juxtaposition playing out daily in your brain in the year 2020. How you respond has a lasting impact on your health ...
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How to Win the Attentional Game of Tug-of-War
It’s a deafening roar: 35,000 screaming spectators have waited all year for this event. No, it is not baseball or football. It is an epic, old-school tug-of-war across the 2nd longest river in the U.S.A. Every August, a half-mile of rope (9 football fields) is stretched across the Mississippi River, between Illinois and Iowa. Even if you’ve never actually “played” or watche...
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A Fresh Look at Cultural Responsiveness
How Culturally Responsive Teaching Re-Draws the Boundaries of the “In” Crowd Why is it that so many kids crave to be part of the “in” crowd? What do they hope to gain? Regardless of what they’re looking for, being a part of the “in” crowd is a healthy desire. We’re not talking popularity status. We’re talking about the astounding evidence that shows how students in the “in-group” and “out-group...
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The 3 Biggest Lies You’ve Been Taught About Stress and How You Can Go from Surviving to Thriving
For most educators, stress levels slowly ramp up over the first couple of months of school. The word on the street is many of you already feel like you’ve gone from 0 to 60 on a stress-o-meter! Yes, this school year brings unprecedented challenges. Every September we help you rise to the challenge. This post’s self-care issue might be the most important ever because …
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The Overlooked Element of a “Safe” Return to School (Virtual or Face-to-Face)
Ensuring students and staff are physically safe is a top concern these days. But there is another, often overlooked, component of safety that schools must plan for as well. Ignore this and students might be physically safe in school, but learn little. Focus in on this and students’ capacity to learn opens up. What’s the big “THIS”? The Research Creating a safe learning environment for ...
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