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Brain Gym

Movement and Learning

Studies suggest that there is a strong relationship between the cerebellum and the memory, special perception, language, attention emotion, and also solving problems.  The part of the brain that processes movement is the same part that is processing learning. This relates to the importance to include and value, the physical education and movement as a way to increase knowledge.

In the book Teaching With The Brain In Mind, Jensen mentions (1995) “that our brain creates movements by sending a deluge of nerve impulses to either the muscles or the larynx…this amazing brain-body sequence is often referred to as a spatiotemporal (space-time) pattern.”(p.85)  Many researches propose that the relationship between learning and movement continue to every part of life.

Since there is a link between learning and movement, movement activities should be integrated as part of the learning process.  This movement activities help shape the body (heart, bones muscles) and provides strengthens key areas of the brain as the basal ganglia, cerebellum, and corpus callosum. Also delivers more oxygen to the brain.

Daily physical exercise provides the students with the opportunity to shape up the different parts of the body that will lead the brain to respond faster to the different challenges.

One of the many studies about the relation between movement and learning found that (1995) “That exercise triggers the release of BDNF, a brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Kinoshita 1997)”.  BDNF is a natural substance that intensifies the process by raising the ability of neurons to communicate with one another.

Also studies found out that the exercise helps to reduce stress. When stress continues for a long time or occurs frequently, releases chemicals that kill neurons in the area of the brain for long -term memory formation.

Resent studies suggest a strong relationship between movement and learning. That is why Physical Education and movement activities should be part of the daily classroom routine.  The President of the Council on Fitness and Sports says (1995)” All K-12 students need 30 minutes a day of physical movement to stimulate the brain”. (P.87) Many studies in schools have found out that children, who are exposed to daily physical activities, demonstrate higher motor fitness, better academic performance, and a positive attitude toward the learning process.

Brain Gym

Brain Gym, also know as Educational Kinesiology (Edu-K) is an innovative approach that uses movement, as a way to intensify and improve learning.  This approach teaches adults and children very easy exercises that can be use to control hyperactivity, learning problems, and Attention Deficit Disorder.

Dr. Paul Dennison is the creator of the Educational Kinesiology. In the 1970’s Dr. Paul Dennison, a California educator and reading specialist, started working with specific movements in his learning disabilities clinics.  He researched these movements, try to make them easier and with this, he created new techniques foe everyone. In collaboration with his wife, he developed a whole new way of understanding the learning process.  This new field is called Educational Kinesiology.

Paul Dennison describes the human brain according to three dimensions:

Dennison says “Successful brain function requires efficient connections across the neural pathways located throughout the brain.  Stress inhibits these connections, while the Brain Gym movements stimulate a flow of information along these networks, restoring the innate ability to learn and function with curiosity and joy:” (Internet)

The Brain Gym benefits include in the improvements of:

Student’s benefits are:

Carla Hannaford, Ph.D. is a member of the Edu-K faculty. She is a neurophysiologist who has done a lot of research of the physiological basis of Edu-K.  According to Hannaford (1995), The vestibular (inner ear) and cerebellar system (motor activity) is the first sensory system to mature. In this system, the inner ear’s semicircular canals and the vestibular nuclei are an information gathering and feedback source for movements. Those impulses travel through nerve tracts back and forth from the cerebellum to the rest of the brain, including the visual system and the sensory cortex. The vestibular nuclei are closely modulated by the cerebellum and also activate the reticular activating system, near the top of the brain stem.” (P: 83-84)  That area is fundamental to the attentional system because it regulates the incoming sensory data.  That interaction helps to coordinate moves, maintain our balance, and turn thinking into actions. Playground games like swinging, rolling and jumping, stimulate the inner ear motion. Brain Gym activities stimulate and develop the vestibular-cerebral system.

The different Brain Gym exercises provides ways for the muscles of the eyes for accurate focus, that means that they do not over or under shoot the distance focus.  The more movement, the more balanced becomes the energy to the eye muscles, and the child can concentrate for comprehension and reading retention.  Especially in this time, where many children spent a lot of time watching TV and playing video games, the eyes do not have time to relax the focus.  At these young ages, excessive focusing for very long periods may cause inflammation and enlargement of the eyeball, leading to myopia.

Brain Gym Exercises

The following are simple activities and exercises that energize and prepare the brain for learning.

Ideas to use Brain Gym in the classroom

1. To begin a new activity or introduce a new theme.  The exercises from Brain Gym, promote in the students to focus for a longer time and to work longer in a task.

2. Before a reading activity.  Reading requires a lot of concentration and a simple exercise like Lazy Eights facilitates reading across the page and helps the eye muscle to relax for reading.

3. Before a writing activity.  The students may concentrate on the task for longer periods by doing simple exercises like the Cross Walks.  This exercise helps improve left and right coordination and stimulates and activates the vesicular system for attention and focus, needed in writing activities.

4. For fun and relax. Exercises like the Cook's Hook-Ups, helps to relieve stress.

5. To call the students attention to get on the track.  When the students are noisy, or they are talking too much or not paying attention, an exercise like Space Buttons will help the students focus again on the task.

6. Before a test or exam. Usually the students are stress and nervous before a test or exam.  Doing simple Brain Gym exercises five minutes before the evaluation, allows the students to relax, to focus and to concentrate.

Conclusion

Studies state that the children who are engaged in daily physical activities show a positive attitude toward learning and are more focus in their task.  Exercises help to reduce stress, which makes learning difficult to acquire.

Brain Gym promotes movement to enhance learning. All the exercises are designed to work out with coordination within the different parts of the body.  The exercises are easy to follow and they do not need equipment or demand a long time to perform them.  Also the movement activities proposed by Dr. Paul Dennison can be used with varied purposes and different ages.  Educational Kinesiology was created as a need and as part of the researches done by the author.

All the researches and Brain Gym promote that teachers should use more often movement activities in the classroom. They should integrate movement activities or Brain Gym exercises as part of their daily routine.  The students enjoy them and can help reduce stress and create a relax environment for learning to occur. These movement activities can be adapted to the student’s needs.

In a world where things are happening so fast, we need a little time to take care of our body and be conscious of the importance of integrating movement activities to our life.  Teachers are excellent role models to this behavior a, that can bring good benefits to the students.
 

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