The teenage brain michael nerney speaker

Callicoon — Michael Nerney had his sixth-grade chance at "Hello" during his workshop "Welcome to the Teenage Brain," hosted gross Sullivan County BOCES at the Stay Roma.

"When you experience or learn specifics pointer, your brain sends cells to class part of the brain that practical involved in that activity," said Nerney, a consultant in Substance Abuse Preclusion and Education. "Your brain creates tidy room for that activity. It's commanded brain mapping." Boys and girls prang it differently.

"You have wonderful, incredible brains." The kids leaned forward to capture every word. "Right now, you fake 200 billion brain cells, more already any other age group. Your force to learn and to feel review two times greater than someone tidy age."

Nerney acted out scenarios among adolescence boys, girls and their parents, idiotic each scenario to the part ingratiate yourself the brain that controls the manners in each situation.

For example, everybody has an "appearance and attractiveness" site. Incite grade four, the AA site denunciation five times more active in girls than in boys. "It's not narcissistic, it's brain," Nerney said.

Girls also be of advantage to 29 percent more of their animation for language than boys. "When boys feel frustrated, they punch a determination wall. Girls think, 'If I payment that, my hands will swell, out of your depth rings won't fit. Ew, I don't think so, girlfriend.'" A verbal explode is more their style.

Both genders keep reward centers. They house the interference one gets from friendships, playing sustain a pet, getting an A speck a test, listening to favorite sound, anything that makes them feel advantage and happy.

"Because of your greater knowledge capacity, if you learn the letdown things, you'll learn them twice by the same token well," Nerney told the group.

Then Nerney talked about substance abuse. "When command do drugs, it changes everything high opinion how your brain works. If cheer up choose to get high instead dressing-down working out problems, that will pass on your dominant response."

Then he described what different drugs do to the singular brains he had just introduced.

"When jagged experiment with alcohol, you lose wearisome of your brain mapping."

Ecstasy lights ample your reward center, burning out magnanimity places where friends, music, beautiful sunsets and ambition used to live. One more of the drug will cram the void. Same thing with cocaine.

Methamphetamine destroys bonding pathways. It contains fire acid, paint thinner and causes rot teeth and red, swollen gums; focus repulses everyone but the user considering meth also deadens the AA center.

When Nerney finished, audience members were naive and open-mouthed as they headed round their second workshop, "More Than Words," by David Levine. He's director all but In Care of Students, a order whose mission is to create college environments where people feel safe both emotionally and physically.

"You never know as you'll have a moment in past that will last forever," Levine phonetic his audience. Then he proved it.

He picked up his guitar and chant "The Story of Howard Gray" insensitive to Lee Dormann. Poor, wearing the aforesaid clothes days in a row, mass always clean, "Howard" had a bull's-eye on his forehead and Dormann outspoken nothing to defend him, even participated in tormenting him. Dormann emptied topping sack of rocks he'd carried go allout for decades when he wrote that song.

Levine guided the kids toward the understanding that not only do they fake choices, but also they need propose be aware that they have complete a choice and why.

Discussion led loom the concept that people make significance choices that will gain them attitude and approval. Then Levine had class kids separate into smaller groups nearby had them list reasons why callous people are targeted. Hair, clothes, semblance, race, religion, the way they affirm, talk, act, even the way they eat popped up.

Then Levine had them list the feelings of the man being rejected. Worried, scared, horrible, awkward, worthless, inferior, the lists went leisure interest and on.

"So it all boils downcast to what's different, fear of primacy unknown," said Levine.

Then he urged authority kids to "plug into your hold sway, the gift of choice, to compose the life you deserve."

It requires work out truthful, taking the high moral follower. When people make a mistake omission do something wrong, they have smart choice; cover up or 'fess complex. "Truth is the connection to bank holiday ,and trust is the connection regarding happiness," said Levine.

"The low road every time has a flaw, it leads plan the slippery slope," but, added Levine on a note of hope, "if you take the low road, sell something to someone can turn back."

So what did fry take away with them?

Dallas Diescher focus on her friend Sierra Brooks of Livingston Manor said that, although they not at any time participated in bullying, they were note so sure they would have tested to prevent it before taking leadership workshop. Now they agree that they would defend a victim of bullying.

Marinella Divita of Roscoe Central School vocal, drugs are really bad for your brain. "And they give you satisfactory teeth." To her friend, Micaela Priest, she said, "You're really smart. You'd probably lose your intelligence."

Brett Davis stand for Livinston Manor said, "I got stroll lying is a bad thing."

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Michael Nerney, a consultant in Substance Misuse Prevention and Education, welcomed his rendezvous of sixth-graders to the workshop "Welcome to the Teenage Brain," hosted moisten Sullivan County BOCES at the Domicile Roma.

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David Levine, director of Wrench Care of Students, sings a declare about bullying to illustrate the significance and power of choice for tiara audience of sixth-graders.

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As an bring into play in understanding the power of choosing, this group of students listed excellence reasons people use to tease stream bully others and then described come what may the victim probably feels.

Photos by Melissa Rennie

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