Environment MattersOften referred to as the emotional brain.This part houses the visual memory. It maintains blood pressure, heart rate and body temperature. It is critical to learning and for short and

long term memory. It stores memories of your lifetime experiences.

In practice:

The limbic brain responds to the five senses, so ensure your enabling

environment provides a range of sensory experiences. From treasure

baskets to heuristic play: source as many natural materials as possible

to tap into childrens senses.

Limbic brain

sensory play

Sensory experiences are vital, as a childs long term memory is more effective when an experience is linked to one of

the senses or to an emotion. We link our senses to our experiences, so it is important to realise that memories of our

senses can be positive or negative. Give unconditional positive feedback, the limbic brain loves to know its doing a

good job and to know it can do even better.

Children need to believe that what they are doing is worthwhile, it must have purpose otherwise motivation and

attention will be low. Someone who knows the child well, a key person, will help the child to build a sense of

identity as a learner.

When children believe they can be capable learners they will have improved self-esteem.Positive self-belief will allow

messages through to the learning part of the brain, helping to speed up childrens thinking.

feeling different textures with my feetxtures with my feet

This is the most primitive part of the brain. It contains all the basic bodily functions such

as hunger, thirst and warmth. It is responsible for survival instincts, fight or flight.

In practice:

Give children their own space: a coat peg, a den indoors and outdoors. Ensure that

children are physically comfortable: not hungry, or cold or too hot, or thirsty; ensure they

have appropriate clothing and furniture. Ensure that there is structure and rhythm to the

day, so that children feel confident. As well as the indoor and outdoor environment,

consider the emotional environment.Establish secure emotional attachments for children!

Reptilian brain

fresh, fit, fun

For information on any of the furniture shown in this leaflet please contact

www.habaeducation.co.uk Email info@haba.co.uk Tel 0161 304 9555

The best classroom and the widest cupboard is roofed only by the sky!

~ Margaret McMillan ~

Plan time for children to consolidate their learning. The high-scope method of

plan-do-review encourages children to consolidate their learning. Enhance their

critical thinking by giving children opportunities to speak with each other about

their experiences.

Plan for activities and experiences that require only short bursts of concentration:

listening to stories, doing group work and playing games.

Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep

and continuing needs, is good for him. ~ Maya Angelou

Neocortex The reasoning brain

Laura Henry is a leading, award winning expert in Early Years education, both in the UK and internationally.

For three decades she has used her skills to support colleagues who work directly with children, parents and companies; she has worked with organi-sations that provide services and expertise to children and families. She is a highly regarded and popular trainer and author. Laura is passionate about quality in the Early Years sector, making sure that children receive the best possible care to help them reach their full potential. She is a regular contributor to Nursery World and other trade publications. Laura has sat on the judging panel for the Nursery World and Nursery Management Awards on numerous occasions. She has shared her expert knowledge with Government departments, as well as with national and inter-national organisations.

The Author

The neocortex is involved in higher functions, such as sensory perception, spatial

reasoning, conscious thought and language. It accounts for about 76% of the

brains volume; it is also linked to social aspects of life.

In practice:

Help children to understand how what they are doing today connects with what

they were doing yesterday. Listen to children and have meaningful conversations.

Recall past events, using open-ended questions.

Use natural materials. Treasure baskets and sensory experiences of unusual

objects will be the most effective. Make good use of the outdoor area.

Plan for children to have long periods of uninterrupted time to explore,

investigate and follow their own individual interests. Carry out regular audits

to ascertain how many times children are interrupted.

Are the interruptions necessary? Who are the interruptions for? Do they have the

childs needs at the centre? Routine is good for helping children to feel secure and

emotionally safe. However, we must also give children long periods of time to allow

them to make sense of what they are doing.

time to think and reflect

It is imperative that children within an Early Years setting receive

holistic, sensitive support to develop their rapidly growing brains.

The brain is a complex organ, growing rapidly during a childs for-

mative years.

For Educators, awareness of this and how to enhance positive brain

development are key to improving childrens long term outcomes at

school and beyond.

In this commentary I will focus on three parts of the brain, what each

part does and how Educators can develop these parts of the brain in

their practice within an Early Years setting.

s.

space to investigate

hahat t t t t t t hehehehehehehelplplplplplplplps s s s s s s a a a a a chchchchchchchilililililild d d d d d tototototototo f f f f f f forororororororm m m m m m m a a a a a a a hahahahahahahabibibibibibibit t t t t t t ofofofofofofof r r r r r r reaeaeaeaeaeaeadididididididingngngngngngngng, , , , , , , tototototototo m m m m m m makakakakakakake e e e e e e rerererererereadadadadadadadinininininining g g g g g g g ononononononone e e e e e e ofofofofofofof h h h h h h hisisisisisisis d d d d d d deeeeeeeeeeeeeep p p p p p p p

ngngngngngngngng n n needs, is good for him. ~ Maya Angelou

Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading

one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him.

~ Maya Angelou ~

Provide opportunities for choice and decision-making,

use open ended tasks, allow children ownership of

their activities.

Remember, children will often take different routes to

reach the same destination. Allow children to make

their own mistakes and to problem solve. Let them

think about their own answers and step back so that

they can come up with their own ideas and suggestions.

Children learn through interacting with others. Provide opportunities for children to work

alongside friends as well as adults. When setting up the continuous provision indoors and out-

doors, ask yourselves the following questions. Are we allowing children the time to connect and

collaborate with their peers? Do we set aside key person time for children to

have meaningful conversations with their key person? Do we audit the number

and length of conversations that take place? Are the conversations more

instructional or do they tap into childrens creative thinking?

space to manoeuvre

time with my key person

independent reading

Plan time for children to consolidate their learning. The high-scope method of

plan-do-review encourages children to consolidate their learning. Enhance their

critical thinking by giving children opportunities to speak with each other about

their experiences.

Plan for activities and experiences that require only short bursts of concentration:

listening to stories, doing group work and playing games.

Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading one of his deep

and continuing needs, is good for him. ~ Maya Angelou

Neocortex The reasoning brain

Laura Henry is a leading, award winning expert in Early Years education, both in the UK and internationally.

For three decades she has used her skills to support colleagues who work directly with children, parents and companies; she has worked with organi-sations that provide services and expertise to children and families. She is a highly regarded and popular trainer and author. Laura is passionate about quality in the Early Years sector, making sure that children receive the best possible care to help them reach their full potential. She is a regular contributor to Nursery World and other trade publications. Laura has sat on the judging panel for the Nursery World and Nursery Management Awards on numerous occasions. She has shared her expert knowledge with Government departments, as well as with national and inter-national organisations.

The Author

The neocortex is involved in higher functions, such as sensory perception, spatial

reasoning, conscious thought and language. It accounts for about 76% of the

brains volume; it is also linked to social aspects of life.

In practice:

Help children to understand how what they are doing today connects with what

they were doing yesterday. Listen to children and have meaningful conversations.

Recall past events, using open-ended questions.

Use natural materials. Treasure baskets and sensory experiences of unusual

objects will be the most effective. Make good use of the outdoor area.

Plan for children to have long periods of uninterrupted time to explore,

investigate and follow their own individual interests. Carry out regular audits

to ascertain how many times children are interrupted.

Are the interruptions necessary? Who are the interruptions for? Do they have the

childs needs at the centre? Routine is good for helping children to feel secure and

emotionally safe. However, we must also give children long periods of time to allow

them to make sense of what they are doing.

time to think and reflect

It is imperative that children within an Early Years setting receive

holistic, sensitive support to develop their rapidly growing brains.

The brain is a complex organ, growing rapidly during a childs for-

mative years.

For Educators, awareness of this and how to enhance positive brain

development are key to improving childrens long term outcomes at

school and beyond.

In this commentary I will focus on three parts of the brain, what each

part does and how Educators can develop these parts of the brain in

their practice within an Early Years setting.

s.

space to investigate

hahat t t t t t t hehehehehehehelplplplplplplplps s s s s s s a a a a a chchchchchchchilililililild d d d d d tototototototo f f f f f f forororororororm m m m m m m a a a a a a a hahahahahahahabibibibibibibit t t t t t t ofofofofofofof r r r r r r reaeaeaeaeaeaeadididididididingngngngngngngng, , , , , , , tototototototo m m m m m m makakakakakakake e e e e e e rerererererereadadadadadadadinininininining g g g g g g g ononononononone e e e e e e ofofofofofofof h h h h h h hisisisisisisis d d d d d d deeeeeeeeeeeeeep p p p p p p p

ngngngngngngngng n n needs, is good for him. ~ Maya Angelou

Any book that helps a child to form a habit of reading, to make reading

one of his deep and continuing needs, is good for him.

~ Maya Angelou ~

Provide opportunities for choice and decision-making,

use open ended tasks, allow children ownership of

their activities.

Remember, children will often take different routes to

reach the same destination. Allow children to make

their own mistakes and to problem solve. Let them

think about their own answers and step back so that

they can come up with their own ideas and suggestions.

Children learn through interacting with others. Provide opportunities for children to work

alongside friends as well as adults. When setting up the continuous provision indoors and out-

doors, ask yourselves the following questions. Are we allowing children the time to connect and

collaborate with their peers? Do we set aside key person time for children to

have meaningful conversations with their key person? Do we audit the number

and length of conversations that take place? Are the conversations more

instructional or do they tap into childrens creative thinking?

space to manoeuvre

time with my key person

independent reading

Environment MattersOften referred to as the emotional brain.This part houses the visual memory. It maintains blood pressure, heart rate and body temperature. It is critical to learning and for short and

long term memory. It stores memories of your lifetime experiences.

In practice:

The limbic brain responds to the five senses, so ensure your enabling

environment provides a range of sensory experiences. From treasure

baskets to heuristic play: source as many natural materials as possible

to tap into childrens senses.

Limbic brain

sensory play

Sensory experiences are vital, as a childs long term memory is more effective when an experience is linked to one of

the senses or to an emotion. We link our senses to our experiences, so it is important to realise that memories of our

senses can be positive or negative. Give unconditional positive feedback, the limbic brain loves to know its doing a

good job and to know it can do even better.

Children need to believe that what they are doing is worthwhile, it must have purpose otherwise motivation and

attention will be low. Someone who knows the child well, a key person, will help the child to build a sense of

identity as a learner.

When children believe they can be capable learners they will have improved self-esteem.Positive self-belief will allow

messages through to the learning part of the brain, helping to speed up childrens thinking.

feeling different textures with my feetxtures with my feet

This is the most primitive part of the brain. It contains all the basic bodily functions such

as hunger, thirst and warmth. It is responsible for survival instincts, fight or flight.

In practice:

Give children their own space: a coat peg, a den indoors and outdoors. Ensure that

children are physically comfortable: not hungry, or cold or too hot, or thirsty; ensure they

have appropriate clothing and furniture. Ensure that there is structure and rhythm to the

day, so that children feel confident. As well as the indoor and outdoor environment,

consider the emotional environment.Establish secure emotional attachments for children!

Reptilian brain

fresh, fit, fun

For information on any of the furniture shown in this leaflet please contact

www.habaeducation.co.uk Email info@haba.co.uk Tel 0161 304 9555

The best classroom and the widest cupboard is roofed only by the sky!

~ Margaret McMillan ~

LauraHenryUK_14HE0414_s1-20001_LauraHenryUK140010001_0002_LauraHenryUK14001

LauraHenryUK_14HE0414_s3-40001_0002_LauraHenryUK140010004_LauraHenryUK14001