The importance of matching instruction to a child's maturity level
Evidence and explanation
About brain maturation
Children learn in different ways. And although the maturity of the brain is an important factor when it comes to learning differences, the real story is more complicated than that. The way children learn depends on age, level of development and brain maturity. Learning differences are also related to genetics, temperament, and environment, but in this module we will focus on how and when the brain matures.
Before birth
Different brain structures mature at different rates and follow different paths, but maturation begins long before birth. As a fetus grows, nerve cells (neurons) travel to their eventual locations within the brain. The survival of any one neuron is not guaranteed. There is competition among neurons for limited space and those that do not find a home - a place where they can live and thrive - are pruned back and destroyed. It is not known why some neurons find a home and others do not, but after a neuron settles down it continues to grow and develop within its region of the brain.
When pruning does not happen or is incomplete, disorders in learning and/or behavior can be the result.
