Moving Young Bodies so Growing Minds Can Learn

Did you ever wonder what your body was thinking? Or why your brain was moving a certain way? When you begin to understand the way that the brain and the body communicate, you will begin to understand the answer to these questions.

Brain Gym is a 40 year old non-prescriptive science of Educational Kinesiology that was developed by Paul Dennision. (The acknowledged founder of the science of kinesiology is Dr
George Goodheart, an American chiropractor, who in 1964, used the model of muscle testing to evaluate what he was doing chiropractically. The model of muscle testing he used was
developed in the 1930s by the husband and wife team of Kendal and Kendal.) Dr. Dennision had learning delays as a child and did not read until he was about 10 years old. Brain Gym consists of specifically targeted movements that coordinate both sides of the brain more efficiently in order to reduce the stress response, allow the brain to learn new concepts & recall and integrate concepts already learned. It is an activity that empowers the teacher, student & student's family to enhanced learning, creates positive relationships, & encourages better Life Choices.

Yoga is a 4,000 year old science of movement that includes physical postures coordinated with breath, used to bring calm & clarity to one's mind, strength to one's body and Peace to one's heart. It is a non-competitive activity that connects the learner's inner and outer
environments, raises awareness & improves physical & mental health. It can be adapted to any age, ability, body frame or energy level. It has been used effectively as a complimentary movement therapy as well as a preventative exercise.

Scientific research has told us that movement is vitally important not only for health reasons, but for learning readiness. The jerky, primitive movements a tiny baby makes with its hands, feet and body is the first way the baby learns about its environment. If movement is restricted
in some way, vital information is not processed by the growing brain and t will have a negative effect later on. Much like a baby, as we grow we continue to take in millions of bits of information every second of our existence through the 5 senses. (sight, touch, sound, sight and
smell.) If our bodies are not moving around enough this greatly restricts our sensory abilities and bits of important information is lost and therefore not integrated into the brain. When this occurs, it places the brain under stress as it attempts to learn new concepts. A
stressed brain releases adrenalin, which floods the system and then it shuts it down in anticipation of a need to react to the stress. A system flooded with adrenalin is shut down to further learning.(This is
known as the "Fight or flight" response.) This is the beginning of a cycle of failure that dis-empowers & discourages one-especially a child-from learning at all. If the brain is forced to learn under this circumstance, it will experience a consequence later on, such as loss of skill, concept or recruitment-that is incorrect muscle used in performing an activity, such as a woman opening her mouth wide to apply eyeliner or mascara.) as the brain tries to compensate for the missing information it needs to respond.

This constant cycle of stress & increased adrenal activity places the body and brain into adrenal shock which can result in fatigue, headaches, increased colds & other infections, lack of enthusiasm, defiance, decreased motivation and a decline on overall health and attitude.

What can we do as parents, educators and family members to reverse this effect? Simply, encourage your child, (or yourself) to spend more time moving around (especially outside if weather permits) and engaged in creative activities (art & music) & less time doing sedentary activities (computer, TV, etc.) The body needs to move in order to re-integrate the senses so new neuro-pathways can be formed in the brain. This will help to keep stress levels low, limit
the adrenal response and will create a situation where learning can occur more readily and more naturally.

In just 30-45 minutes a few days a week, a Yoga movement program will compliment & enhance any therapy, fitness or gym program, camp program, sport or academic curriculum. It follows state standards for physical education and greatly improves self-image, cooperation, confidence, attitude, reduces stress levels, increases the immune response and increases academic learning readiness. It can be done any time, any place and requires no equipment other than the body.

This is what we call Moving Young Bodies So Growing Minds Can Learn.

This is what we call "BodyLogique".