Peek-a-boo! Young girl teaches adults about brain science

In a world where parents are increasingly separated from their children by technology, seven-year-old Molly Wright has been teaching adults important lessons about brain science.

The grade two student from Queensland takes centre stage in the 'Thrive by Five' TED Talk, which is being piloted at Ramsay Health Care maternity hospitals in Western Australia.

Directed by Michael Gracey, the filmmaker behind award-winning movie The Greatest Showman, it aims to change the way parents and caregivers around the world perceive early childhood brain development.

"We believe every child can, and should, thrive by the age of five," said Nicola Forrest, co-chair of Perth-based philanthropic organisation Minderoo Foundation, which launched the initiative. 

"Science tells us that the volume of a child's brain has reached 90 percent by the age of five, so we want to help set parents up for success and increase awareness of the importance of having positive interactions with children – early and often," she added.

"Molly beautifully delivers this universal truth – that the early years are the most critical period for shaping a child's life now, and in their future."

Molly's seven-minute talk demonstrates the simple yet life-changing things that help children thrive, using the example of a father who alternately interacts with his baby son and ignores him while engrossed in his tablet screen.

She highlights five key ways adults can develop young children's brains: connecting, talking, playing, providing a healthy home and creating a strong community of family and friends.

"Copycat games build imagination and empathy ... and games like peek-a-boo build memory and trust," Molly explains in the talk, which was shown to new parents in maternity wards at Joondalup Health Campus, Joondalup Private Hospital and Glengarry Private Hospital ahead of its global launch.

"Each time you talk to us, play with us, make us laugh, it not only builds and strengthens our relationships and mental health, it actually teaches us some of the most important life skills," she adds.

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The talk – supported by UNICEF and being distributed to hospitals around the world – could potentially improve the health outcomes for children "on a global scale", according to Joondalup Health Campus' Head of Paediatrics, Professor Desiree Silva.

"The message to connect and play, early and often, with children from birth to age five is vital in their development and overall wellbeing," she said.

"New parents at our hospitals found the video educational, entertaining and inspiring."

Tagan Morrison, who watched the video after giving birth at Joondalup Private Hospital, said her young nieces naturally engaged with babies but adults tended not to communicate as much due to the distractions of everyday life.

"The video was very useful and I will share it with other Mums," the mother of four said.

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