ADHD and SPD in the News:  ADHD and Sensory Processing

The "Teenage Brain" in the News: Researchers to Study Whether Mobile Phones Affect Teenage Brains

[Source: Reuters]

British researchers are launching the largest study in the world to investigate whether using mobile phones and other wireless gadgets might affect children's brain development.

The Study of Cognition, Adolescents and Mobile Phones, or SCAMP, project will focus on cognitive functions such as memory and attention, which continue to develop into adolescence - just the age when teenagers start to own and use personal phones.

While there is no convincing evidence that radio waves from mobile phones affect health, to date most scientific research has focused on adults and the potential risk of brain cancers.

Feel Good Story of the Week:  (And a Great Chuckle to Close Out BHSM)  

Thank You to Melanie Coseo of the School-Based Speech and Language Therapy Group on Facebook for giving us permission to share this wonderful photo and story!   As you might guess, this post has picked up 806 likes on Facebook so far.   We all should have such amazing friends!

Sensory Processing in the News:  Brain's Visual System Also Processes Sound 

[Source:  Medical News Today]

New research finds that the visual cortex - a part of the brain that receives and processes information from the eyes - also processes sound information, which can create visual imagery.

Led by Lars Muckli, a professor in the Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of Glasgow in the UK, the team reports its findings in the journal Current Biology.

The authors suggest processing auditory information enables the human visual system to predict incoming information, thus giving us a survival advantage, as Prof. Muckli explains:

"Sounds create visual imagery, mental images, and automatic projections. So, for example, if you are in a street and you hear the sound of an approaching motorbike, you expect to see a motorbike coming around the corner. If it turned out to be a horse, you'd be very surprised."

Attention in the News:  Classroom Clutter a Distraction to Students?   

Editor's Note:  Small sample size, but definitely worth further study.  Phooey!

[Source:  Psych Central]

Elementary school classrooms often include a mosaic of art and educational material cluttering the room, covering walls and sometimes even glazing the ceiling.

But new research from Carnegie Mellon University shows that too much of a good thing may end up disrupting attention and learning in young children.

Psychological researchers Dr. Anna V. Fisher, Karrie E. Godwin and Dr. Howard Seltman looked at whether classroom displays affected children's ability to maintain focus during instruction and to learn the lesson content. 

PediaStaff Therapy Placement of the Week:  EI in Dallas!  

PediaStaff Interview Question of the Week:  Challenges  

Here is a sample interview question that you should think about before your next interview.    We recommend keeping a journal where you can write out the answers to questions like this, so that, when it is time for your next job search, you have a 'go-to book' of questions and answers - in your own words - that you can review before you go in for an interview!

"Describe a significant challenge you faced in your professional life and how you over came the obstacles to accomplish it anyway?"

Read the Question and Access our Interview Guide on Our Blog

Book of the Week:  Mouth with a Mind of Its Own  

SLP Activity of the Week:  Trash Talk  

Featured Free App and a Review:  Soundable