The brain is the basic organ that not only controls all organs in the body, but also directs emotions, thoughts, memory and learning. Brain development begins in the womb and increases or decreases depending on the experiences experienced after birth. At birth, a baby's brain has 100 billion brain cells (neurons). Neurons are connected to each other through small gaps called “synapses” and form clusters that perform various functions of the brain. At birth, there are 2500 synapses in each neuron, but by the time the child is 2-3 years old, this number increases to 15,000 synapses for each neuron. If the exponentially increasing neuron networks are not used enough, they disappear. The number of connections between brain cells may increase or decrease depending on the environmental conditions the baby is in and the stimuli he receives from the environment. These connections formed in the first months of life are strengthened and become permanent by the warnings received by the baby from the baby's parents and close environment. The brains of neglected babies cannot complete their development in all regions. The synapses in the child's brain become stronger with repeated experiences, and connections are formed as the child learns. If these connections are not used, they disappear. If connections are used repeatedly in early childhood, they become more permanent. (Shore, 1997 ; Siegel, 1999).
The structure and development of the brain depends on three elements: genetics, environment and experience. The pyramid you see on the side is the learning pyramid. (I will share each step in detail in my other articles.) Normally, the child starts to develop from the bottom and the skills he develops take him to the upper level. Due to events such as insufficient experience, lack of stimulation, and inappropriate environment, the child may not have the skills he/she should have according to his/her age. Your child's delayed skill means being a dependent individual in his daily life, not being able to keep up with his peers, lacking self-confidence, not being able to develop communication skills, etc. means. As occupational therapists, we ensure that the child learns and what he learns is permanent by increasing the connections in his brain with meaningful and purposeful activities suitable for the child. In this way, the child becomes an independent individual who acts purposefully in his daily life and is happy in the school environment.
Preschool period is the 'magic' years of life It is considered as the years when the child's physical and mental development is at its fastest. In addition, it is argued that the preschool period is the most important period in the emotional and social development of the child and the formation of his personality (Erkan, 1993; Oktay, 1999). That's why intervention in early childhood is so important. It is observed that neglect negatively affects brain development and if necessary interventions are not made, children's intelligence, emotions and personalities develop problematically.
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