Love ... benefits proven by science
L represents love and literacy. Love.... and love literacy! Most parents are aware of the benefits of reading for cognitive development, but did you know that research has proven that love and nurturing build neural pathways in the brain? Love includes being responsive and following your child’s lead. I’ll share more strategies below about being responsive to their interests and engaging your child’s interest in picture books.
There is scientific research to support that what has been instinctively known to be a good, loving parent also powerfully impacts healthy brain development. Check the short video below out from Zerotothree.org for research-based information on simple and easy strategies to promote your child’s learning. The key take-away? Being a responsive and loving caregiver builds positive neural pathways in your child’s brain. In other words, love.
How do you show love? By spending focused time, really listening and responding to your child. Leave behind distractions and focus on your child. Give them your undivided attention, playing and interacting with them. If you are responsive to your child, your child will flourish and grow and give you much more in return. A word for this is reciprocity, and social-emotional reciprocity is the back and forth interaction- verbal or non-verbal- that takes place in communication. How sweet is a child’s love!
Resources: Iamyourchild.org and zerotothree.org
I love how scientific research supports what the Bible teaches about love. “The greatest of these is love”. (1 Corinthians 13:13)
There is scientific research to support that what has been instinctively known to be a good, loving parent also powerfully impacts healthy brain development. Check the short video below out from Zerotothree.org for research-based information on simple and easy strategies to promote your child’s learning. The key take-away? Being a responsive and loving caregiver builds positive neural pathways in your child’s brain. In other words, love.
How do you show love? By spending focused time, really listening and responding to your child. Leave behind distractions and focus on your child. Give them your undivided attention, playing and interacting with them. If you are responsive to your child, your child will flourish and grow and give you much more in return. A word for this is reciprocity, and social-emotional reciprocity is the back and forth interaction- verbal or non-verbal- that takes place in communication. How sweet is a child’s love!
Resources: Iamyourchild.org and zerotothree.org
I love how scientific research supports what the Bible teaches about love. “The greatest of these is love”. (1 Corinthians 13:13)
Literacy
Now what about the other “L”... literacy? Love literacy too! In my many years of teaching early childhood special education, some of my students learned to speak words through the repetition of words heard in stories and songs. Pair that with sounds, music and movement and new neural pathways are made in the brain.
One of my favorite stories that illustrates that is with a student I’ll call Timmy. He was a small three-year-old boy with Down’s Syndrome AND leukemia. He was sweet and loving and at the same time stubborn and had NO attention span. He took steroids and was receiving treatments for his cancer. When I handed him a book, his first impulse was to tear the pages. He loved the sound of paper tearing and he loved the reactions from his caregivers. Until... I introduced the song story “I Got Two Dogs” by John Lithgow. He absolutely loved it! He sat and listened and laughed so much that I bought one for him to keep at home. I can still see him in my mind saying the long part “True ooo ooooooo oooo”. That story gave joy and opened up a world of books for Timmy. Now my granddaughter loves it too! The story and song are still available on YouTube. Click the picture below for a link to the song.
One of my favorite stories that illustrates that is with a student I’ll call Timmy. He was a small three-year-old boy with Down’s Syndrome AND leukemia. He was sweet and loving and at the same time stubborn and had NO attention span. He took steroids and was receiving treatments for his cancer. When I handed him a book, his first impulse was to tear the pages. He loved the sound of paper tearing and he loved the reactions from his caregivers. Until... I introduced the song story “I Got Two Dogs” by John Lithgow. He absolutely loved it! He sat and listened and laughed so much that I bought one for him to keep at home. I can still see him in my mind saying the long part “True ooo ooooooo oooo”. That story gave joy and opened up a world of books for Timmy. Now my granddaughter loves it too! The story and song are still available on YouTube. Click the picture below for a link to the song.