Educators play an important role in developing the minds and brains of their learners. Little wonder then, that most have a natural enthusiasm to learn about concepts from neuroscience and apply them in their classrooms. Such enthusiasm may be fundamentally misplaced if neuroscience can make no practical contribution to education. Yet many areas of practical educational concern are being informed by neuroscientific research, including adolescent development, development in mathematics and reading, and understanding of the contribution of sleep and nutrition to learning (Howard-Jones, 2007). Increasingly, there is also an expectation for teachers to differentiate their approach according to the needs of individual learners, and this includes a growing proportion of pupils in mainstream classes identified as suffering developmental disorders. A recent meta-analysis suggests 4–10% of schoolage children suffer from ADHD, which is often controlled with powerful psychoactive drugs (Skounti et al., 2007). It seems unreasonable to suggest that an understanding of this disorder, in terms of the mind and the brain, cannot inform teachers in their approach. Teachers’ common-sense notion of the importance of the brain in education is further supported by the growing numbers of neuroscientists whose claims for the educational significance of their ideas extends well beyond their grant applications. Some neuroscientists refer to educational implications in the titles of their scientific publications (Posner and Rothbart, 2005), write books aimed at educators (Blakemore and Frith, 2005), produce articles for educational journals (Kaufmann, 2008) and even develop educational products (Wilson et al., 2006). Neuroscientists who make contact with the educational community, however, may be surprised by some of the ‘neuroscientific’ concepts they find already there. Decades without formal interdisciplinary communication have allowed many unscientific ‘brain-based’ ideas to become established in the classroom. Common educational practices and ideas