The Special Needs Brain: Research That’s Changing How We Address Learning StrugglesThe Special Needs Brain: Research That’s Changing How We Address Learning Struggles As a leader in field of cognitive training research, the Gibson Instituteof Cognitive Research (www.gibsonresearchinstitute.org), along with one-on-one brain training company LearningRx (www.LearningRx.com) has gathered some of the top research related to special needs and learningstruggles. For parents and educators seeking ways to address, train andmeasure brain skills—such as attention, processing speed, logic& reasoning, visual and auditory processing, and memory—stayingon top of game-changing neuroscience is vital. Here are some of the latestscientific findings regarding ADHD, autism, dyslexia, IQ, brain function,learning struggles and more. Giving kids omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids improves reading skills. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study from the University of Gothenburgin Sweden found that after three months, children who took the supplementshad improved reading skills compared to those who received placebos. Accordingto the lead research, Mats Johnson, “The gains were particularlyevident in the children’s ability to read a nonsense word aloudand pronounce it correctly (phonologic decoding), and the ability to reada series of letters quickly (visual analysis time).” PUBLISHED IN:The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry SOURCE: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jcpp.12614/abstract IQ can change. A first of its kind study has found a one-on-one cognitive training programimproved cognitive skills and IQ scores by 21 points in students ages8 to 14. The ThinkRx® training program, created by leading researchersand experts at LearningRx, significantly improved an average IQ and seven cognitive skills: associativememory, working memory, long-term memory, visual, processing, auditoryprocessing, logic and reasoning and processing speed. PUBLISHED IN:The Journal of Applied Cognitive Psychology SOURCE:https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-0720 We may be able to predict dyslexia three years early. Researchers at MIT have discovered that a region of the brain dedicatedto reading has connections long before children learn to read. By evaluatedthe connections of that area of the brain to other regions, the researcherscould predict exactly where each child’s visual word form area would develop. PUBLISHED IN: Nature Neuroscience SOURCE: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/312237.php Brain training has been shown to significantly increase cognitive skills. Two studies testing the efficacy of the LearningRx one-on-one cognitivetraining program and its computer-based version (Brainskills) in laboratoryand school settings found that both created significant gains in workingmemory, logic and reasoning, and three of four math attitude measures. PUBLISHED IN:Journal of Experimental Education: Learning, Instruction, and Cognition SOURCE: https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220973.2015.1065218 Even small increases in sleep improve grades. Researchers at McGill University and the Douglas Mental Health UniversityInstitute found that elementary school-age children who improved theirsleep habits also boosted their grades. Even just 18 minutes more perschool night had a “significant impact” on report card grades. PUBLISHED IN: Sleep Medicine SOURCE: https://www.mcgill.ca/newsroom/channels/news/small-increases-sleep-improve-grades-260065 We can create new connections in the brain. A Randomized Control Trial (RCT) testingLearningRx’s ThinkRx program found that the brains of the participating high schoolstudents had significant physical changes after completing the 15-weekpersonal brain training, including: Significant changes in the resting state connectivity An increase in global network efficiency Network changes in the brain correlated to auditory processing gains PRESENTED AT: Center for Brain Health Annual Symposium: Reprogramming the Brain to Health:Computational Psychiatry and Neurology, University of Texas at Dallas, 2016 SOURCE: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-0720 Childhood music lessons improve attention skills. When researchers at the University of Vermont College of Medicine lookedat the brain scans of 232 children (ages 6 to 18), they found that thecortical thickness in the brain of those who played a music instrumentmatured faster. This area of the brain is associated with motor planningand coordination, visuospatial ability, and emotion and impulse regulation.The more a child trained on an instrument, the faster the cortical organizationin attention, anxiety management and emotional control. PUBLISHED IN: Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry SOURCE: https://www.jaacap.com/article/S0890-8567%2814%2900578-4/abstract You can train a child’s thinking and learning skills. Children who completed a 24-week ThinkRx cognitive training program hadsignificant gains in long-term memory, logic and reasoning, working memory,processing speed, auditory processing, and Word Attack. PUBLISHED IN:Vision Development and Rehabilitation SOURCE: https://www.covd.org/?page=VDR_1_2 To learn more about Brain Awareness Week, visitwww.dana.org/BAW/.