Student: ​Hannah Jones Date: ​11/19/2020

Reading Assignment:​ Chapter 1: The Brain and Learning

Reading Summary and Two-Column Note Form

Part 1: Summary: In no more than three separate sentences, summarize the key
information the author is conveying in this chapter. (Suggestion: Give a one-sentence
summary for each of the major sections of the reading assignment.)

Sousa begins this chapter by discussing the exterior and interior parts of the brain and their
functions. He goes on to discuss how the brain learns and retains information, helping
educators understand that different methods have different efficiencies for helping students
learn and retain information. Before ending the chapter with a discussion on the effects of sleep,
Sousa shares how students’ brains differ today than they did twenty years ago, and therefore
educational methods should differ.

Part 2: Personal Response

Write the words, phrases, sentences that Write your thinking about what the author
strike you. Note the page numbers. Provide says. Make connections to personal
no more than three quotations across the text experience, other texts you’ve read, and/or to
assignment. what you know about schools.

“By controlling the release of a variety of
hormones, [the hypothalamus] moderates
numerous body functions, including sleep,
food intake, and liquid intake. If body systems
slip out of balance, it is difficult for the
individual to concentrate on cognitive
processing of curriculum material” (p.10).
● If students don’t get enough sleep,
food, or liquids, they will have a harder
time learning in school.
● Many students (especially older
students) don’t get enough sleep, so
their brains aren’t functioning the way
they’re supposed to.
● Any time I am hungry, thirsty, or tired,
it’s really hard for me to concentrate
on whatever the teacher/professor is
saying. In college, I can normally nap
or eat after one or two classes, but
students who haven’t graduated have
to wait the whole day to get some
sleep, and several hours to get some
food (if they have food for lunch).
● In high school, I didn’t get a lot of
sleep because of the amount of
homework I had. Schools need to cut

“Thus it is worth noting that the two structures
in the brain mainly responsible for long-term
remembering are located in the ​emotional
area of the brain. Tying emotions to new
learning can be a powerful memory device”
(p.11).
“Learning is likely to be remembered if it
makes sense and has meaning for the
learner” (p.16).
back on homework so that students
can get more sleep, and so that they
can enjoy a relaxful activity before bed
so they can fall asleep faster.
● The best way to teach a concept is to
connect it to a students’ emotions.
● Emotion drives attention drives
learning
● The Brain to Brain videos also
discussed the idea that using
emotions is the best way to help a
child learn.
● I have seen this as true in my own life.
I recently read a book that reminded
me of a very emotional event in my
life. Whenever I see the book, I think
more of my emotions than of the
actual book. Another example is in the
Brain to Brain video about emotion
and perceived threat. I was able to
connect what Dr. Wolfe was saying to
my own life; it was like she understood
exactly what I was going through.
Because this video reached my
emotions more than the other videos, I
remember so much more of what she
said than I do from the other videos.
● Present new concepts in ways
students can understand. Simplicity is
best. Don’t overcomplicate ideas. This
reminds me of Vygotsky’s Zone of
Proximal Development. Start where
the student can understand and then
gradually increase to more
complicated ideas.
● Find ways to make the learning
meaningful. Students want to learn
about things that they can use outside
of school.
● In calculus, I always had a friend who
asked, “When will we use this in real
life?” Had the teacher made this clear
from the beginning, the point of all the
numbers and equations would have
made a lot more sense. We would
have been able to apply the numbers
to real world problems, instead of
stereotypical problems that none of us
cared about. Maybe I would even
remember some calculus today.