I Forget Stuff – I Must Be Brilliant

Do you ever stand up to go somewhere, walk over and then wonder why you’re there? Happens to me all the time — wait, that doesn’t sound very reassuring. It happens to me some times.

My solution?

Often walking back to where I came from to trigger the thought that made me leave in the first place.

Doesn’t really leave one with a strong feeling of confidence in my abilities now, does it?

But, if you’re being honest with yourself I bet it happens to you as well.

What is it about our memory that makes some stuff ‘stick’ and other stuff appear to vanish? Looking back to my 20s I can still recall studying for university exams … reading a section of a text book … then reading it again … and again … all to no avail. That page of information just wasn’t going to stay in my head.

But why?

The Amazing Power of Music

Music surrounded me in childhood. My parents encouraged me to include music as part of my educational experience. I took piano lessons; played a band instrument in elementary, junior high and high school; even participated in the chorus of a high school musical (Fiddler on the Roof). In university I had a part-time job teaching in a community marching band.

Music can relax us like few other things can

I found music relaxing — finding that it somehow satisfied an area within me that wasn’t been addressed through my academic studies. I felt calmer when I listened to music, played music or taught music — a different area of my brain was being exercised. And like our sense of smell that has been proven to have an incredibly powerful linkage to our emotions, when I became involved with music I somehow felt better.

Brain Research – How It’s Revolutionizing Learning

I’m a Bit of a Science Geek

My children might argue that it’s more than a “bit”.  I really love how science consistently works to validate ideas and increase our understanding of the world.  And I love how it actually creates more questions than it answers — Science is a never-ending series of inquiries that delve deeper and deeper into areas of discovery.

Here’s a sprinkling of my passion for Science:

  • My first degree was in Zoology;
  • I was a Chemistry, Science and Math teacher;
  • I enjoy reading all kinds of science articles and watching YouTube clips from people like Carl Sagan and Neil deGrasse Tyson;
  • The study of brain biology and how it relates to learning fascinates me;

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