In this nested mixed-methods study, we uncover surprising outcomes of an early-morning ‘before-school’ elementary and middle school support program. We used a brain-based cognitive neuroscience approach to interpreting and managing emergent social behavior that contributed to mental wellbeing and academic success.

What effect would a brain-based early-morning ‘before-school’ support program impart to school-going children regarding:
(i) social behavior,
(ii) emotional wellbeing, and
(iii) academic performance?

The null hypothesis stated that a before-school brain-based intervention would have no perceptibly different outcome from children who did not participate in this program. The literature that informed this study was drawn from the confluence of classroom management techniques and brain-based engagement strategies. Our designed centered on elements that appeared to attract rather than promote learning. Study subjects consisted of fifteen ‘para-leads’ (mean age 24.6 years), who had prior experience working with school-going children in summer adventure camps. Although these para-leads had high school diplomas and some had attended third level schooling, no one had received formal third-level academic professional development in preparation for teaching in k-12 elementary or middle schools. The study was, therefore, an opportunistic quasi-experimental design that served a population in daily need, with a solution that involved taking care of children in the time between parent/guardian drop-off and when formal teaching began (6:30 am – 8:30 am). A mixed method analysis was chosen to describe a complicated social setting that spilled over from home life, into school life, and included a multiplicity of interactions with peers that had the potential to affect behavior, mental wellbeing, and academic performance. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected during a typical school year. Ethnographic data based on grounded theory were triangulated with quantitative measures that offered insights that could account for observed processes and resultant outcomes. Findings highlighted how mental models, which were instilled via face-to-face and on-line training, allowed para-leads to acquire methods and practices that precipitated participating children into achieving significant social, emotional, and academic success. Furthermore, formal educators in the children’s school were also documented what they called an extraordinary maturity that was demonstrated by ‘early morning’ children with improved academic engagement and reduced need for disciplinary interventions. This study suggests that a brain-based cognitive training that focuses on constructing healthy learning brains rather than on managing negative behavior might invite attractive engagement from educators and more joyful outcomes for children.

Keywords: Intrinsic, brain-based, emotional maturity, mixed method, self-regulation.