Childhood Amnesia

Interesting article on CNN.com regarding “childhood amnesia” and why most of us do not have memories from the first three to four years of our lives.  According to the article, language plays a role in forming lasting memories, specifically citing a study where toddlers over 26 months who could verbalize about an event at the time it occurred could recall the event up to five years later while children under 26 months who couldn’t talk about it recalled very little.  Potentially most note worthy and certainly relevant to early childhood education:  “In the meantime, it's important to remember that, even if we can't explicitly remember specific events from when we were very young, their accumulation nevertheless leaves lasting traces that influence our behavior. The first few years of life are paradoxically forgettable and yet powerful in shaping the adults that we become.”  To read more, click here: