When educators nurture exploration and emotional safety, they help ensure that new brain cells grow and become part of the brain’s working structure.
– Renae Ouillette

“By age five, a child’s brain is already 90% developed…As educators and program leaders, understanding what’s happening inside the brain during this period is not a luxury; it’s a necessity. Groundbreaking insights from neuroscience provide us with tools and strategies to better support children’s development, particularly in the area of executive function—the brain’s self-management system that enables us to plan, focus, remember instructions, regulate emotions, and adapt to change.”

So begins an article by Renae Ouillette on the Community Playthings website.

Ouilette explains, “Executive function is often compared to an air traffic control system. Just as air traffic controllers manage the safe and orderly flow of airplanes, the executive function system in the brain manages impulses, attention, emotions, and decision-making.” She describes how “neurogenesis, the birth of new neurons—the brain cells that send signals throughout the nervous system – is especially rapid in early childhood.” She explains that stimulating environments provide the input needed for healthy neurogenesis, and the development of executive function skills. She offers these ideas for supporting healthy neurogenesis:

“What Educators Can Do:

• Foster curiosity through play-based, child-led learning experiences.
• Offer diverse sensory experiences such as music, movement, tactile play, and outdoor exploration.
• Encourage language development through talking, singing, and reading aloud.
• Build secure relationships where children feel safe, seen, and supported.”