Right from when my kids were very little and could hold a crayon, they have loved to doodle and progressed quickly to drawing. My daughter is an artist and has received awards for Art. I explain a lot of difficult concepts with ease if I can draw it, enact it or teach them in a place like a museum with props and pictures. My kids prefer it that way! So, last month when we were talking about "The Greenhouse Effect" and the role it plays in global warming, I used pictures and drawings to explain it. My kids learned about Carbon DiOxide when they were 3 years old when I explained Photo Synthesis to them. It may be hard to believe but young kids can learn anything! Later we learned about chemistry and how molecules are formed. So, when we discussed the Greenhouse effect, they were able to understand it very quickly.
Similarly when we talk about the eclipse, we not only draw but enact it as well. My daughter acted like she was the planet Earth and my son was the Moon and I was the Sun. We positioned ourselves like in an Eclipse.
What we are doing here is using our the Episodic Memory which is part of our Long Term Memory to help retain facts for a longer period of time. Episodic Memory is location and event driven and therefore, when we use props, locations, actors (ourselves) and/or experiences to teach new facts to children, children will retain these facts for a longer time.
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