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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew Watson
Andrew began his classroom life as a high-school English teacher in 1988, and has been working in or near schools ever since. In 2008, Andrew began exploring the practical application of psychology and neuroscience in his classroom. In 2011, he earned his M. Ed. from the “Mind, Brain, Education” program at Harvard University. As President of “Translate the Brain,” Andrew now works with teachers, students, administrators, and parents to make learning easier and teaching more effective. He has presented at schools and workshops across the country; he also serves as an adviser to several organizations, including “The People’s Science.” Andrew is the author of "Learning Begins: The Science of Working Memory and Attention for the Classroom Teacher."
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ADHD adolescence attention book review boundary conditions classroom advice conference speakers constructivism/direct instruction creativity desirable difficulty development dual coding education elementary school embodied cognition emotion evolution executive function exercise experts and novices gender high school homework intelligence long-term memory math methodology middle school mindfulness Mindset motivation neuromyths neuroscience online learning parents psychology reading retrieval practice self-control skepticism sleep STEM stress technology working memoryRecent Comments
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ABOUT THE BLOG
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Read This Post with Your Right Brain First…
My Twitter feed is suddenly awash with one of those “how does your brain?” work…
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You Should Not (or Should) Let Your Students Take Pictures...
Back in October, I wrote a blog post about a surprise: it turns out that…
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Beware the Experts: The Danger of Popular Science Writing
Here’s a little expert advice on nutrition: Michael Phelps — the most decorated Olympic athelete…
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Think, Pair, Share: Does It Help? If Yes, Why?
On some days, I find myself drawn to esoteric research studies. A few months ago,…
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Cultural Field Trips: Do They Really Enhance SEL?
Here at Learning and the Brain, we like research-informed teaching suggestions. At the same time,…
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Should We Teach Math and English the Same Way?
Because we teachers are a busy lot, we sometimes want simplicity and clarity: “I’m honestly…
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When Prior Knowledge Bites Back: The Dangers of Knowing Too...
In this blog, we typically highlight the benefits of prior knowledge. For example: if a…
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Practical Advice for Students: How to Make Good Flashcards
Flashcards feel to me like a research sweet-spot. In the first place: for the most…
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ChatGPT and Beyond: The Best Online Resources for Evaluating Research...
If we’re going to make “research-based” claims about education — and we are! — then…
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“Seductive Details” meet “Retrieval Practice”: A Match Made in Cognitive...
Here’s a common problem: your job today is to teach a boring topic. (You don’t think…