Can Motor Training Help You Learn a New Language Faster?

This study explores an exciting idea: that practicing physical movements — either with your hand or with a tool — can help your brain learn a new language more effectively. Researchers believe that when your brain learns motor skills, it undergoes changes that might also benefit language learning if both activities use overlapping brain regions. This trial will test whether this theory works in real people.

Recent research shows that adult brains are more flexible and capable of change than we once thought. When you learn a new skill, the active brain areas grow and strengthen. Since the brain regions that control movement and language overlap, scientists hypothesize that training your motor system might 'prepare' your brain to absorb language learning more efficiently.