How to Boost Your Child's Brain Power

As a parent, you may be tempted to purchase special toys and programs marketed as the holy grail for boosting your child̵7;s brain power. While many educational toys do help develop your child̵7;s cognitive skills, you can give him the boost he needs without fancy gizmos and gimmicks. Understanding how meeting his basic physical and emotional needs impacts his cognitive development puts you in the position to boost your child̵7;s brain power without succumbing to the latest fads.

Instructions

    • 1

      Provide your child with well-balanced meals following the USDA MyPlate recommendations as a guide. This means plenty of fruits and vegetables, lean meats and complex grains. A healthy diet nourishes the growing body and brain and promotes cognitive functioning. Seek the advice of your pediatrician about adding supplemental vitamins to the diet.

    • 2

      Encourage your child to drink water instead of juice or sweetened beverages when thirsty. A 2009 report by the California Food Council Advocates indicates that dehydration in children is associated with impaired cognitive functioning. Dehydration affects memory, alertness, reasoning, concentration and attention. Keeping your child well hydrated is vital to cognitive functioning.

    • 3

      Monitor your child̵7;s sleep habits to ensure he receives enough sleep. Children between the ages of 5 and 12 require between 10 and 11 hours of uninterrupted sleep a night, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Lack of sleep leads to physical and emotional difficulties, including problems with cognitive functioning that may impair your child̵7;s ability to learn.

    • 4

      Allow your child ample time for play or to pursue activities and hobbies in an unstructured environment. A clinical report by the American Academy of Pediatrics explains that children̵7;s cognitive skills are enhanced by play. For young children, imaginative or dramatic play builds creativity and spawns flexibility in thinking.

    • 5

      Ask your child open-ended questions to encourage her to think critically about her answers. Open-ended questions require an answer beyond yes or no. Instead of asking if she liked the book you just read together, ask her what part she liked best or how she thinks the characters in the story would have reacted to different events.

    • 6

      Let your child solve minor problems on his own and resist the urge to solve them for him. This gives him the opportunity to think things through and consider the alternatives.

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