Teen Brain Bootcamp
A free email course on the science of adolescent brain development
Understand how teens think, learn and grow — with insights from leading researchers. This free mini-email course from Knowable Magazine shines a light on the latest neuroscience underlying executive function development in adolescents, offering practical strategies for educators and anyone else working or interacting with teens, including parents.
What you'll learn
- Why teens sometimes "know better" but don't "do better" — and what brain science reveals about that gap.
- What the messaging chemical dopamine really does in the teen brain (and why there's no such thing as "dopamine addiction").
- What science says about the risks of social media and cell phone use in teens.
- Real-world advice from scientists studying teens' social relationships.
- How to support students in building executive function skills like focus, planning and self-awareness.
How it works
The course launches July 15, 2025. Once it's available, you can begin the lessons whenever it works for your schedule.
Once you sign up, you'll receive a welcome email, followed by five email lessons that arrive on a daily or weekly schedule (your choice).
Each lesson will delve into a different aspect of teen brain development, and include a short activity, journal prompt or quiz to reinforce what you've learned.
At the end of the course, you'll have the option to fill out a course survey and receive a certificate of completion.
Meet your guide
Emily Underwood is an award-winning science journalist who has spent more than a decade reporting on the brain. A former staff reporter for Science magazine, she now writes and edits for Knowable Magazine, where she specializes in neuroscience and has led expert-moderated conversations on brain development across the lifespan for Knowable's public event series. Married to a high school teacher, Emily brings both professional expertise and personal commitment to understanding what helps teens thrive — in and out of the classroom.
This series is supported by a grant from the Dana Foundation, a private philanthropic organization dedicated to advancing neuroscience and society.
About us
Knowable Magazine is from Annual Reviews, a nonprofit publisher dedicated to synthesizing and integrating knowledge for the progress of science and the benefit of society. Also available in Spanish at Knowable en español.