Understanding Your Child & Teen's Brain

"A baby brain is not just a small adult brain, and brain growth, unlike the growth of most other organs in the body is not simply a process of getting larger. The brain changes as it grows, going through special stages that take advantage of the cildhood years and the protection of the family, then, toward the end of the teen years, the surge toward independence. Childhood and teen brains are "impressionable," and for good reason, too. Just as baby chicks can imprint on the mother hen, human children and teens can "imprint" on experiences they have, and these can influence what they choose to do as adults." “The Teenage Brain” (Harper Collins in 2015) at 24.

Leveraging her extensive expertise as a neuroscientist and as the mother of two sons, Dr. Jensen is an advocate for awareness of the adolescent brain development, its unique strengths and vulnerabilities, as well as their impact on medical, social, and educational issues unique to teenagers and young adults.

In this keynote, you will LEARN:

• Why there is a “critical period” in early life
• Why “imprinting” matters, and “frequency and recency” are key
• Why teenage years offer powerful opportunities and risks
• Why the teenage brain is uniquely suited to learn
• Why sleep is critically important
• How stress, mental illness, technology, alcohol & drugs affect the teen brain
• Why brain development doesn’t end with the end of adolescence

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Dr. Jensen is the Arthur Knight Asbury, MD, Professor of Neurology and Chair of Neurology at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and Co-Director of Penn Translational Neuroscience Center. She was formerly Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Director of Translational Neuroscience and senior neurologist at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital. After receiving her AB from Smith College and MD from Cornell Medical College, she obtained her neurology residency training at the Harvard Longwood Neurology Residency Program. Her research focuses on mechanisms of epilepsy, and the interaction of epilepsy with other disorders such as autism and dementia, to elucidate new therapies for clinical trials development. She has authored over 175 manuscripts on subjects related to her research and has been continuously funded by NIH since 1987, and was the recipient of a NIH Director’s Pioneer Award in 2007 and a NIH-NINDS Javits Award in 2020. Dr. Jensen was elected as a member of the National Academy of Medicine in 2015 and the recipient of the Smith College Medal in 2020. Dr. Jensen has trained numerous clinical and basic research fellows who now hold independent faculty positions nationally and internationally. Dr. Jensen served as President of the American Neurological Association (2021-2023) and President of the American Epilepsy Society in 2012. She has served on multiple leadership boards including Society for Neuroscience and NIH, and is on the Advisory Council to NINDS. Dr. Jensen is a Trustee of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia and is involved in community outreach for brain research and education.

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Founded in 1998, Princeton Common Ground ("PCG") is a volunteer-led consortium comprised of 14 Princeton-area p-K through 12 independent schools' family associations. PCG seeks to empower today’s children to flourish in tomorrow’s complex future by inspiring, invigorating and informing our preK to 12th grade parent and educator audiences.

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