The Interconnection between Body, Mind and Learning.

1. The Body as a Learning Tool

1.1. Examples of how the body can be easily used as a learning tool in language and mathematics.

1.2. The need to integrate gestures into teaching methods and classroom activities.

2. How the Body Helps the Mind through Gestures

2.1. The relationship between cognitive effort and gesture use.

2.2. Gestures as a spontaneous and consistent strategy that helps the mind.

2.3. The role of gestures in enhancing the memorability of a word/phrase.

2.4. The positive effect of gestures on memory for words and its explanation in terms of a motor trace left in the concept’s representation by the actions performed.

2.5. The beneficial effect of hand gestures on learning mathematics.

3. Philosophical Tradition and Perception of Body and Mind

3.1. Influence of philosophical tradition on our way of thinking about body and mind.

3.2. Descartes and his contribution to the body-mind dichotomy.

3.3. The persistence of this dichotomy in education and learning.

4. Physical Activity and Its Impact on the Brain

4.1. Physical activity induces the release of Brain Derived Neurotropic Factor (BDNF), which promotes various growth processes in the brain.

4.2. Physical activity influences two brain structures that mediate short-term memory: the hippocampus and the entorhinal cortex.

4.3. Physical activity has a positive impact on cognitive control, which includes a set of executive functions essential for human behaviors.

4.4. Physical exercise regulates the release of neurotransmitters.

4.5. Mood disorders, such as depression, are detrimental to learning and thus to academic achievement.

4.6. Obesity seriously threatens the cognitive performance of young generations worldwide.