Foreign parents tell you how to train smarter children

In the United States, approximately 30% of children under two years of age have televisions in their bedrooms. And 59% of children under the age of two watch TV for two hours a day. The American Academy of Pediatrics recently issued a warning calling on parents not to let their infants watch TV.

Roberta Gol inkoff, co-author of the baby linguist and EinsteinNeverUsedFlashcards, said that television can damage a child's cognitive ability and waste the critical time to develop a brain—the time to communicate with real people.

She said: "Language is very important for children's learning, and the language they learn from TV can't meet their individual needs. TV can't follow their guidance and answer their questions, and you are using this method to cultivate A smart child."

2. Breastfeeding as actively as possible

Six-year-old children who continue to receive breastfeeding are 5% higher in the IQ test than their peers who are not breastfed. A study that followed two groups of Belarusian mothers and sons yielded this data. One group of mothers exclusively breastfeeds her child for one year or longer (without breast milk, other food or liquids are not given to the child), while the other group does not have full breastfeeding. And the duration is not that long. The first group of children scored higher in reading, writing, and math tests. “Mother’s primary method of developing a smarter child is breastfeeding,” says geneticist RickiLewis, author of TheForeverFix: GeneTherapyandtheBoyWhoSavedIt. “Human milk contains more fat and nutrients than milk for children, and this is us. A large number of brain cells are needed."

3. Let the child express himself by playing the instrument

Children who play piano or stringed instruments are 15% more verbal than those who are not playing. The study counts students from music schools and public schools in the Boston area; their average age is 10 years, and children who play musical instruments have studied music for at least three years.

The authors point out that many studies have shown a correlation between performance skills and language skills and IQ. But the question is, is a smart child good at music, or is music making children smart? But why not let your child try it?

4. Develop a strong sense of patience

Children who are able to delay their ability to meet their needs significantly more than their peers have a significantly higher score on the SAT than the average child. In a well-known study, the children were told that they could get two cookies if they were able to delay the first time they were eating cookies. Those who were able to wait for 15 minutes before opening the first biscuit had 210 more points on the SAT than those who couldn't wait for a minute.

Impulse control is a key factor in execution capability.

“Scientists now know that genius is not just IQ, but also executive ability.” Gol inkoff emphasizes, “The link between multiple tasks, maintaining working memory, and the ability to suppress impulses is more important than success. IQ."

5. Make reading an important part of everyday life

Children who have more than 500 books in their families have a 36% and 19% higher chance of graduating from high school and graduating from college than those without a book collection or a family with fewer books.

Of course, the study was published in 2007, when books were still tangible books. This difference is even greater when the child’s parents are illiterate.

“The success of learning depends not only on natural intelligence, but also on good moral standards,” says Eileen Kennedy-Moore, psychologist and author of SmartParenting for SmartKids. “Children learn more about us through our actions, not us. The words of the parents who love reading show the children that reading is fun, enjoyable and valuable."

6. Do not let the child be overweight

Obese children score 11% lower than normal children in national reading tests. The study by Temple University scientists also found that obese children had lower GPA during high school, higher attendance, retention rate, and late arrival rate. The study found a positive relationship between poor physical fitness and lower academic achievement.

Gol inkoff said, “Situal sedentary has various hazards to children. If they are always watching TV or playing computer games, they don’t have time to interact, and participating more can only make us “smart” through social connections. activity."

7. Encourage an active lifestyle

Aerobic exercise can double the ability of children to perform their operations.

"If you exercise with your child, you may achieve the best results," molecular biologist John Medina wrote in "BrainRulesforBaby," which he cited in his own research. "The lifestyle that encourages children to engage in active exercise is You give your child the best gift. This means throwing 'World of Warcraft' far away."

On the same principle, Lewis advises parents, “Caring about what you can control: creating such an atmosphere... Many parents can do it. What happens after you are born is more important, not what you inherited. s things."

8. Let your child receive a good preschool education

In contrast, children who receive quality pre-school education are 52% more likely to graduate from high school. The study tracked the two groups in Michigan, from two or three years old to 40 years old. One group was marked as having a high-quality pre-school at 3-4 years old, while the latter group never attended a pre-school.

By the age of 27, the group receiving pre-school education had five times more homes than preschool. At the age of 40, people who were not educated by preschool were arrested eight times as many as preschoolers, and twice as many as those who were arrested for personal attacks.

9. Teach children how to juggling

Juggling can increase your child's brain gray matter by three percentage points. The structure of the brain is largely determined by genes, but it is not completely absolute.

"Learning high-perplexity sensory motor skills - juggling - can increase the gray matter layer of the brain's attention area by about three percentage points." Yale University scholars cited this data. Scholars have stated that the gray matter layer in the frontal lobe of the brain is closely related to general cognitive ability.

10. Expand your child's voca

Children who grow up in welfare-stricken families hear a dialogue of one-fourth of the family's family. A study in English-speaking countries found that children who grew up in welfare-supported families heard about 3 million words a year, with 6 million words for working-class people and 11 million words for professional classes. The more we hear, the bigger our vocabulary.

11. Encourage children to learn foreign languages

Students who have studied foreign languages ​​for two years are 14% more likely to take the SAT on students who have never studied a foreign language.

There is a weak link between a one-year foreign language study time and a higher SAT score, but students who have studied foreign languages ​​for two years have a 14% higher language and math score than those who have never studied a foreign language. And 13%. The more the number of years of learning a foreign language, the more improvement it brings.

“Students who have studied foreign languages ​​for four to five years have higher language scores than those who have studied other subjects for four or five years,” the scholar who came to this conclusion wrote.

12. Prevent children from playing video games frequently

Students who play video games for two hours or more a day are 9.4% lower than those who do not play video games. The impact of video games on academics has sparked heated discussions.

A UK study of students compared the performance of students who often play video games with those who do not play video games.

"There is no positive effect between playing video games and academic performance," the researchers said. "Playing too much video games - just like anything else - can interfere with school, reduce learning interest, affect outdoor activities, sleep, and Direct interaction with friends and family members."