Notes
Slide Show
Outline
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Brain-Based Learning through Content-Based Language Teaching
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Dr. Teresa J. Kennedy
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Identify your Teaching Patterns
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The importance of foreign language learning…..why study, why learn?
  • Keeping students tuned in and engaged in language learning:
    •  Provide context for the material being discussed—making it relevant!
    •  Provide a need to learn the material—communicating with peers!
    •  Make it real—discussing issues
      related to the world around them!


    • …Sounds easy….but is it?
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The Decade of the Brain
  • “The human brain, a 3-pound mass of interwoven nerve cells that controls our activity, is one of the most magnificent—and mysterious—wonders of creation. The seat of human intelligence, interpreter of senses, and controller of movement, this incredible organ continues to intrigue
    scientists and layman alike.”
    (Presidential Proclamation 6158, 1990).
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Cognitive Science
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The Human Brain 101
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Neurons
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Neuronal Development
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Neuronal Development
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Neuronal Development
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Growth Patterns in the Brain
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The Parts of the Brain
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A Look inside the Brain
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The Parts of the Brain
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A Look inside the Brain
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A Look inside the Brain
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A Look inside the Brain
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Modularities
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The Brain and Language
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The Corpus Callosum
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Bilingual Corpus Callosum Variability
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Bilingual Corpus Callosum Variability
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Bilingual Corpus Callosum Variability
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New research constantly occurring!
  • Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York
  • 12 healthy bilingual volunteers
  • *  Revealed information suggesting that the location where the capacity to speak a second language is stored can be found in different areas of the brain depending on when in life a person becomes bilingual.
  • Winslow, 1997
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NEXT STEPS…
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What does research say about academic performance?
  • Children who have studied a foreign language in elementary school:
    • Achieve expected gains in all content areas.


    • Receive higher scores on standardized tests in reading, English language arts, science, mathematics, social studies and geography.


    • Show greater cognitive development—mental flexibility, creativity at solving complex problems, divergent thinking, and higher-order thinking skills.


  • Long Term Effects:
    • Higher SAT scores.
    • Higher scores on tests of verbal and nonverbal intelligence.


  • Positive attitudes toward the target language and culture:
    • Children's motivation to learn another language is stronger.


    • Demonstrate increased confidence in their ability to use the
      target language.


    • Develop more positive attitudes toward the target
      language and culture.
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Limitations on Learning in the Secondary FL Classroom
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The Variable of Time
  • 720  hours of  INTENSIVE  study  at  the  Foreign Service  Institute  for  adults  with  high  aptitude to  become  proficient.
  • (Omaggio-Hadley, 2001)
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The Corpus Callosum
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Brain Research: Verbal Sites
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Brain Research: Early learning
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Brain Plasticity Theory
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Language Mapping
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Late Language Acquisition
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Brain Research: Comparisons
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What does it all mean?
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Recommended Web site
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Mirror Activity
  • Work in small groups to complete the tasks     as described on your activities sheets.
    • Using the mirror, read the directions and complete each task before continuing to the next task.
  • Lessons Learned
    • Prior knowledge can cause negative feedback.
    • Experimentation must occur in order to achieve mastery.
    • Emotions can be detrimental to learning.
    • The student does not feel good about the task until the breakthrough occurs and the problem can be solved.
  • The 3 E’s:                                                                        Emotional Security/Elaborate Rehearsal/Enriched Environment
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The Senses and Brain Research
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Enhancing Memory
  • 5 of the 12 pairs of sensory nerves are associated with FL teaching and learning:
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Memory:  Retrieval of Information
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Making a Memory
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Memory:  Storage of  Information
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Storage of Information: Relevance
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Storage of Information:
Contexts and Patterns
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Storage of Information: Emotional Connections
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Teaching  Methods  and  Correlation  to  Memory
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Average Retention Rate after 24 Hours
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Information Processing Model
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Structuring Time for Retention
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Memory:  Retrieval of Information
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Creating  a  Brain-Sensitive  Learning  Environment
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Teaching  Methods  and  Correlation  to  Learning
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Teaching  Methods  and  Correlation  to  Learning
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Gardner’s Intelligences and Bloom’s Taxonomy
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Learning Styles:  The 4MAT System
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Monsters Activity
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Assessment
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What can FL Teachers do to facilitate student learning??
  • Create a brain-compatible learning environment where a combination of many different teaching methods are utilized.
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Recommendations
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Additional Recommendations
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Creating  a  Brain-Sensitive  Learning  Environment
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Brain Awareness Week
  • Brain Awareness Week is an international effort organized by the Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives to advance public awareness about the progress and benefits of brain research.


  • http://www.dana.org


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Conferences and Resources
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More Resources…
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Language Study and the Brain
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Wait…there’s more…
Interdisciplinary,
Content-Based Ideas….
  • REMEMBER: 
    The tendency for the brain to consider the entire experience and to search for meaningful patterns calls for thematic, content-based interdisciplinary instruction.
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NASA and The GLOBE Program
Integrate Content Areas into the
K-12 Foreign Language Classroom
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The International Space Station
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The International Space Station
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The International Space Station
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Content-based Lesson Development
  • Communication
  • Cultures
  • Connections
  • Comparisons
  • Communities
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Space Events Around the World
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NASA Materials Database
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NASA Web sites in other languages
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NASA Web sites in other languages
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NASA Web sites in other languages
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NASA Web sites in other languages
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How could a language classroom use these NASA materials?
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How can you obtain NASA materials for your classroom?
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International Programs
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The GLOBE Program
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The Next Generation GLOBE
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GLOBE Achievements
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GLOBE Scientific Measurements
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GLOBE Resource Materials
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GLOBE teams with ACTFL
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A School-Wide Interdisciplinary Program
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A School-Wide Interdisciplinary Program
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GLOBE Partner Countries
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Literacy Skill Development
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Reaching All Students
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GLOBE and Foreign Language Classrooms
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El Niño/La Niña Weather Patterns
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Content Based Lesson
El Niño
  • TPR-Review weather terms to lead into a discussion about El Niño.
  • Jigsaw Reading Activity- Use authentic text about the El Niño weather occurrence to deepen understanding and expand vocabulary.  Group discussion.
  • Culture/Technology- Use the Globe website to locate and communicate with students in other nations.
  • GLOBE Enhancements- Use the GLOBE cloud protocol and weather observations to discuss cloud cover and temperature.  Begin writing activities.
  • Extended Listening Activities- Show students an authentic weather forecast and provide them with listening guides.
  • Creation- In groups, students will create video taped weather forecasts.  Present in class.
  • Meaningful study of the language—students motivated for future use.
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Why GLOBE?
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Curriculum Design keeping the
BRAIN in MIND for all learners with HIGH powered lessons.