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AlegreMENTE / Happy Brain

STEAM Education Practices

Designing for adult learners to support young children’s brain development
2017 – 2022

The exhibition shares information about early brain development and brain-building tips for caregivers.
The exhibition shares information about early brain development and brain-building tips for caregivers.

Project Description

AlegreMENTE: Celebrando Conexiones Tempranas / Happy Brain: Celebrating Early Connections is a unique and interactive traveling exhibition designed specifically for families with children aged 0–5. This bilingual exhibition aims messaging towards caregivers about the importance of playful and loving interactions during their children’s early years to support brain development. The exhibition highlights the significance of these early connections and their lifelong impact on children’s cognitive, social, and emotional wellbeing.

The primary objectives of AlegreMENTE are to:

  1. Provide caregivers with an engaging and informative experience that promotes the positive effects of their playful and nurturing interactions on children’s brain development, particularly among Latine families.
  2. Emphasize how early childhood experiences shape the foundation of  the brain’s long-term structure and function.
  3. Offer practical strategies and tools for caregivers that reinforce and build on what they already know and do to support healthy brain development for young children in any setting.
  4. Create a welcoming and affirming environment where caregivers can explore and interact with their children, promoting intergenerational bonding and learning.
Simple illustrations encourage caregivers and children to play together.
Simple illustrations encourage caregivers and children to play together.

Findings

AlegreMENTE Summative Report

Publications

Focusing on Adult Learning to Put the Youngest Learners First
The “Piscina infantil / Infant Pool” is a comfortable enclosed play space for babies, pre-walkers, and their caregivers.
The “Piscina infantil / Infant Pool” is a comfortable enclosed play space for babies, pre-walkers, and their caregivers.

Advisors

Yoon-Jae Cho, Oregon Health & Science University
Caitlin Fausey, University of Oregon
Sage Saxton, Oregon Health & Science University
Jayatri Das, Franklin Institute
Anthony Detrano, Vroom
Eugene Science Center
Stephanie Feeney
Ginger Fink
Laurie Fink, Science Museum of Minnesota
Cody Goldberg, Harper’s Playground
Scott Pattison, TERC
Maria Eugenia Perdomo, Metropolitan Family Service
Mt. Hood Community College Head Start and Early Head Start
Somya Singh

Funders

SEPA Logo

This exhibit was made possible by a grant from the Science Education Partnership Award (SEPA), sponsored by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), award number R25GM129231. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. nihsepa.org 


Additional support was provided by Vroom®, a program of the Bezos Family Foundation. vroom.org