The Difference Between Boys & Girls...their brains!

Did you know that even a simple thing like rotating an object is accomplished the same by males and females but brain scans show that they are accomplished using very different brain pathways?  Did you know that the female brain actually shrinks when pregnant?!  Or that female brains have "mirror neurons" that mean we can observe and imitate hand gestures, body postures, breathing rates, etc. of other people? Did you know that hitting a soccer ball with your head (especially when little) can actually give you brain damage?!

I've been learning about the differences between the brains of boys and girls and how it affects everything we do, what and how we perceive life, etc. It is fascinating and explains how non-invasive brain scans have changed what we can know about males and females.  I definitely suffer from fuzzy mom brain, stress and overprotectiveness and this is explained SO well in the book, The Female Brain by Louann Brizendine. If you have a study group this is a great book for conversation. It goes through the changes of the female brain from birth through the different stages of life and is so helpful for understanding yourself! Make your husbands read it, too!

 For anyone raising a boy, I would suggest reading The Minds of Boys by Michael Gurian. I read this to prepare for a literacy event at work.  We had a before and after school "Dads & Donuts" event (which turned out overwhelmingly successful!) where dads, uncles, brothers, or any other male figure came to the school to read with their student/child and eat donuts together.  I'd never seen so many men in the school!  We had over 800 donuts and still ran out. It was really cute to see the dads being all nervous but they did great.  

Here is what I learned and summarized for parents about helping boys be successful at school (and home):

All boys are different but all boys’ brains have similar needs for successful learning.

 * Boys need more physical space to work and play; let them spread out to do projects and homework.

*Boys do well with singular tasks; help them avoid multi-tasking & let them focus. Ask them to do one thing at a time or list separate tasks on paper.

*Boys need 'brain breaks' between tasks; allow at least 60 seconds of transition time for boys to react to requests.

*Boys hear less well and rely less on verbal input; adjust your voice tone when making requests, try a three-prong approach (eye contact, arm touch, words), or have them repeat your instructions 3x.

*Boys depend on their vision; read books with lots of pictures and provide good lighting during homework time.

*Boys need physical movement to learn; let them squeeze a ball while reading or listening to books, and allow walking around to do homework tasks and reading.

*Boys rely on counting; link tasks to math, such as asking them to set the table for 5 people.

*Boys need more sensory-tactile experiences; use objects to explain things, put items on walls or shelves that they can rearrange (magnets, pull-off calendars, blocks)

*Boys need more spatial-mechanical connection; provide non-fiction books about how things work, or things they can take apart, put together, measure, or figure out.

*Boys have a low threshold for failure; boys feel it is not “manly” to fail and may give up if tasks are too hard; create plenty of opportunities for success by breaking up tasks and praising real effort.

*Boys need more sound (and make more noise!); listen to a variety of music and allow dramatic play.

*Boys need more outdoor learning; bring the outside in during winter months with ant farms, plant life, and books about the outdoors.

After reading about the huge brain differences in males and females, it definitely makes me wish I could see a scan of my own brain to learn about myself better.  Maybe that will be something they do more often for people  in the future. I wonder how expensive brain scans are anyway...?  :)