Jello has always been a favorite dessert at our house. It’s easy to make and comes in all different colors. And so, when my daughter made her mixture, she waited for it to cool before putting the still steaming solution in the fridge. She was blowing on it to cool! “Why don’t you use an ice cube?” Oh yeah! And then she slipped a giant cube and stared at it. “What are you doing?” Waiting for it to melt. Oh dear. “Why don’t you stir it?” What does that do? “Stirring creates agitation, increases the amount of hot water that comes into contact with the surface of the ice. Agitation also creates friction. Friction produces heat. It will all help to melt the ice cube faster, therefore cool the solution.” Oh yeah!

Another time, a friend of my daughter’s came over to make muffins. Once the batter was ready, they put the paper cups into the muffin tray. I saw this friend struggle to place the tray into the oven. After multiple attempts of banging the tray into the back of the oven, I looked over at my daughter and glanced at her friend suggesting that she should intervene. My daughter told the friend to insert the tray sideways, so the door can close. Oh yeah!

I must think back to the scene in the movie Inside Out (2015) where Riley gets an upgrade to her switchboard.

These kids aren’t stupid. They are not diagnosed with any type of developmental impairment or need any medication. In fact, some of these kids have even gone to expensive private school with enriched curricular. But I couldn’t tell.

I know that the teenage brain is still undergoing development with the pre-frontal cortex being the last to develop. This is the part that is responsible for analysis, strategy and decision. The ganglia brain however, becomes more developed first. This is linked to emotions, habit formation, reward and motivation. That may also be the reason why we value routines which form behavior in early childhood. May also be the reason why young people are more sensitive to reward triggering activities (like cell phone use.)

So, if she and her peers at this age can’t figure out something that to us seems elementary, I must think back to the scene in the movie Inside Out (2015) where Riley gets an upgrade to her switchboard. What can possibly go wrong?