I have been interested in and experienced the importance of movement in learning for many years. In the early years I thought just being involved in any physical activity was enough to improve attention and concentration. The first 9 years of my teaching experience was in 6th grade self contained regular education classroom. I saw many students who were physically active continue to struggle with academics and those who were not active, many of them struggled even more. Fifteen years ago I moved from 6th grade into Physical Education. As I watched children attempt basic locomotor movement, participation in activities and cooperation with other children in the class I noticed that many struggled. I began reading books (see my book list page) on movement and learning. Many of these books talk about brain integration and brain-body integration. I began to ask questions of the classroom teachers about students who I saw struggle. It was noticed that students who struggle academically also struggled physically.
I have conducted and/or been part of several research projects related to movement and learning. Results show that there is a relationship between movement and learning.
Brain Gym braingym.org
In 2003 I took a Brain Gym class, it seemed to fit what I was looking for, during that three day course I began to see that there was a direct connection between moving and learning. I incorporated a set of warm-up exercises into all my Physical Education classes. I saw changes in attention and behavior for the better when my students warmed up with Brain Gym.
In 2007 I completed the necessary course work to become a licensed Instructor. This allows me to conduct the Beginning Brain Gym class (BG101) for teachers, parents, and any organization that feels this program will benefit its students or employees.
I have:
- conducted teacher in-services
- worked individually with clients
Bal-A-Vis-X bal-a-vis-x.com
In 2005 I participated in a Bal-A-Vis-X training. This program used bean bags and balls to integrate the hemispheres of the brain as well as the body. In the beginning I used Bal-A-Vis-X with small groups of students who were struggling academically and socially. Students, staff and parents noticed improvements academically and socially for many of the students. During the 2006-07 school year I continued working with small groups of students to determine whether or not this program had a positive impact on the students who participated. Results indicated that many students improved both academically an socially.
Bal-A-Vis-X is being incorporated into many classrooms and used as an intervention and for differentiated instruction for all students
I have:
- more than 300 hour of training in Bal-A-Vis-X
- Conducted Level 1, Level 2 and adaptive trainings for:
Public, Private, and Charter School Teachers
