Excerpt from A Mind At A Time by Dr. Mel Levine, plus links to reviews, author biography & more

Unsophisticated language is also a feature of much of the music that interests children. There was a time when a composer would hire a lyricist, a kind of poet, to fashion the words to his music. Lyricists are now mainly unemployed, as the person who creates the melody also produces the language accompaniment, which is often grammatically and semantically impoverished, simply everyday language rather than language that plays on words and cleverly turns a phrase. Thus, music no longer reinforces verbal abilities. Also, much of the music to which children are exposed tends to make use of very brief themes or melodic lines, which keep on coming back monotonously. As a result, the ability to retain patterns in memory is not strengthened through music (as I believe it once was).

Electronic games have also taken their toll, although sometimes they have a positive effect on eye-hand coordination and spatial ordering. Unfortunately the latter capacities do not make an enormous contribution to a child's intellectual development. One of my patients, a nine-year-old boy, let me know, "I love my games more than anything else. I hate to read because it's not as exciting and fun. I can beat all my friends and my big brother even when it's a new game. I would play all day and skip school if I could. That would be neat. When I grow up, I want to be a game designer."

Use of the Internet is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, leaning to surf the Internet for specific bits of information can become a powerful research skill. However, some students have made use of Web sites to download information without really understanding or integrating it. Thus, the process runs the risk of becoming a new mode of passive learning or perhaps even a way of acquiring plagiarizing skills.

Family life can also deter mind development. When families feel overwhelmed, life can be nothing short of frenetic at home. As one mother told me, "We barely see each other. We're always on the run or getting ready for some major event. I can't remember the last time we sat down and had a decent dinner table conversation. In fact, with my job and my husband's job, and all the kids' activities, most nights we don't even eat together." That makes it hard for family life to reinforce communication skills, doesn't it? The lack can be even more pronounced among the many single-parent families whose daily lives can be even more logistically consumed with little or no time for any mind-enhancing reflection and discussion. Frazzled lifestyle patterns can also cost something in terms of children's nutrition. Skipping breakfast, overindulging in convenient junk foods, and becoming addicted to empty calories of various sorts may be taking a hidden toll on brain development and mental energy.

Nightlife is yet another potential invader. I find that kids are orienting increasingly toward nighttime pleasures, often getting to sleep late and having trouble functioning in school the next day. TV, the Internet, social life, e-mail, instant messaging, and a multitude of other thrilling forms of nocturnal experience make homework and other educationally useful activities seem like impositions or chores to get over with as expeditiously as possible. And students who rush through their work derive little intellectual benefit or stimulation from it. As one mother recently exclaimed over the phone, "I'm not surprised he's having trouble staying awake in class, the kid's up until 2:00 a.m. listening to music, watching TV, and doing his instant messaging, and if we're lucky, rushing through his homework at the last second." I think that mother's right. Suddenly, more and more kids are becoming night people. What used to be the downtime of the day has now become for so many children the most stimulating and distracting interlude.

I sometimes refer to a state of mind (or body) that I call "visual-motor ecstasy." In this form of nirvana kids seem to derive excessive pleasure from the movement of their bodies through space. Activities such as skateboarding, Rollerblading, driving a car fast, or even skiing can become obsessive experiences for some kids. These are all nonverbal activities that are certainly good as somewhat mindless forms of entertainment, but they become hazardous to mind health when they are pursued in excess to the exclusion of learning. An excessive interest in sports may also qualify as a form of visual-motor ecstasy.

Copyright © 2002 by Mel Levine