learning Archives - Laura Maniglia

Read the Evidence

by Laura Maniglia | Jul 20, 2024 | academic standing, brain development, cognitive skills, instruction, learning, reading, teachers, testing

The human brain is naturally adapted for spoken language. However,”reading and writing are acquired skills for which the human brain is not yet fully evolved.” For nearly 400 years, phonics has been the prevailing method of reading instruction. “However, in the mid...

Challenging the Birthday Plan

by Laura Maniglia | Jul 2, 2024 | brain development, Child development, cognitive skills, differentiation, instruction, learning, parents, public schools, student engagement, students

The vast majority of US schools arrange students by chronological age: children usually start kindergarten by age 5 or 6 and remain with their age-mates until grade 12. “Most schools use age-based grade levels because of historical legacy. In the mid-1800s (before we...

Recess is Vital!

by Laura Maniglia | Jun 18, 2024 | academic standing, active learning, attention & focus, brain development, cognitive skills, exercise, instruction, kindergarten, learning, parents, public schools, recess, student engagement, students, teachers

A positive correlation exists between physical activity and cognitive development. Government health guidelines recommend sixty minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity each day. Yet most children do not meet that guideline. “Recess, a regularly...

Update: How to Maintain Fluid Intelligence

by Laura Maniglia | Jun 4, 2024 | active learning, attention & focus, brain development, cognitive skills, exercise, intelligence, learning, memory, retrieval practice

More than eighty years ago, psychologist Robert Cattell partitioned intelligence into two parts: fluid and crystallized. Fluid Intelligence refers to a person’s current ability and involves openness to learning new things, while crystallized intelligence refers...

See the Writing on the Wall!

by Laura Maniglia | May 14, 2024 | brain development, cognitive skills, learning, memory, metacognition, note-taking, writing

“Why writing by hand beats typing for thinking and learning” This recent headline from NPR’s health news reinforces previous research about the importance of handwriting. For children, “Writing by hand also improves memory and recall of words, laying down the...

Learning to Move and Moving to Learn

by Laura Maniglia | May 2, 2024 | active learning, brain development, cognitive skills, instruction, language, learning, public schools, reading, student engagement, whole brain learning, writing

Incorporating and emphasizing cognitive skills into the classroom are major elements to support learning. Scientific research utilizes fMRI studies that pinpoint the locus of rational thinking in the prefrontal cortex . However, recent neuro- scientific studies have...

« Older Entries

Read the Evidence

Challenging the Birthday Plan

Recess is Vital!

Update: How to Maintain Fluid Intelligence

See the Writing on the Wall!

Learning to Move and Moving to Learn

If schools were permitted to have just one training, this is the one!