ABSTRACT
It is only within very recent history – the past 25 to 30 years – that neuroscience has become a force in child development and educational research, as the tools to study the brain in action have improved and become more readily available. Although neuroscience research on reading, math, and social and emotional function also has important implications for education, this chapter focuses on executive function (EF) skills because these skills play an especially foundational role in learning and because they have been particularly well studied. Basic research on EF development has provided an important foundation for interventions designed to specifically target EF skills in young children, and suggests how to structure places of education to playfully explore their environments in intentional and attentive ways, to practice reflection, and to engage in self-regulated learning. Although neuroscience is a relatively new player in early education, it has transformed people's understanding of the conditions that support learning and brain development.
