Dialogue with Mr. David
What do you enjoy doing outside of school?
I enjoy creating any type of art, reading, going to the gym and spending time with the love of my life, my fiancé Jimmy, and our "children", (dogs) Emmy and Sprout. Ms.Lisa’ssuperpowers: Creativity Observation Patience Humor Compassion
RSVP for the THANKSGIVING FEAST in the APP
place in our NEW Elementary building. NOW is the time to be thinking about who you want to invite! It’s FREE to attend and the fun and benefits last all year long!
The second Parent Roundtable on Thursday, October 9 focused on technology and brain development.
The discussion was active and productive. Parents shared their experiences with technology and their children. We started with a short overview of technology development and brain development. Here is a brief overview of the discussion along with the list of resources given out. Technology has been developing at an exponential rate since the 1960s. We have gone from computers that occupied an entire floor of a building to one that fits in the palm of your hand. Currently, human brain development has not kept pace with technology. A brief look at a timeline of brain development shows that 800,000 years ago humans controlled fire; 40,000 years ago humans created symbols; 3,000 years ago humans created alphabets; however, in the last 500 years there have been tremendous advances: science/medicine, communication, technology, mass production, processed foods and inventions. Change is happening at such a rapid pace it is hard to keep up with what is detrimental and what could be beneficial. The discussion continued by addressing a timeline for technology exposure.
It takes time to study the long term effects of exposure to all of this technology.
Using functional imaging MRIs allow scientists and doctors to look at brain function in real time. Previously, brain development could only be seen postmortem. These studies show “accelerated maturation in …visual processing, but under development in…areas that support more complex skills… such as complex memory encoding, empathy, and understanding facial and emotional expressions”. We understand that technology is here to stay. We need to proactively plan how to deal with it.
As parents we all want the best for our families. We discussed the importance of balance between online and offline experiences. Children need to learn how to be bored. Many attendees recounted tales from their own childhood and learning to deal with boredom.
We discussed tips for using digital media:
1) have screen-free meals, 2) children may not charge devices in their rooms, 3) play online games with your children: sharing the activity that can spark conversations about the content, 4) avoid blue light-emitting screen use before bedtime, 5) Have children engage with their environment at stores and restaurants.
