In part 1 of my Dopamine Kids review, I said that Michaeleen Doucleff’s five-step plan is very easy to implement. She walks through each step and gradually builds the plan with each chapter. Just like a textbook, you read the material in the first section and do the direct application right after.
So for part 2, I’m sharing my family plan and how I’ve adapted the steps for A&Z.
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I was very excited to receive my pre-ordered audiobook of Dopamine Kids by Michaeleen Doucleff. Yes, the same Michaeleen Doucleff from Hunt, Gather, Parent. It has been 5 years since I reviewed that book, and I love how Dopamine Kids fits in so perfectly with all of our Brain-Body posts this month.
Dopamine Kids: A Science-Based Plan to Rewire Your Child’s Brain and Take Back Your Family in the Age of Screens and Ultraprocessed Foods by Michaeleen Doucleff.
Blurb: For the first time in history, we are inundated with “dopamine surges” inside our brains, pulling us to technology and ultraprocessed foods like magnets—every day, many times a day. Over the past decade, neuroscientists have finally begun to figure out how these surges alter our choices, our habits, and even our moods. We’ve learned how dopamine can drive adults and kids to engage in activities that we don’t actually enjoy—activities that can make us feel sad, lonely, anxious, and depressed.
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So fun fact, it’s very hard to find a podcast episode about kids’ learning and attention without it being centered around kids with ADHD. So instead, I wanted to share some podcasts about alternative ways of learning that help us (and our kids) strengthen our brains and executive functions.
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Before a child can remember a story, solve a problem, or follow a direction, their brain must stay with the task long enough to take it in. Their ability to focus, shift, and sustain attention shapes how well they absorb information, make connections, and build new skills.
However, a growing body of research points to shorter attention spans among young children, especially in the early grades. Studies of children ages 7–12 reveal measurable declines in sustained attention, including a reported 27.4% drop during continuous-focus tasks. Teachers echo these findings, noting that many students now struggle to stay engaged for more than 10–15 minutes. Oh, and did we mention that reading stamina has dropped as well?
We know what you’re thinking. “Surely, this won’t be MY child…”
But then you notice exactly how often you’ve had to repeat or remind or redirect your kid, over… and over…and over again.
And suddenly, “Is this f’n play about us?”
Attention is critical for learning because it’s the gateway skill that makes all other learning possible. Without it, nothing can truly stick.
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We are constantly fascinated by the brain and how it shapes behavior. Our chats about what is going on in our kids’ heads led to our last posts about the boy, girl, and even ADHD brain. So naturally as moms to twins, we turned our attention to twin neurobiology.
Twin brains seem to operate in a world of their own. It’s almost like one brain expressed through two distinct personalities. For example, my daughter H leans into logic and reasoning, while K brings emotional depth and creativity. Together as identical twins, they feel like complementary halves of a shared whole. My husband and I have also seen moments that defy explanation: one twin tearing up when the other gets hurt, or both making the same gesture at the exact same time. It’s weird, but it’s pretty cool.
Patti having fraternal twins, their brains are less complementary but more like synergistic sound boards. As they learn, they take cues from each other, speeding up their understanding and sometimes their competitiveness.
It naturally leads to the question: Are twin brains wired differently than singleton ones?
In some ways, yes. In others, not quite.
Child(ish) Advice 