Newsflash!
By Julie B. Wise
Winter Newletter

Your mind doesn’t like to work, it likes to have fun. Mature readers know how to create anenvir onment that matches their learning style. Everyone’s brain is hardwired to learn differently. Your ability to create meaning is directly related to your ability to chose the tools which help your mind process information. When you understand how your brain works, you can change your reading behaviors, retain more information, and improve your learning. You may not be able to control what you read, but you can control how you read. All sensory information flows first into the thalamus. From here the information is sorted and sent to both the amygdala and the frontal cortex.

The pathway from the thalamus to the amygdala is shorter and faster than the pathway from the thalamus to the frontal cortex. As a result, your mind responds first to emotional information than rational thought. By accommodating your environment to match your learning style, the amygdala senses happy emotions and sends out messages that say, “This is fun, keep reading, keep reading!” Since emotions drive memory, you can strengthen your mind’s ability to transfer new information from working memory into long-term memory by choosing note-taking tools that match your learning style.

It’s time to use those tools you’ve been avoiding. If you are a kinesthetic learner, make sure you take notes, create movements, and highlight while you read. If you are a visual learner, make sure you draw pictures, use different color highlighters, and create collages for abstract concepts. If you are an auditory learner, make sure you talk back to the author by writing your thoughts in the margins and share your ideas with a friend. Explore your thinking and notice which tools help you remember the information.

Learning becomes exciting when you create an environment that matches the way your mind prefers to read. Remember, when your mind has fun, the reading gets done!
For more information visit: http://www.madetostick.com/ Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die.

Do you have ideas for research or want more information on what was written above? Contact Julie Wise.