Welcome to BrainZones
A free, web-based app bringing neuroscience to life in the classroom
Today’s Takeaway
BrainZones assists teachers in designing instruction that aligns with how the brain learns, remembers, and recalls. When lessons are built this way, attention becomes visible and classrooms are more engaged and thriving.
Our 3-Person Team
(Debbie, Marcey, and Marlon)
BrainZones is shaped by more than six decades of combined classroom and school experience. Our work grows out of years spent studying educational neuroscience and psychology, then applying, observing, and refining those ideas through classroom-based action research focused on how students learn, behave, and engage.
Marlon plays an important role in shaping the broader vision for BrainZones. He helps us think about how this work can be scaled so teachers everywhere can access these ideas and strategies freely, drawing on his experience at Google and other technology companies, as well as his expertise in marketing and design.
This project is a true labor of love, rooted in the belief that emotions shape neural pathways and brain networks that drive learning, behavior, memory, and attention, and that thoughtful instructional design and delivery are essential elements of effective teaching.
If you’re curious, you’re invited to explore. There is no fee and no hidden cost. You will receive one welcome email only, and you will not be added to any mailing lists.
For readers interested in the classroom experiences that shaped this work, What Challenging Students Taught Me About Teaching and the Conditions Needed for Learning offers additional context.
Strategy Organization
BrainZones offers several features you won’t find elsewhere.
Strategies can be sorted by the brain networks they activate, organized into intuitive zones that reflect how students experience learning. Some zones support internal thinking, reflection, and meaning-making, while others support active engagement through movement, interaction, and doing.
This organization helps teachers recognize whether students need time to think inwardly or opportunities to engage outwardly. Effective instruction intentionally moves students between these states, sequencing learning experiences so attention is sustained, understanding deepens, and learning holds.
Once teachers find a strategy that feels just right, built-in AI tools support personalization for their specific instructional context, including content area and grade level, while keeping teachers firmly in control of instructional decisions.
Additional Ways to Explore
Strategies can also be sorted by:
The social-emotional competencies they draw on
Instructional purpose, such as introducing new content, deepening understanding, strengthening memory and recall, or supporting classroom behavior and culture
These filters are designed to help teachers quickly find strategies that fit their immediate classroom needs, without extra searching or overplanning.
Your Support
Your feedback is completely optional. BrainZones is still in the building phase, and what helps most right now is thoughtful input from educators working in real classrooms. If you choose to explore the app or try the strategies, your perspective can help us understand what’s working, what’s missing, and what needs refining as the platform continues to evolve.
Looking Ahead
Our next phase of development focuses on helping teachers design effective instruction across an entire lesson, not just individual moments. The app will support teachers in planning lessons based on time, prompting them to select and intentionally sequence strategies that balance reflection, focus, interaction, and active engagement.
The goal is to make lesson design more responsive to students’ changing attention and energy needs, while keeping teachers firmly in control of instructional decisions.