“Don’t confuse schooling with education. I didn’t go to Harvard, but the people that work for me did.” When Elon Musk quoted the above words, he meant that only elementary education received in educational institutes is not wholesome knowledge. Have you heard about right-brain education for kids?
Every individual has his/her perspective towards learning new things and gaining knowledge. And, so every person should be trained and educated accordingly. You must have heard of the right and left brain in a person or even about the gaining popularity of right brain education. But what are these terminologies? Let’s understand!
In This Article
- What Is Meant By Right-Brain Education?
- The Benefits Of Right-Brain Education
- How Can You Motivate Your Right-Brained Child For Academic Success?
- What Are The Right Brain Exercises or Activities For Kids?
- Interested In Providing The Right Brain Education At Home?
- FAQ’s
What is Meant by Right-Brain Education?
When it is said that a person is right-brained or left-brained, it means that one side of his or her brain is more dominant as compared to the other side. If an individual is left-brained, it means he or she is more inclined toward logical and analytical thinking and thus is more objective in his/her approach. Whereas a right-brained person is more expressive, intuitive, and creative in his/her personal and professional life since the early years of childhood.
Considering the core difference between the two different hemispheres of the brain, right-brain education or right-brain learning can be defined as educating the individual towards creativity and imaging abilities. Right brain education, therefore, is directed towards bringing in and improvising the level of sensitivity, creativity, and imagination in kids. So, right-brain education is educating the child over and above academic education. Right-brain learning imbibes the feeling of cooperation, oneness, and love in a child.
Although multiple right-brain schools are popping up in our society, parents can also opt for right-brain education at home with the help of the right tools and techniques.
The Benefits Of Right-Brain Education
Right-brain education offers a unique approach to learning that taps into the creative and intuitive abilities of the brain. Engaging both hemispheres enhances memory, critical thinking, problem-solving, and emotional intelligence. This all-encompassing method produces multitalented kids able to thrive in a dynamic and unpredictable environment.
- Subconscious awareness is enhanced
- Long term memory
- Abstract thought
- Fast learning
- Makes the kid intuitive
- Easily comprehends information
- Makes use of pictures, shapes, numbers, and shapes
- Processes entire data at once
- The kid is able to work without stress
How Can You Motivate Your Right-Brained Child for Academic Success?
If you have observed that the right brain of your child is more dominant, and so he or she struggles to cope up with the routine academic classes or feels demotivated to excel in the conservative education system, then these tips might be of great help to you. After all, basic education is a must.
Give Them a Well Managed Conducive Environment To Study
A right-brained kid often procrastinates their academic assignments. So instead of pushing them to complete the work on a dreaded note, it helps to provide them with a well-managed study zone. This means when a parent wants the child to complete their homework, it needs to be ensured that the kid has all the needed stationery supplies and books in one place. Such arrangement motivates them to complete their studies on time and also the study sessions do not get interrupted by means of lame excuses, like lack of stationery.
Motivate Your Child for Small Success
Another way of motivating your child is to make a detailed to-do list or a timetable that breaks down every big task into a small ones. Ask your child to checkmark every task, once it is executed. Multiple checkmarks in a short duration motivate the child to move further at a higher pace. This also relieves them of any stress.
Focus On the Strengths of Your Child
As a right-brained child, your kid is more conducive to visualization techniques for learning. So, make use of visual tools like flashcards, memory games, singing, dancing, storybooks, and anything else you can think of.
Persistent Learning
Don’t expect immediate results from your child and expect your child to be a perfectionist. Instead, make him or her a persistent player. Don’t let your child give up any situation by thinking that he/she is not smart at it. If such a situation arises, motivate your child to work hard. Don’t compare them. Tell them every kid is born with his or her own set of skills which defines the individuality of the person.
What are the Right Brain Exercises or Activities for Kids?
Here is a list of a few right-brain activities or right-brain exercise games to inculcate quick learning skills and awareness in a child:
Link Memory
Link memory activity is the one where two pictures or two words with relation to each other are used. The child needs to identify the similarities or differences between the two.
Flashcards
Flashcards help in improving the speed of learning in kids. These flashcards are a visualization tool that consists of picture cards and words too. The fast movement of cards in front of the kid’s eyes increases the speed of learning and memorizing in kids.
Visual Memory
There are multiple visual memory games available in the market. But every game is targeted at improving the retention power of the child. The child is required to see an image for a moment, and then replicate the image by means of drawing or tools available.
Playing Tangrams
Tangram puzzles are a set of seven shapes that are fun to play with for kids of all ages. Tangram improves the problem-solving abilities in kids. A child can either create his image out of imagination or work towards replicating a pre-designed image with the help of the given seven shapes.
Connect the Dots
In order to equally train and activate both sides of the brain, ask the child to imagine two dots and then keep moving the thoughts in the brain from one dot to another. In this way, the workout of both hemispheres of the brain will make the kid overall a better person.
Breathe Through Your Left Nostril
Breathing through the left nostril is believed to fuel your right brain and make it more active. Not sure if it really does, but there is no harm in trying it.
Tickle Your Funny Bone
Laughter and positivity are believed to trigger the emotional and decision-making side of the brain. So, tickle the funny bone.
Alpha Music
The waves of the alpha music put the kid in a semi-conscious and relaxed state of mind. So it is ideal to play alpha music during the time your child is learning new things.
Interested in Providing the Right Brain Education at Home?
If you are the one who is more inclined towards and confident enough to provide the right brain training at home as compared to outside professional institutes, then this section is for you. Remember that you as a parent do not require any special set of capabilities or a certified teaching course to execute the above-listed right-brain exercises or right-brain activities for your child.
Few tips for parents, who are interested in right brain education at home:
- Ensure persistence in the teaching and learning both, at your and your child’s end respectively.
- Introduce variety in the methodologies and tools of teaching
- Teach in a relaxed environment. Try out some Alpha music.
- Remain in a positive mood while teaching. Positive vibes are transferable.
- Fun is essential.
- Take short-term breaks and then continue.
In fact, parents are believed to possess the most essential capability needed to train the child. And that is their love and dedication toward them. Parents, with their keen observation, very well identify the interest areas, talents, and strengths of their child. So by keeping simply a few tips in mind, you can successfully inculcate all the right brain characteristics in your child. But remember that learning is a journey to be traveled with fun. So, hold the hands of your kid and walk accordingly.
FAQ’s
1. What Is The Right Brain Weakness In Kids?
The brain is an intricate organ that performs various functions, which require the collaborative efforts of both hemispheres. Children who have weaknesses in their right hemisphere tend to exhibit poor attention, impulsivity, anxiety, and compulsiveness.
2. What Age Is Right Brain Training For Kids?
Right Brain Training is a specialized learning method designed for children between the ages of 1.5 and 7 years old. The program is designed to foster a lifelong curiosity for knowledge while enhancing critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills.
