Movement quality gives important insight into mental processing!

Awesome new study that links MOVEMENT quality in mental processing issues, especially the ASD spectrum behavior! When I ask your child to 'make circles' I've always known how they make these circles  is important. Here's an article to help you the parent know that too! Micromovements hold hidden information about severity of autism,

Functional Neurology

A new name for IM training, at least functionally this is what is happening during IM training. If you watch this trailer, you will see one of the therapies being used is indeed IM. A must see video for all my parents.

Hope Restored: Functional Neurology Serves Humanity from Unseen Line Films on Vimeo.

Free Brain Games

Looking for something other than Suduko and crossword puzzles? Lumosity is a site with some free brain games.  You can sign up to purchase more, but you can also just play a few of the free ones. These are good working memory, visual processing, and decision making games.

IM Tasks Variations for Hockey

An IM provider in Australia I believe, works with a professional hockey player. This video is a bit long, but it's interesting. I use some similar variations but relate them to visual processing and faster mental processing for academic reasons.

Mental Impairments Linked to Toxins

Yesterday I found this very informative sight, Institute for Children's Environmental Health . I am of the opinion that our children are 'the canary in the cave' so to speak for our environment today. The rise in neurodevelopmental issues is unprecedented. One in six children today have a neurodevelopmental disorder! Most of the children I see probably have recieved some environmental insult to their neurological system at some time in their short past. IM helps with the recovery of these affected neuropathways, but are there ways to prevent the issues in the first place!

With a grandchild on the way, I've been reading the latest in environmental safety and health. This up to date site covers almost all of the topics of concern. Parents, especially expectant parents and parents of young children, should check it out. We all should since these toxins are implicated in Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, asthma, and cancer. As a society, we removed lead from gasoline years ago when we discovered how harmful it was. Today we can change the world again.

B Vitamins may be Important for Spatial Learning and Memory

I have recently become an avid viewer of a huge resource of professionals talking about diet and wellness for children with neurological issues, particularly autism, on the Dan Website. This recent article, published in August 2008, supports many of the concepts the Dan speakers address. Quote, "..a diet deficient in folate and vitamins B12 and B6 demonstrated significant deficits in spatial learning and memory..." I am not in the medical profession, and IM is my personal passion, but I think parents interested in helping their children should also look at diet and exercise and (to be politically correct!) discuss this with your doctor.

IM is a movement oriented program. Through exercise, we change the brain. It seems strange to the newbie that clapping your hands and tapping your feet can actually increase your ability to read by grade levels! But it can! There is undeniably a connection between the physical and the mental!

In terms of diet, I can frequently tell when a young person has skipped a meal by their inability to replicate their previous best performance no matter how hard they try. With a nutritious snack in house, their scores can almost immediately improve. It's a great opportunity for them to see clearly that diet impacts mental processing. Don't skip breakfast before the big test!