What Is the Definition of Brain Plasticity?
Brain Plasticity Science: The Study of How the Brain Changes
Brain plasticity, also called neuroplasticity, is “a common term used by neuroscientists, referring to the brain’s ability to change at any age–for better or worse. As you would imagine, this flexibility plays an incredibly important role in our brain development (or decline) and in shaping our distinct personalities.”*
Neuroplasticity = Brain Change for Children AND Adults
Children are born to be amazing learning machines—their brains growing and forming at a staggering rate of 1,800,000 new connections per second.
In early infancy, movements are often random and involuntary. Yet these experiences feed the brain with information it uses to form recognizable patterns, and to organize and control all dimensions of movement.
The science of brain plasticity shows how, under the right conditions, the adult brain can also restructure itself in remarkable ways. Even the birth of new brain cells can occur in adults, as well as children.
Neuroplasticity Is One of the Greatest Scientific Discoveries of the 20th Century
For many years, scientists believed that the adult brain was unchangeable. Today, we now know that a person’s brain can change at any age. Decades of research done by thousands of neuroscientists has shown that the brain can change itself.
Brain Plasticity Is the Foundation for NeuroMovement®
NeuroMovement® is based on neuroplasticity principles and the underlying process leading to growth and improvement of brain functioning. NeuroMovement® helps to upgrade the functioning of the brain itself to become a more skilled brain.
With a better, stronger brain, positive changes occur in both children and adults, often making the seemingly impossible possible. They become brilliant learners, learning to move with more ease, overcome pain, think and problem solve, and reach new levels of physical, emotional, and intellectual performance.
“The human brain is incredibly plastic.
It changes itself extremely rapidly through
its experiences of movement throughout life.”
—Anat Baniel
Did You Know? Given the right conditions for learning, when portions of the brain have been damaged or are missing, the brain will “rewire” itself to bypass these damaged areas and recover many of the functions it lost.