introduction how the brain works areas covered challenge ... · christ, set your hearts on things...

Northeast Educational Associates 4/10/12

www.bridgewayacademy.com www.curriculumexpress.com www.homeschoolinghelp.com 1

How the Brain works Using God’s Incredible Design to Inspire Excellence

Jessica Parnell www.bridgewayacademy.com

Introduction

!   Jessica Parnell

!   Bridgeway Academy www.bridgewayacademy.com

!   Curriculum Express www.curriculumexpress.com

!   Homeschooling Help www.homeschoolinghelp.com

!   Essential Learning Systems www.ldhope.com

Areas Covered

!   Pre Frontal Cortex

!   Reticular Activating System

!   Importance of Emotions

!   The Subconscious Mind

!   Power of Focus

!   Maximizing Potential

Challenge #1: A tiny PFC

Pre-Frontal Cortex

• Making Decisions

• Solving Problems

Limited Resource

•  Majority of conscious thought:

•  Set Goals

•  Plan

•  Control Impulses

•  Solve Problems

•  Think Creatively

Limited Resource

Understanding

Deciding

Recalling

Memorizing

Inhibiting



THREE LEVELS OF THINKING

!   Level 1: Easiest subject--second nature can breeze through it.

!   Level 2: Have to think about it but can work through it fairly easily

!   Level 3: Toughest subject

LIMITED RESOURCE

•  Use Visuals

• Write things down

•  Know your energy sapping tasks / subjects

• Mix things up--give brain a rest

•  Stop paying attention to non-urgent tasks

•  Create patterns

Basal Ganglia

•  Drives routine activities

•  Highly energy efficient

•  Fewer limitations

Other Functions of the Pre-frontal Cortex (Working Memory)

• Only part of the brain that is connected to all other parts of the brain

•  Allows us to imagine

•  Braking system

Capacity for Self-Control

•  Absolutely essential to success in life

• Opens the mind up to learning

• Marshmallow experiment

•  Chocolate experiment

Walter Mischel, Stanford University Roy Baumeister, Florida University

Braking System

Source: John Ridley Stroop

Green Red Blue Gray

Purple Pink



Limbic System��Capacity to Regulate Emotions

•  Extremely Skiddish

•  Constantly on the lookout for potential threats

• Making a decision every moment about everything you interact with in the world.

EMOTIONS IMPACT PERFORMANCE

•  When we focus on the positive we are better able to perform

•  Frustrations and anxiety inhibit success in learning

REGULATE EMOTIONS

!   When an emotion kicks in everything changes

!   Desire is to create a cognitive change--quickly

!   Name it

!   Change your interpretation of the event--do it quickly

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. I Thess. 5:16-18

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure,

whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such

things.

Average person thinks 50,000 thoughts per day

Every thought moves you towards your God-given potential or away from it. No thoughts are neutral.

Tommy Newberry The 4:8 Principle



RETICULAR ACTIVATING SYSTEM

!   Screens out what you are not interested in

!   Billions of bits of information at any given moment

!   Picks out only those things that you are interested in


!   Screens out outside noise

!   Information can break through the clutter

!   Can shift focus if something significant to you is mentioned


!   Draws you to whatever you deem important

!   Draws you to what you are interested in--good or bad

!   Programmed by our beliefs

Deuteronomy 6:6-10

These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on

your gates.

Colossians 3:1-2

Since then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things

above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.

Job 4:8

Those who plow iniquity and sow trouble, reap the same.



Matthew 12:34

“How can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the

overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.”

WHAT ARE YOU FEEDING IT?

!   If junk goes in, junk will come out.

!   If you are casual about what you allow in, you are gradually allowing yourself to become conformed to this world.

!   You become what you think about most.

HOW DO WE RENEW OUR MINDS?

!   Feed yourself with positive thoughts, wisdom, and training that challenges you to become the best that you can be

!   Start and end your day in a way that glorifies God

!   Know and study His Word

!   Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. Matthew 6:33


!   Do not judge anything

!   Obey commands

!   Respond to focus

!   Zero in on all areas of interest including negative ones

!   Continually draw your attention to what you think most about

!   Put the subconscious mind on the requests of the conscious mind

CONSIDER THE IMPACT

!   What are you feeding your mind?

!   In which direction is your reticular activating system taking you?

SUBCONSCIOUS

!   Accepts everything you feed it

!   Makes no judgements

!   No concept of imaginary--everything is reality

Source: Study conducted by the Wharton School of Business



IMPACT ON OUR ATTITUDES

!  90% of self-talk is negative

!  Problems

!  Self Criticisms

Source: Study conducted by the Wharton School of Business

GUARD YOUR HEART

•  Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.

•  Proverbs 4:23

WHY GUARD YOUR HEART?

What you let into your heart shapes what you believe, expect and do.

For every effect in your life, there is a thought or crop of thoughts that are responsible. Tommy Newberry The 4:8 Principle

NEGATIVE THINKING

!   Anxiety

!   Moodiness

!   Depression

!   Irritability

!   Sense of Defeat

BANDS OF STEEL

!   Dwelling on the Negative

!   Begins with a thread of an Idea

!   Bands of Steel

REPLACE WITH GOD’S VIEW

!   Affirm God’s great plans and blessing for the future

!   Feed your subconscious or heart with clear directions for the future--as if you were already there

!   Align your attitude with your prayers in advance



Romans 12:2

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is--His good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 8:5-6

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.

CONSIDER THE IMPACT

!   What are you focusing on?

!   What is your subconscious doing with/about that?

WHAT HAPPENS IF WE ARE STRUGGLING?

!   Take a break

!   Move on to a different kind of activity

!   Come back later

!   Why? Brain can reenergize & subconscious will go to work

LET’S DISCUSS

!   What does this explain that you already do?

!   What does this suggest that you do differently?

HOW DO WE USE THIS POWER OF THE BRAIN?

!   Focus on the positive

!   Visualize who you want to be as though you are already there

!   Send a positive command to your subconscious every night

!   Philippians 4:8

introduction how the brain works areas covered challenge ... · christ, set your hearts on things...

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