An Elephant Never Forgets: How to Boost Your Child’s Memory and Emotional Growth

An Elephant Never Forgets

Have you ever heard of the saying “an elephant never forgets?” This phrase is not just a myth but is rooted in the real-life memory abilities of elephants. These incredible animals are known to recall distant routes to water, recognize faces even years later, and remember locations tied to both danger and food. Elephants’ brains, particularly the hippocampus, which is involved in memory and emotional regulation, are highly developed, enabling them to store and retrieve detailed memories over time.

But what can we learn from this when helping our children to study, learn, or grow emotionally?

Let me stomp straight to the point before we begin. In a nutshell, to cultivate an “elephant mind” and to enhance memory and emotional regulation through our own hippocampal development, we need to incorporate these 5 key practices: 1. Engage in regular aerobic exercise and intellectually stimulating activities to promote neurogenesis and strengthen neural connections. 2. Practice mindfulness 3. Maintain a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants to support brain health and enhance emotional resilience. 4. Prioritize quality sleep for effective memory consolidation, 5. Foster social connections and employing stress management techniques to protect hippocampal function. These 5 practices can significantly boost our cognitive abilities and emotional well-being.

Just like wise elephants, children and teenagers rely on memory to guide their learning and development. However, young people often feel overwhelmed by the vast amount of information they need to retain, whether it’s preparing for exams or dealing with emotional growth. Unlike elephants, they might struggle to store all this information effectively without proper strategies.

Here’s another popular saying “How do you eat an elephant?”  The answer is “One bite at a time.” This phrase highlights the importance of breaking down large tasks into smaller, more manageable steps. Children and teens can retain information better and develop effective study habits if they are encouraged to focus on learning one concept at a time rather than becoming overwhelmed by the bigger picture. Studies have shown that “chunking” information into smaller pieces significantly improves memory retention and reduces anxiety during study sessions. Just as elephants deal with obstacles in their path—our children can approach both academic and emotional hurdles in manageable, step-by-step ways.

Above all, spending quality time with your children is key. Setting aside your own devices, (wait, hold up, can I be honest, can I be congruent again? Yes, No? Tough hide, I will be. I receall delivering workshops to parents in Beijing and Bangkok about spending time with our children and putting our devices away and yet 70% of the parents were on the phone in the presentation not even engaging, so why bother coming asking for strategies, when the only strategy that matters is connecting with our own child!) It is essential to have dedicated family days, showing encouragement can foster a healthy environment for learning and emotional development. These moments of connection not only help reinforce learning but also provide emotional support, showing our children that they are not alone in their academic or personal challenges.

10 Strategies for Parents to Support Their Children’s Learning

1. Chunking Information
   • Example: If your child has a big project due, help them break it down into smaller tasks.
   • How to help: Create a weekly schedule that breaks the project into smaller steps, such as researching on one day and writing on another.
2. Mnemonics and Memory Aids
   • Example: Use mnemonic devices like “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles” to remember the planets.
   • How to help: Make up fun and relatable phrases together, turning study time into an enjoyable and engaging activity.
3. Active Recall
   • Example: Ask your child to explain what they just learned, like a history lesson or math problem.
   • How to help: After reading a chapter, quiz your child on key facts or have them “teach” the material back to you.
4. Emotional Connections
   • Example: When learning about historical events, relate them to real-life experiences or emotions they can connect with.
   • How to help: Watch a documentary or share personal stories that link the academic material to something emotionally relevant.
5. Focus on Small Achievements
   • Example: If your child struggles with math, focus on mastering one topic at a time, such as multiplication before tackling division.
   • How to help: Set small, achievable goals, and celebrate when each one is met to build their confidence.
6. Visualization Techniques
   • Example: Encourage your child to use visual aids, such as drawing diagrams, to understand complex subjects.
   • How to help: Offer them materials like markers and posters to make studying more visual and interactive.
7. Consistent Study Routine
   • Example: Establish a study hour every day to build discipline.
   • How to help: Turn off distractions like phones and TVs during this time to create a focused environment.
8. Sleep and Memory Consolidation
   • Example: Remind your children how important sleep is before big tests, as the brain solidifies new knowledge during rest.
   • How to help: Enforce a consistent bedtime and talk about how sleep helps them perform better in school.
9. Multi-sensory Learning
   • Example: Combine different senses—reading aloud, writing notes, or watching educational videos—to reinforce what they’ve learned.
   • How to help: Find ways to engage multiple senses, like writing words down, saying them aloud, or creating flashcards for review.
10. Regular Review

• Example: Avoid cramming by helping your child review materials regularly, rather than the night before a test.
• How to help: Schedule 15-20 minutes of review each day, and ask your child to summarize what they learned that day.

Well that is enough trumpet blowing for this week’s issue.

Bibliography 

Cotman, C. W., & Berchtold, N. C. (2002). “Exercise: A behavioral intervention to enhance brain health and plasticity.” Trends in Neurosciences.

Hölzel, B. K., et al. (2011). “Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density.” Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging.

Walker, A. M. (2017). “Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams.”

– Bates, L. A., Sayialel, K. N., Njiraini, N., & Poole, J. H. (2008). Elephants classify human ethnic groups by odor and garment color. Current Biology, 17(22), 1938-1942.

– Poole, J. H., & Moss, C. J. (2008). Elephant sociality and complexity: The scientific evidence. Elephants and ethics: Toward a morality of coexistence. Johns Hopkins University Press.

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Denham, S.A., & Burton, R. (2003). Social-Emotional Prevention Programs for Preschoolers. In Handbook of Child Psychology: Social, Emotional, and Personality Development (Vol. 3, pp. 641-689).

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