Adolescents… What are they thinking? Heather Von Bank Ph.D. Assistant Professor Family Consumer Science Child Development Family Studies Area Heather Von Bank Ph.D. Assistant Professor FCS Child Development & Family Studies

Quiz time! Brain development quiz

Growth & Development During Adolescence Pruning the Tree: Brain Development Inside the mind: Cognitive Changes Adolescents in FCS Classroom

Why do teenagers have difficulty… Being rational, controlling impulses, showing good judgment? Are they just naïve, willfully disobedient, disrespectful, selfish. …sort of

Pruning the Tree: Developing Frontal Cortex Reason why adolescents have difficulty reasoning, controlling impulses, judgment (5:07) Under-developed frontal cortex responsible for controlling, planning, working memory, organization, & regulating mood Inside the Teenage Brain http://youtu.be/yvmMiFHTifY

Use it or loose it principle What we do today strengthens skills for tomorrow… How to make decisions: Decision making skills Making ethical decisions: “What Do You Want the Virtual World to Say About You in 10 Years” Social skill development: Mock Job Interview Decision Making Skills http://dev.decisioneducation.org/ Making Ethical Decisions: Internet safety http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/blog/what-do-you-want-the-virtual-world-to-say-about-you-in-10-years Social Skill Devleopment: Mock Job Interviewhttp://www.parentingscience.com/social-skills-activities.html

Identify this emotion 100% of adults identified this as FEAR 50% of teens identified this as SHOCK or ANGER An example for a teenager would be their outbursts. They might be perfectly happy one moment and then just turn around and be absolutely miserable and scream, "I hate you, you're the worst parent," and then a moment later, say, "Oh, dear Mom, that was great. Thanks for doing that." And there are cycles which can occur sometimes from a parent's perspective on the order of a nanosecond, although they probably sometimes take minutes. That lability is probably because the frontal cortex is not adequately overseeing the middle part of the brain that actually gives rise to the emotion.

Emotional Regulation Amygdala Teens: Rudimentary part of the brain that controls emotions Adults: Frontal cortex regulates emotions EXAMPLE: Emotional Intelligence Emotional Intelligence Lesson Plans http://my.extension.uiuc.edu/documents/257080502080208/Emotional_Intelligence_13-18.pdf

Inside the teenage mind: Cognitive Changes How thinking changes during adolescence Concrete into formal thought Thinking about possibilities Problem solving “The Mangoes Problem” Problem Solving: The Mangoes Problem http://illuminations.nctm.org/LessonDetail.aspx?ID=L264

Potential for Abstract Thought Think about situations that don’t exist The Trolley Problem What would you do? Abstract Thought: The Trolley Problem http://youtu.be/Fs0E69krO_Q

Consider Many Factors Sarcasm, metaphors, double entendre Panda mating fails: veterinarian takes over Miners refuse to work after death New obesity study looks for larger test group Children make nutritious snacks Criminals get nine months in violin case

Metacognition: Thinking about thinking Imaginary Audience “…everyone is doing it” Peer influence to drink Talk about it, Write about it, Role play, Publicize, Teach the steps Personal fable “that’s not going to happen to me” Texting & driving 97%: say it’s dangerous 89%: reply to text in 5 min 77%: have seen parents text & drive Teach the Steps to Resist Peer Pressure http://healthallianceonalcohol.com/peer-pressure-book/ Texting and Driving commercial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92kPKbXHqss

Adolescents in FCS Class More critical thinking opportunities Stimulate formal-operational thinking Hands-on learning.. How about Service learning!! Metacognitive skill training? Encourage healthy eating or classroom management Create a design magazine in groups Play school with preschool children Opportunities to practice self-monitoring &adapting Metacognitive Skill Training http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/metacognition/teaching_metacognition.html Critical thinking, address a problem in the school, whether it’s the arrangement of food in the cafeteria to affect students’ choice lunch choices to addressing classroom management, let the students have a say! Formal operational thinking, they can think about multiple possibilities, give them the chance to think outside the box while still learning the content. For class in family housing,

Any questions?

List of References/Resources Topic Sites Inside the Teenage Brain http://youtu.be/yvmMiFHTifY Decision Making Skills Making http://dev.decisioneducation.org Ethical Decisions: Internet safety http://www.commonsensemedia.org/educators/blog/what-do-you-want-the-virtual-world-to-say-about-you-in-10-years Social Skill Development: Mock Job Interview http://www.parentingscience.com/social-skills-activities.html Emotional Intelligence Lesson Plans http://my.extension.uiuc.edu/documents/257080502080208/Emotional_Intelligence_13-18.pdf Problem Solving: The Mangoes Problem http://illuminations.nctm.org/LessonDetail.aspx?ID=L264 Abstract Thought: The Trolley Problem http://youtu.be/Fs0E69krO_Q Teach the Steps to Resist Peer Pressure http://healthallianceonalcohol.com/peer-pressure-book/ Texting and Driving commercial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92kPKbXHqss Metacognitive Skill Training http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/metacognition/teaching_metacognition.html