In recent years, there has been a definite increase in the attention being paid to brain fitness. The starting point was work done on brain placticity in the 60s and 70s that began to suggest that the brain and the neurons that it consists of are not necessarily fixed in number and destined to to a slow and steady decline. They can and do grow and develop as people use their brains.

For language teachers–particularly aging ones like myself who have started mixing up the names of their children–this has implications that cannot be ignored. It is important on an individual level and I believe it has the power to radically affect our present approach to teaching. But let’s leave that second point for a while and concentrate today on the basic notion of brain health.

I have been aware of the idea of brain fitness for several years, but the first time I heard about it in the popular culture was Nintendo’s DS brain training software (this link is for the English version). It was interesting, but hardly seemed a scientific program in total brain fitness. And, of course, it couldn’t give you advice on diet and exercise and positive thinking, things that seem to also be crucial for good brain fitness.

For those of you who are interested in total brain health and fitness and checking out some of the training programs available, there are two great resources available on the web, both connected to Dr Elkhonon Goldberg, author of two books on the subject: The Executive Brain: Frontal Lobes and the Civilized Mind, and The Wisdom Paradox: How Your Mind Can Grow Stronger As Your Brain Grows Older.

The first one is Sharpbrains. It is really a resource clearinghouse with lots of links to articles and studies. This is a good place to learn about brain fitness. There is also a lot of information here on advice for evaluating brain fitness programs.

The next one, Headstrong, calls itself a brain gym. Here you can actually start training. For the time being it is free, but it really looks like it is set to go commercial in the very near future. You can create a cognitive profile, and select exercises in memory, attention, speed language, or problem solving. Well worth checking out.