Welcome to the December 2024 Learning Brain News.

For you this month: New insights into working memory and autism, how young children learn new words, school readiness, and some helpful tips for avoiding procrastination.

The Learning Brain News team is taking our annual break during January, so we will be back in your inbox in February.

In the meantime, enjoy the December edition.
The Learning Brain News Team 

Dopamine and Serotonin Work in Opposition for Effective Learning

Dopamine and serotonin work together to balance reward-seeking and long-term thinking. Stanford research suggests targeting this interplay could improve treatments for disorders like addiction and depression.

Toddlers Use Grammar Hints to Unlock the Meaning of New Words

A new study with 2-year-olds  at the MIT Language Acquisition Lab suggests that even very young kids are capable of absorbing grammatical cues from language and leveraging that information to acquire new words.

Promoting Playful Learning With Technology

Mitchel Resnick, creator of Scratch and OctoStudio, shares how teachers can maximize students’ use of tech for creative purposes.

Athletes Have Better Working Memory than Sedentary People

A recently published meta-analysis of 21 studies involving a total of 1455 participants showed that athletes had better working memory than non-athletes and this advantage was further enhanced when athletes were compared to sedentary people.

Standardised Autism Screening Identifies Younger Children with High Likelihood of Autism Diagnosis

New research found that the use of standardized autism screening identifies more children with high autism likelihood at a younger age.

How to Not Procrastinate When Task Avoidance Strikes

If you know what it takes to procrastinate, then you also know what it takes to not procrastinate. With some reverse-engineering and creativity, you can concoct an anti-procrastination formula to realistically outmaneuver your unique escapist tendencies. Get started with this three-part plan.

17 Helpful Strategies for Children with Auditory Processing Disorder

Looking for ways you can help your child or student with APD or language impairment in the classroom?

This download offers practical tips on class placement, classroom seating, reducing distraction, the study environment, visual aids and much more. 

The strategies can be adapted for the playground, after-school activities, relative's homes and home learning situations.

England

BETT
London, 22 - 24 January 2025

Features over 600 exhibitors and a wealth of speakers exploring transformative education technologies.

Canada

International Conference on English Learning & Teaching
Montreal, 7 - 8 February 2025

Bringing together policymakers and academic leaders to help overcome the institutional and ecosystem barriers that currently impede the smooth proliferation of the latest scientific knowledge. Attend in person or virtually

Australia

Australian Inclusive Schooling Conference
Brisbane, 27 - 28 March 2025