Episodic Memory: When Does Your Child Start Creating Memories?

There are very few, if any, who remember what happened when they were only a few months old. It is even difficult to remember what happened during the first years. Today we will talk about what an episodic memory is.

Our earliest memories, which we still remember, arose at the age of 3-4. One of the reasons for this is that our brain before this age was not sufficiently developed to store memories.

Some consider themselves to have blurred memories from when they were very young. Some say that they also have memories from when they were in the crib, but the experts respond to these claims with some skepticism, because it may actually be memories that the parents have told ABOUT the childhood itself.

Such a story can then be transformed into something that is thought to be a blurred memory, but most of the time this has nothing to do with something that is a real memory.

The reason we can make such a statement is that episodic memories are created after the age of three. Episodic memories are the kind of memories that store things that happened to oneself. An episodic memory contains information about places, emotions and other aspects.

Your child’s memories are shaped by a complex process

From birth until the age of 3, the brain goes through a period of intense development. During the first years of life, the brain creates many new connections, and science has even managed to show that you have more connections at 1 year of age than at any other time in life.

However, the brain will change over time. According to Catherine Loveday at Westminister University, the brain gets rid of some of these connections in order to function. This is the reason why children lose their earliest memories.

There are some theories that say that language development affects the brain’s ability to create memories. We remember what has been given a name. Science has further shown that episodic memories cannot store content that has to do with concepts that the child does not yet understand.

It is difficult for the brain to really understand a memory before one has been given a linguistic concept for every detail that this memory contains. In other words, a child cannot remember an episodic memory if it has not yet learned to speak. Language is what makes the child succeed in decoding every detail by giving these details a name.

Another interesting fact is that it is important with the development of the hippocampus to be able to decode and store episodic memories. The brain is simply not fully developed at this time.

Memories and the plasticity of the brain

It is not yet entirely certain why some memories are erased, but some researchers claim that it is because the young brain is still undergoing such major changes.

In such a reorganization of the brain, certain memories will then be removed in order for new ones to be created. The specialists further claim that children begin to gain the ability to store permanent memories at around the age of three.

Children also need a structured language to be able to store memories. To be able to remember an event properly, the child needs to have the ability to describe his experiences over time and in a coherent way. It also needs to be able to interpret its experiences, ie remember an event and understand what has happened.

You can help your child store an episodic memory

As we have mentioned above, you must have reached a certain level of development in order to be able to store an episodic memory, but there are also techniques you can use to help the child with this process.

The memories are almost always related to emotions. Children explore, touch, feel, etc. In other words, they go through the events. It is not enough to just tell them that things exist.

By stimulating a child’s senses, it will help him remember the events better. When you tell about something that has happened to the child, it is therefore good if you, for example, show pictures or videos of what has happened. Smells and tastes also go well.

Visual aids are good if you want to help the child remember something. It will be much easier for them to relive a memory if it is associated with an image.

It is also good to talk to the child about things that are happening, because a conversation not only helps the child to store memories, but it also learns how to express their feelings.

A constructive dialogue helps the child to understand that it is completely normal to express emotions. You can talk to the child about aspects such as sadness, fear, pain, etc. and thus help him or her to create memories in a positive way.