Recently I came across an interesting idea called “plastic brain.”
The first time I heard about it was in an interview with Olympic freestyle skiing champion Eileen Gu. She explained that because she is still young, neuroplasticity is on her side—meaning her brain can still change and improve through the way she thinks, reflects, and trains her mind.
Later, while reading an academic article by Humphries et al., (2012) about deaf children and language development, I encountered the same concept again.
Humphries explains that the young brain is highly plastic, especially in the early years of life. During this period, children’s brains are naturally prepared to acquire language if they are exposed to an accessible human language regularly. However, this plasticity does not last forever. Around early childhood, the brain gradually becomes less flexible for first-language learning.
This is why early language exposure is so important. Humphries argues that if a child does not acquire a first language during the early years, it may become much harder to achieve full fluency later in life. Missing this critical period can affect many cognitive abilities that depend on language, such as literacy, memory organization, and even number manipulation.
In other words, the idea of a “plastic brain” reminds us that childhood is a crucial window for language development. When children have access to a language—spoken or signed—the brain can build the neural foundations needed for learning and communication.
Reading Humphries’ article made me realize that what sounded like a motivational idea in an interview actually reflects an important principle in neuroscience and education:
our brains are shaped by early experiences, and language is one of the most important experiences a child can have.
