Practising brain boosting activities is very important to help children have sharp and active brain. Let us take a look at the top 10 activities for boosting your child’s brain power.Your child’s brain is fully formed by the age of 5 and this is the reason as to why learning behaviour specialists urge parents to indulge in brain developmental games with their kids from an early age. There is a lot you can do as a parent to boost your little one’s
brain power. These are few tips using which you can keep your kids busy.
1. Read to Your Kid
Start reading to your child even before birth as there is evidence that foetuses understand and react to words. Continue reading to your kids as and when they grow older and introduce them to the exciting world of books.
2. Play Memory Boosting Games
With slightly older kids you can play
memory games, riddles and abstract problem games where your kid needs to think a bit to come up with a solution. Start off with simple ones and graduate to tougher ones as your kids become experts at these.
3. Restrict TV Time
Too much of television dulls the senses and sends the brain into a trance state. One important thing you need to do as a parent is to restrict the number of hours your kid stares at the idiot box. Ideally the total time should not be more than 2 hours per day.
4. Exercise
Exercise not only energises the body, it has a strong stimulating effect on the brain. Studies show that kids who are fitter have sharper focus and are more alert. A healthy body and a healthy brain always walk hand in hand.
5. Do Not Over Help
Many parents try to solve every problem for their child which is why their kids never learn to tackle their own issues. Too much of parental help can actually slow down the
brain development of the kid so recognise that there are times when you have to sit back and watch your kid fight his or her own battle.
6. Indoor Games
Indoor games like
Chess and Chinese Chequers are great for building up brain activity apart from teaching critical strategic skills and enhancing concentration. Introduce your kid to a chess club or play the game yourself with your kid. Such games help to keep child’s brains alert and active.
7. Build Awareness
Read the headlines of the
newspaper aloud to your kid and try to explain some basic points about what has been printed. Being aware of one’s environment is a very important way of keeping the brain active and focused. As and when your kid grows older ask him or her about personal interpretation of the news and current issues.
8. Eating Healthy
Make your kid Eat brain power boosting foods like blueberries, nuts and seeds, deep water fish and avocadoes as this have a positive impact on brain health. All of these food groups are high on mono saturated fat and omega fatty acids which boost blood flow to the brain.
9. Laugh a Lot
A happy and content child is naturally more alert and brain active. Chase away negative thoughts from your home and make it into a haven of joy. Laugh together with your child as there is enough scientific evidence to point out that laughter stimulates blood flow to the brain thereby stimulating the brain power.
10. Social Interactions
Let your kid mingle with friends from different environments, ethnicities and cultures. Talking to a person from a different background and environment requires a lot more action on part of the brain. Your kid has to be smart enough to pick up the verbal and non verbal signals and this will require stimulation of the brain. Studies show that an optimum amount of social interaction is necessary for promoting brain health.
Use any of these 10 top tips to keep your kid’s brain smart and active always. Carrying out activities during early childhood is important because 90% of children’s brain development takes place before the age 5. So, make sure that you do not miss this important phase.
Which activities can help to boost brain power of children? How to keep a child’s brain sharp and active? What are the ways to stimulate brain power of children? Discuss here.