Kindergarteners and First Graders Needed for Brain Development Study
VUMC researchers are interested in changes in children’s math, reading and attention skills during early elementary school, and are studying how schooling activities in kindergarten and first grade help these skills develop, as well as how their brains grow and change.
Families are invited to participate in this research, which begins with an initial one-hour visit to a lab to assess whether your child is a good fit for this study.
During the initial visit, children will be asked to:
• visit a pretend MRI scanner that has been adapted for young children
• pick out a “super-hero” mask to help them lie still
• practice lying still in a pretend MRI
• consult with their family and the research team about potentially joining the study
Children who join the study will be asked to return for two additional visits to Vanderbilt in the fall, and two follow-up visits within nine to 12 months. These additional visits involve lying still during a real MRI scan adapted for young children, taking school-like tests and doing activities on a computer.
Kindergarteners born between Oct. 1 and Dec. 31, 2005, and first graders born between July 1 and Sept. 30, 2005.
Children receive a gift worth $10 for each visit, plus $40 for the MRI scan visit. Families are reimbursed for mileage at each visit.