BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

Did you know? a child’s brain goes through a remarkable development period from birth to age three.



HERE ARE SOME INTERESTING FACTS YOU SHOULD KNOW

  • The first five (particularly the first three years) of a child’s life are the most important stages of their development. It is during these first five years that the brain’s development and functioning are formed.
  • Between the ages of 1-2 years old, the cerebral cortex of a toddler adds over 2 million new synapses per second! By the time they turn two, they have over 100 trillion synapses – the most that they will ever have in their lives. By the time a child reaches adulthood, over 50% of those synapses will be gone.
  • Between the ages of 3-8 years old, a child’s brain tissue uses twice as much energy as that of adult brain tissue. For instance, a 5-year-old child that weighs 44 pounds would require 860 calories per day — half of that energy goes to their brain.
  • Approximately 40,000 new synapses are added per second to a baby’s brain just before and after birth.
  • By their first birthday, a baby’s brain reaches 70% of its adult size. By the time they turn two, it reaches 80%.
  • By the time a child reaches kindergarten, their brain will have reached its full size. However, it won’t stop developing until they are in their mid-20s. Even then, their brain will never stop changing.

Learn about the childcare programs offered at Rising Stars Academy.



RESOURCES

  1. Aamodt, Sandra, Ph.D., and Sam Wang, Ph.D. Welcome to Your Child’s Brain: How the Mind Grows from Conception to College. New York, NY: Bloomsbury, 2011.
  2. Mooney, Carol Garhart. Theories of Childhood: An Introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget, & Vygotsky. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press, 2000.