Inside the Adolescent Brain
This brain region is especially important for planning, organizing, controlling impulses, and making decisions.
What is the prefrontal cortex?
This video-sharing platform is famous for Shorts, challenges, dances, and viral videos.
What is TikTok?
Students are more likely to remember information when they actively bring it back to mind instead of only rereading it. What is this strategy called?
What is retrieval practice?
This part of the brain is important for planning, organizing, controlling impulses, and thinking through consequences.
What is the prefrontal cortex?
Students enter class and immediately see a short, engaging task with clear directions on the board. What two things does this routine help establish?
What are predictability and a focused start to learning?
This brain system helps process emotions, rewards, and motivation.
What are emotion- and reward-related brain circuits?
In Minecraft, players can build worlds, explore, and create using these block-shaped materials.
What are cubes?
Instead of listening to a 30-minute explanation, students learn a concept in short chunks with opportunities to practice. What instructional principle does this support?
What is chunking information and managing cognitive load?
This brain structure is part of the reward system and helps motivate behavior by processing rewards, reinforcement, and learning from outcomes.
What is the striatum?
Students are restless after sitting through a long explanation. Name one instructional move that can help them re-engage.
What is a movement break, turn-and-talk, hands-on task, or active response?
Adolescents may be more sensitive to peer approval and social rejection because these experiences can strongly activate the brain's systems for this.
What are social reward and emotional processing systems?
This animated Disney movie features Riley and personified emotions such as Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust.
What is Inside Out?
Students solve a challenging problem on vertical whiteboards with classmates rather than watching the teacher solve every problem. Name two learning opportunities this creates.
What are active thinking, collaboration, movement, or explaining reasoning?
This collection of brain structures helps process emotions, emotional significance, and responses to rewarding or threatening experiences.
What is the limbic system?
You want students to take ownership instead of asking, “Am I done yet?” What should you provide so they can monitor their own progress?
What are a clear learning target, success criteria, and opportunities to check their progress?
The brain continues developing into a person's twenties, particularly in systems supporting complex decision-making and self-regulation. What does this mean for teachers?
What is that planning and self-regulation skills are still developing and need practice and support?
In this Nintendo game series, players catch, train, and battle creatures such as Pikachu.
What is Pokémon?
A student is worried about being laughed at for a wrong answer. What classroom condition can help the student take an academic risk?
What is psychological safety, belonging, and a supportive classroom climate?
A student works harder when a lesson includes an achievable challenge, immediate feedback, and a sense of progress. How can this leverage the developing striatum's role in reward learning?
What is making progress visible and using meaningful feedback and achievable milestones to reinforce learning?
A student becomes defensive after receiving corrective feedback in front of peers. What is one way to preserve dignity while still holding the student accountable?
What is giving calm, private, specific feedback and a clear next step?
A student blurts out an answer, reacts emotionally, and later says, “I don't know why I did that.” What is one brain-development explanation that may help us understand this behavior without excusing it?
What is that impulse control and emotional regulation are still developing, especially under stress or excitement?
This type of online entertainment lets players cooperate or compete in a shared virtual world, often communicating through voice or text chat.
What is multiplayer gaming?
Students study a concept on Monday, retrieve it on Wednesday, and apply it in a new context on Friday. What two powerful learning principles are being used?
What are spaced practice and transfer of learning?
A student reacts impulsively when embarrassed in front of peers. Explain how adolescent brain development may contribute to the reaction, and name two strategies a teacher can use to support the student.
What is recognizing that emotional and social situations can intensify reactions while self-regulation is still developing, then using calm redirection, private feedback, processing time, or explicit self-regulation strategies?
You want students to remember and independently use a new skill weeks later. Design a response using at least three strategies that leverage adolescent learning and development.
What is a combination of retrieval practice, spaced review, meaningful application, student explanation, feedback, or gradual release of support?