Use it or lose it

1. Use it or lose it 10/29/13

2. Warm-up • Name 1 subject or activity you struggle with. • Describe why you find it difficult • List 2 things you have done to improve

3. Building Connections • There are 2 times during a person’s life when he/she is building connections at a tremendous rate. • Anyone want to guess at what age this happens? • Read Sh 13 • Why is baby brain growth important to our discussion of how your brain works?

4. The Adolescent brain • Big brain growth occurs right before puberty or at age 11-12 • Ages 13 – 18 experience a pruning process. • Getting rid of weak or unused connections allowing a person to focus on the connections that are the strongest • It is important to get a sufficient amount of sleep at this age to aid in the pruning and growth process (10 hours a night)

5. What skills am I building • Sh 19 • To figure out what skills you are building/losing, you are going to create a bar graph. • Each box = 15 minutes • You can only include time in class if you are paying attention the whole time.

6. Reflection • Are you seeing any relationships between your strengths and weaknesses and how much time you spend on these activities/day? • What is important to me now? For the future? • Am I spending my time on things that are important both now and in the future?

7. Case Study: Garfield High • In this case study, we are examining a group of high school students from Garfield High • Annotate: • What was expected of this group of students? • What do you know about Garfield High? • What was the student’s goal? • How did they achieve it?

8. Passing on the Knowledge • Sh 22 • Write a letter to the future 7th graders explaining how to grow their intelligence • Think in terms of advice and evidence you would like to pass along. • Use your vocab words: persistent, persevering, axon, dendrite, synapse, neurotransmitters, neurons, cerebrum, cerebellum, cortex, brain stem…

9. Exit ticket • Complete the portfolio checklist for units 1-3 on page p20