Research articles about brain development.
TEDxRainier
In this presentation (filmed in October 2010), Patricia Kuhl shares astonishing findings about how babies learn one language over another — by listening to the humans around them and “taking statistics” on the sounds they need to know. Clever lab experiments (and brain scans) show how 6-month-old babies use sophisticated reasoning to understand their world.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
This article compares the executive functions of the brain, including the ability focus, hold, and work with information in the mind, to the “air traffic control” at a busy airport. It explains how these critical lifelong skills develop, how early experiences shape this development, and how supporting this development pays off in school and later in life.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
This topic, available in both PDF and video formats, explores the impact of healthy development in the earliest weeks and years of life. Postive early experiences can shape and strengthen developing biological systems which in turn can lead to a healthier and more productive life in adulthood.
The New York Times Magazine
For years, psychologists have argued that humans enter the world devoid of morality. However, a growing body of evidence suggests that humans do have a rudimentary moral sense from the very start of life, and babies can demonstrate a basic understanding of right and wrong.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
Serious depression in parents and caregivers affects not only the adults who are ill but also influences the the well-being of the children in their care. The first joint Working Paper from the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child and the National Forum on Early Childhood Program Evaluation summarizes recent evidence on the negative effects of severe depression on children and families. The report also highlights the need for early intervention to ensure mothers’ well-being and children’s healthy development.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
A growing body of scientific evidence demonstrates that emotional development begins early in life and is closely connected with the emergence of cognitive, language and social skills. Early emotional development lays the foundation for later academic performance, mental health and the capacity to form successful relationships.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
This edition of the InBrief* series addresses basic concepts of early childhood development, established over decades of neuroscience and behavioral research, which help illustrate why child development—particularly from birth to five years—is a foundation for a prosperous and sustainable society.
* InBrief is a three-part series that offers short summaries of the scientific presentations given at the National Symposium on Early Childhood Science and Policy in June 2008.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
The foundations of brain architecture are established early in life through a continuous series of dynamic interactions in which environmental conditions and personal experiences have a significant impact on how genetic predispositions are expressed. Because specific experiences affect specific brain circuits during specific developmental stages—referred to as sensitive periods— it is vitally important to take advantage of these early opportunities in the developmental building process.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
Science tells us that experiences early in life may have long-term consequences for a child’s learning, behavior and both physical and mental health.
Some types of “positive stress” in a child’s life (overcoming the challenges and frustrations of learning a new, difficult task, for instance) can be beneficial. On the other hand, severe, uncontrollable, chronic adversity (defined as “toxic stress” ) can produce detrimental effects on developing brain architecture as well as on the chemical and physiological systems that help an individual adapt to stressful events.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
New research shows the critical impact of a child’s “environment of relationships” on developing brain architecture during the first months and years of life. We have long known that interactions with parents, caregivers and other adults are important in a child’s life, but new evidence shows that these relationships actually shape brain circuits and lay the foundation for later developmental outcomes, from academic performance to mental health and interpersonal skills.