Understanding How the Brain Works Means Learning About Neurolearning

Neurolearning is a discipline that combines several sciences—such as neuroscience, psychology, and education—with the goal of understanding how the brain works in order to design effective strategies that support teaching and learning.

When we study neurolearning more deeply, we realize that it focuses on memory, attention, emotions, and how we can learn more effectively. This is where we begin to see its importance—because even within the same family, people may learn in completely different ways.

It’s important to understand that learning is closely connected to emotional and social processes. That’s why our brain needs stimuli, rest, motivation, and other elements to learn effectively.

Nowadays, learning is no longer just about reading, listening, or memorizing—even though many of us learned that way. Today, after extensive research, we know that learning is directly related to how the brain functions, which means that the brain itself provides us with the capacity to enhance our knowledge.

As parents, we should embrace the understanding of neurolearning. Doing so would help us better understand how our children learn, so we can adapt their study methods to meet goals such as:

1. Improving learning: by applying effective academic and professional methods.

2. Personalizing learning: not everyone learns the same way, and neurolearning allows us to adapt educational techniques to meet the unique needs of each student.

3. Increasing motivation: the brain responds positively to interest and emotion, which helps us create learning environments that foster curiosity and engagement.

4. Enhancing long-term learning: humans tend to forget information over time, and neurolearning helps us create techniques to reinforce what we’ve learned and retain it in memory.

5. Adapting: the brain has the ability to change and adapt, allowing us to overcome learning failures and develop a growth mindset.

6. Facilitating lifelong learning: It’s a myth that we stop learning as we grow older. While our cognitive abilities may change over the years, the brain still retains its ability to learn.

When children are in their early years, neurolearning should be our right hand—because their brains are highly active and forming neural connections, making learning more natural, effective, healthy, and lasting.

Some practices that help promote neurolearning from a young age include: learning through colors, songs, and games; memory games; inventing stories; alternating activity and rest time; asking about their difficulties; setting challenges; creating healthy sleep routines, among others.