Brain Gym For ALL!

Pamela Fox Denzler OTR/L Licensed Brain Gym Instructor/Consultant

Do you move with . STRESS or

with FUN?

BRAIN GYM
This Power Point Presentation is intended to introduce educators at to Brain Gym Activities. Activities can be used to improve the quality of living, learning and moving for all ages. Activities are not intended as a diagnosis or prescription for any ailment. All Brain Gym information is copyright protected and is presented here for educational purposes only, with consent of the Educational Kinesiology Foundation in Ventura, California.

Lets begin our journey

Relax Enjoy Use what you feel your body is telling you.

We do not force..only invite

What is high gear?

Learned state good feeling relaxed, ready to move DO OUR BEST!

What is low gear?

Not yet learned uneasy, stress, difficult to move freely Over-focus Unable to make choices

Lets just NOTICE and trust our bodies How do you NOTICE? Do you trust what your body is telling YOU?
Stress Based vs. Movement Based Learning

What is Brain Gym?

Brain Gym brings activities to our educational programs that will energize and prepare learners for thinking and coordination of skills. Brain Gym Activities will be used to help with all types of learning but they are especially effective with academic skills. Brain Gyms solution to learning blocks is whole brain learning, through movement repatterning. Activities enable students to access parts of the brain unused. Teachers, Therapists, and Individuals may want to use Brain Gym and integrate it into their lives and throughout their day. Licensed classes are listed on www.braingym.org.

Brain Gym
Brain Gym movements are safe and simple developmental exercises that help reduce stress in the individuals individual system. Help with particular patterns of stress, help the child become aware of the stress. Help the child use successful strategies.

Who should participate in Brain Gym?

Those of ALL ages Babies? Toddlers? School age? TEENS? Adults? Even those above the age of 65+?

YES..YES..YES!!

Brain Gym
We need to think Play..(for all ages) Play..(for (think) Flexibility Flexibility Be Casual (relax).. (relax)..
when we use Brain Gym with folks of all ages.

Morning Wake-Up time

How do you wake up in the morning? What does your body need to get going? Are you the same as the person sitting next to you?

Lets start with PACE

Positive Active Clear EnergeticCan I be open to my goal? Does the goal get me moving?

Does the goal offer a clear, simple next step?

Does the goal inspire me?

First we drink water

Drinking water gives us energy!

Next we do Brain Buttons

Brain Buttons help us use our eyes to cross the midline. This helps us see more clearly!

Then we do Cross Crawl

Cross crawl movements help us activate both sides of our brain.

We finish with Hook Ups

Hook Ups help release tension and allow us to try to experience a whole body relaxation.

What is YOUR P.A.C.E.?

What PACE means to me ..really is something different to YOU! Find your own way to establish PACE Where? Where do you feel is the right place When? When do you feel you need to
complete PACE

How? How often? How will you do it?

I enjoy music do you? It is your choice!

Dimensions
~Penguins = Focus
Lengthening/Comprehension

~Swimmers

Centering
Energy/Organization

~Robots

Laterality
Midline/Communication

FOCUS DIMENSION
BRIDGE BETWEEN.. BRAIN STEM AND PREFRONTAL CORTEX

CENTERING DIMENSION
BRIDGE BETWEEN .. EMOTIONAL LIMBIC SYSTEM AND. RATIOAL CEREBRAL CORTEX

LATERALITY DIMENSION
BRIDGE BETWEEN.. LEFT HEMISPHERE AND.. RIGHT HEMISPHERE

Our wonderful BRAIN!

The Lengthening Activities

(Comprehension)

THE OWL
The bird for which this movement is named has a large head, large eyes, and soft feathers that enable him to fly noiselessly. The owl turns his head and eyes at the same time, and has an extremely full range of vision, as he can turn his head over 180 degrees. He also has radar-like hearing. The Owl movement addresses these same visual, auditory, and head-turning skills. It releases neck and shoulder tension that develops under stress, especially when holding a heavy book or when coordinating the eyes for reading or other near-point skills. Further, the Owl releases neck tension caused by sub-vocalization during reading. It lengthens neck and shoulder muscles, restoring range of motion and circulation of blood to the brain for improved focus, attention, and memory skills. Younger kids often really enjoy making the sound of the owl when completing this movement!! We need to be relaxed to learn.

ARM ACTIVATION
Arm Activation is an isometric self-help activity which lengthens the muscles of the upper chest and shoulders. Muscular control for both gross-motor and fine-motor activities originates in this area. If these muscles are shortened from tension, activities related to writing and the control of tools are inhibited.

This is an important move to use to get ready for writing activities, or when getting ready to complete fine motor tasks..playing with blocks, holding a paint brush for painting, when beginning to use scissors and tying those shoes!

THE CALF PUMP

The Calf Pump, like the Footfiex, is a movement re-education process to restore the natural length of the tendons in the feet and lower legs. At times of perceived danger, these tendons shorten to prepare for the act of running (see page 16). By pressing down the heel and lengthening the tendon in the calf, one discharges this fear reflex, and the muscles can return to a normal tonus.

The Energy Exercises

(Organization)

WATER
Water is an excellent conductor of electrical energy. Two-thirds of the human body (about seventy percent) is made up of water. All of the electrical and chemical actions of the brain and central nervous system are dependent on the conductivity of electrical currents between the brain and the sensory organs, facilitated by water. Like rain falling on the ground, water is best absorbed by the body when provided in frequent small amounts.

BRAIN BUTTONS
The Brain Buttons (soft tissue under the clavicle to the left and right of the sternum) are massaged deeply with one hand while holding the navel with the other hand.

EARTH BUTTONS
Both hands rest on the front lateral midline of the body, bringing the learners attention to this central point of reference, necessary for making decisions regarding the positions of objects in space. When the learner can organize her visual field in terms of her own body, her eyes, hands, and whole body become better coordinated. The fingertips of one hand rest under the lower lip; the other fingertips rest at the upper edge of the pubic bone (about six inches below the navel). Experiencing this connection between the bodys upper and lower halves allows the learner to coordinate them for increased stability.

BALANCE BUTTONS
The Balance Buttons provide a quick balance for all three dimensions: left/right, top/bottom, and back/front. Restoring balance to the occiput and the inner-ear area helps to normalize the whole body. The student holds the Balance Buttons, located just above the indentation where the skull rests over the neck (about one and one-half to two inches to each side of the back midline) and just behind the mastoid area.

SPACE BUTTONS
Both hands rest on the midline of the body one above the upper lip on the front midline, the other on the back midline just above the tailbone. In some situations, individuals may feel more comfortable holding any point on the back midline.

THE ENERGY YAWN

Yawning is a natural respiratory reflex that increases circulation to the brain and stimulates the whole body. Ideally, we should cover a yawn but avoid stifling it, which can create jaw tension. Yawning is good manners at the Brain Gym! Yawning while holding tense points on the jaw helps balance the cranial bones and relaxes tension in the head and jaw.

THE THINKING CAP

This activity helps the student focus attention on his hearing. It also relaxes tension in the cranial bones. The student uses his thumbs and index fingers to pull the ears gently back and unroll them. He begins at the top of the ear and gently massages down and around the curve, ending with the bottom lobe.

POSITIVE POINTS
The student lightly touches the point above each eye with the fingertips of each hand. The points are on the frontal eminences as illustrated, halfway between the hairline and the eyebrows.

HOOK-UPS
Hook-ups connect the electrical circuits in the body, containing and thus focusing both attention and disorganized energy. The mind and body relax as energy circulates through areas blocked by tension. The figure 8 pattern of the arms and legs (Part One) follows the energy flow lines of the body. The touching of the fingertips (Part Two) balances and connects the two brain hemispheres.

Hook - Ups
Carla Hannaford Ph.D. Students were encouraged to complete hook ups before discussing an altercation that had occurred. Often this would help them calm down, and see the situation clearly. How can this help young, teens, you, me, the aged population?

The Midline Movements

(Communication)

Left and Right Brain Functioning

Left
Logic Thinking Details facts Sequencing Time Auditory Language Fine Motor Skills Short Term Memory

Right
Creative Whole Picture Intuitive Emotions & Feelings Visual Comprehension Gross Motor Skills Long Term Memory

Unintegrated
Left Brain Stuck
Over-focused Obsessive tries hard Worries about making mistakes Serious unfeeling No new ideas only facts Poor long term memory Lacks imagination Poor co-coordination Clumsy lacks rhythm Poor comprehension Difficulty Learning How many feel this way? How often?

Right Brain Stuck

Day dreams Procrastinates difficulty starting Poor organizational skills Poor auditory processing difficulty expressing feelings Poor short term memory Wriggles and moves alot Super sensitive easily upset Irrational - gullible Guesses at words, sings words Difficulty Learning What do you do? do?

CROSS CRAWL
In this contralateral exercise, similar to walking in place, the student alternately moves one arm and its opposite leg and the other arm and its opposite leg. Because Cross Crawl accesses both brain hemispheres simultaneously, this is the ideal warm-up for all skills which require crossing the bodys lateral midline.

LAZY 8s
Drawing the Lazy 8 or infinity symbol enables the reader to cross the visual midline without interruption, thus activating both right and left eyes and integrating the right and left visual fields. The 8 is drawn on its side and includes a definite midpoint and separate left and right areas, joined by a continuous line.

DOUBLE DOODLE
Double Doodle is a bilateral drawing activity which is done in the midfield to establish direction and orientation in space relative to the body. When the learner has developed a sense of left-and-right discrimination, as she draws and writes she experiences herself in the center, and movement toward, away from, up, and down is interpreted in relationship to that center. Prior to developing this sense, the child fumbles to recreate a shape from memory. The Double Doodle is best experienced with the large muscles of the arms and shoulders. Stand behind the student and guide her arms and hands through a few simple movements. Teach the student to refer to her physical midline for directional reference. Say Out, up, in, and down as you guide the student to draw squares with both hands simultaneously. Set the student free when both hands are able to move together, mirroring each other easily.

ALPHABET 8s
Alphabet 8s adapt the Lazy 8 form to the printing of lower-case letters from a through t (these letters evolved from the Arabic system; letters u through z come from the Roman alphabet). This activity integrates the movements involved in the formation of these letters, enabling the writer to cross the visual midline without confusion. Each letter is clearly superimposed on either one side or the other (see illustration). A downstroke either ends the letter or begins another letter. For most students, when the printing of the lower-case letters improves, handwriting also becomes easier.

NECK ROLLS
Neck Rolls relax the neck and release tensions resulting from an inability to cross the visual midline or to work in the midfield. When done before reading and writing, they encourage binocular vision and binaural hearing. Roll the head in the forward position only. Complete rotations to the back are not recommended.

BELLY BREATHING
Belly Breathing reminds the student to breathe instead of holding his breath during focused mental activity or physical exertion. The breath should expand the rib cage front to back, left to right, and top to bottom, including the abdomen. When breathing is shallow, lifting only the rib cage, the oxygen supply to the brain is limited. When one breathes correctly, there is abundant oxygen for higher brain functions.

We need to look at Biological Needs

How is the child/individual feeling? Sick? New medication? Difficulty with self regulation? Change in schedule? Difficulty with modulation skills?

Biological Needs cont.

A few reflexes to look at: *Fear Paralysis *MORO *STNR *Palmar

What about active reflexes? Integrating early and primitive reflexive movements are essential for progression for more mature and advanced skills Reflexes : Need to emerge to begin to process Develop for intended purpose and function Integrate into the system Integration of primitive reflexes allow for the next group of reflexes Primitive to Postural reflexes New learning can be hard on the Central Nervous System and can result in OVERLOAD! Brain Gym has been helpful in tolerating and development of strategies for the OVERLOAD!

Fear Paralysis Reflex

*Usually has low tolerance to stress *Continuous anxiety *Tends to be every emotional *Over/under reactive to fears *Reacts badly to change of routine *Insecure *Difficulty verbalizing feelings of an overwhelming nature.

MORO reflex
*May lose control and lash out and wear but feels fine a few moments later. *Poor adaptability-dislikes surprises *Reacts badly to change of routine *Difficult to settle at bedtime *Nightmares and/or night terrors *Eye sight problems *Adverse reactions to drugs

Palmar (Infant grasp) Reflex

*Problems with fine motor skills *Poor handwriting *May hold pen or pencil too tightly *Press heavily *Broken crayons, pencils are common *Palm of hand may be oversensitive *May make movements of mouth while trying to write or draw.

STNR
*Poor posture *Hands often used to prop head up *Difficulty and slowness copying from the board. *When sitting legs tend to stretch out and head tilt backwards. Finds sitting in any ONE position uncomfortable.

Sowhat do we do if.
Consult with your therapists Encourage use of movement throughout the students day. Work on developmental patterns as part of lessons. *Use of stories that incorporate movement patterns. *This may help other students.not just the student that you are thinking about.

BALANCE
Lets experience a balance

Action Balance
Action Balances- Interaction between a learner and a facilitator using a 5-step process to anchor and celebrate a goal. Find your PACE Set and PACE your goal Pre-Activity Learning Menu Post Activities CELEBRATE!

5 LEARNING PRINCIPLES
Draw Out: Intelligence in Inborn Focus: Attention Follows Intention Notice: We Learn What We Actively Experience Move to Learn: Growth Is a Search for Balance, Imbalance a search for Growth Interconnect: Each of Us is Affected by Every Other

Action Balances
Positive Attitude Seeing Listening Writing Accessing the Midfield

Action Balance for Seeing

PACE PACE the goal
For what action or situation would you like to use Like to use your vision more effectively?

Do Pre Activity
Put goal into action and/or role play the situation. -Look UP, DOWN, LEFT and RIGHT -Track Eyes left to right -READ orally or silently if appropriate

DO Learning Menu
Belly Breathing Brain Buttons Earth Buttons Space Buttons Balance Buttons Lazy Eights Neck Rolls

DO POST ACTIVITY
Repeat all pre-activities and notice positive changesANCHOR THE GOAL.

Action Balance for Writing

Find YOUR PACE Set and PACE the goal Do Pre Activity *Put the goal into action. *Do in-depth checks for writing skills: *Hold your pencil *Think of or write letters of the alphabet. *Think of what you want to say. *Write your thoughts. Optional: Explore other fine-motor skills related to manual expression. (drawing, needlework, keyboarding, playing a musical instrument are just a few ideas)

Writing Balance (continued)

Choose from the Learning Menu
Energy Yawn Arm Activation The Double Doodle Alphabet 8s The Energizer

DO Post-Activities *Anchor the in-depth checks for writing skills. *Put the goal into action again. Choose homeplay. Apply the learning to new situations. CELEBRATE!

Catch A Brain Wave

LETS GET MOVING!!!

Catch A Brain Wave! Fitness Fun

Catch a Brain Wave Do the Dragon The Dolphin Promise [relaxing, 60 bpm] I Can Care [cool down, stress relief 60 bpm]

Recommended Reading
Brain Gym Teachers Edition Hands On Smart Moves Isabelle Cohen Carla Hannaford

www.braingym.com

Music
PACE music available from Brain Gym.org Just a few ideas: Catch A Brain Wave Hearts of Peace BE CREATIVE what music is beneficial to you and the those that you work or interact with.

Every dayopportunity is an adventure. Think of Brain Gym as an adventure.. We can learn to stop, think and docan it be possible to feel comfortable enough to stop, think and do at the same time? Or be able to filter out extraneous information and concentrate on a specific task? Our mind and bodies can work togetherespecially when we have tools.

Brain Gym
Any questions? Information on classes For more information or presentations Contact me: [email protected] 440.892.9232

Thanks Pam