Brain Gym© is used in schools as a readiness program that supports the learner in becoming neurologically ready to benefit from his learning environment.

Brain Gym is a simple process that has extraordinary results in the classroom. Teachers around the world are using Brain Gym processes and movements to help their students make immediate, positive changes in learning and behavior.

How is Brain Gym used in schools?

In a school setting the Brain Gym movements are easily incorporated into classroom activities. Various Brain Gym movements help us set the stage for excellence in reading, math, spelling, or composition, by activating specific portions of the brain related to those activities.

Simple Brain Gym "balances" for the entire class can be lead by the classroom teacher, and individual student balance sessions are often lead by the teacher or a special resource teacher.

Brain Gym requires no special equipment or materials.

What results can we expect?

The use of Brain Gym results in greater ease and effectiveness in all areas of academic endeavor, including reading comprehension, oral reading fluency, spelling, creative writing, math computation and problem solving, memory, accuracy, focus, and attention. Test scores consistently rise after using Brain Gym. Students develop much greater physical coordination, agility and confidence in their own physical performance. But some of the most remarkable results come in the area of improved behavior and self-esteem. Brain Gym movements and balances create immediate and positive changes in children such as those labeled ADD/ADHD.

What is the ultimate goal of Brain Gym?

The ultimate goal of Brain Gym is to support all subsystems of the brain in connecting and sharing information. In Brain Gym this is called an "integrated" state. In an integrated state we learn and perform at our best. Many factors impair internal neurological communication, resulting in an impaired ability to function effectively in the world.

Many challenged learners (both children and adults) cannot easily use both hemispheres of their brain simultaneously; this means the two hemispheres cannot easily share information. Without fluid communication we have access to only one hemisphere at a time. In Brain Gym this is referred to as a "homolateral" or "one-sided" state in which mental coordination and processing are much slower and take much more effort and energy.

The Brain Gym balance process easily resolves key issues that show up as learning or performance blocks, allowing the learner to be comfortable in various school settings. It is not necessary to know how one has come to feel "stuck" to address the issue through a Brain Gym balance.

What is the challenge of a one-sided state?

Operating in a homolateral state leads to frustration and the need for extreme effort, often resulting in "acting-out" behaviors. Academic achievement is very difficult. Brain Gym movements help the brain hemispheres to align--or realign--the ability to process cooperatively, creating the smooth neural functioning that leads to emotional ease--and academic effectiveness.

A recent study (Dr. Robert Eyestone, 1990) found that more than 95 percent of individuals in groups labeled as "at risk" (teen mothers, juvenile detention, ADD/ADHD, in learning disabilities classes, drug rehabilitation, alcohol support groups) were operating in a homolateral state, as compared to eight to 13 percent in random groupings.

Dramatic changes in behavior are seen when this homolateral state is addressed and an integrated neural state is achieved. In 1990 Azasha Lindsey established a Brain Gym program for Camp Gonzales, a juvenile detention facility in California. She was assigned 23 young men described as "unable to stay out of solitary confinement." She worked with them as a group, one night a week over several weeks, teaching them Brain Gym processes. Their academic improvement was remarkable, but the young men themselves were most impressed with their own ability to control their tempers. By the end of Ms. Lindsey's time with this group they were all not only out of solitary confinement -- all but two were home.

Who uses Brain Gym?

Thousands of teachers and practitioners the world over are using Brain Gym to great advantage. It is widely used in Europe and South Africa. Germany has an extensive Brain Gym program in its public schools. Brain Gym is being used to repair developmental damage done to orphans in war-torn Romania, enhance mental alertness in seniors in Hawaii, more effectively educate developmentally delayed children and adults, and help individuals of all types to make changes in areas where they feel "stuck" or "frustrated."

What do educators say about Brain Gym?

"We just do a bit of Brain Gym and so many students read and write more easily. Amazing."

"These are perfect activities for transition times. The kids just settle down, and become ready to learn."

"The concepts behind the Brain Gym program have helped me understand my students so much more clearly--it's like I have new eyes when I look at them, and that helps me meet their needs more effectively."

"My students have learned to notice when they're working less efficiently, and what movements help them regain their focus. Because they can notice on their own and give themselves what they need, they're so much more empowered as learners. It's very exciting to see this in action."

© Copyright Kathy Brown 2008. All rights reserved.

Brain Gym is a registered trademark of the Educational Kinesiology Foundation/Brain Gym International.
Please visit the Brain Gym® website at www.braingym.org.