Emma' Story - IM with toddlers

IM with very young children. Given the right circumstance, IM is very much an option for the very young. Here's one story.

iLs news

Great News - About a month ago, I became certified in another technologically advanced, brain training program that has good prospects for helping children succeed.

Toe Walking

Persistent Toe Walking may be a sign of neurological challenges. Many of the students that I see have a history of toe walking. Here are some links to check out on the subject.

Positive Negative IM Gains

On occasion, a student may start 'getting in trouble' at school post IM. Why is this? You would expect just the opposite. This usually has a lot to do with the child feeling more empowered, less willing to accept being bullied, or more confident, all positive mental gains.  But the children do not know how to behave more empowered, deal appropriately with bullies, or be assertive in a positive way. Therefore their behavior may be seen as aggressive, fighting for a new position in the class rank, standing up for themselves, but inappropriately so.  This is the time to re-teach assertiveness skills. These are positive negative responses to IM. 

Sensory Diet Link for Squirrelly Behavior

Can you give me a general idea of “squirrelly” ? Extreme silliness maybe? Emotional?  During IM, a good percentage of students have a day or two of 'squirrelly behavior, some times a week or two, worse case senario, the entire IM training, but this fades in a few weeks after IM is over.

Executive Functioning - the skills IM seems to impact greatly.

Here are 3 core executive functioning (EF) skills impacted by IM that Dr. Adele Diamond discusses in her presentation. 

1 Inhibitory control (self control)

2.Working Memory -(attention)

3.Cognitive Flexibility -(awareness of other perspectives, shifting gears)

Adele Diamond, from the University of British Columbia, was UC Davis MIND Institutes most recent lecturer talking about Cognitive Control in the Younger Child. If you are an educator or have preschool children at home the 6 pm lecture is a must see.

New Beginning II? In Second Graders Family

Cool Cool Story.... and it so fits with my earlier blog today! Today may be the beginning of a new beginning in this family........ and this girl's only in 2nd grade, not a senior in high school like Brad!

Tonight one of my winter IM little girls stopped by with her mom.  Both this 2nd grader and her big sister had gone through IM at the same time a couple of months ago.

Emma's Story - IM and the Very Young Child

Last year at our IM conference we were able to watch some video of an AMAZING story of a little 18 month old girl who was the first infant documented to receive IM training. Her gains were absolutely phenomenal. I was recently visiting with a mom about the gains I've seen with preschoolers - wonderful gains - and Emma's story came up. I thought I would link to it. Even if you don't have an infant needing IM, it's a great story of success. A baby, never thought to be able to even sit up by herself or functionally talk, now is in preschool walking with a walker and working on gaining language skills every day.

Occasionally I have parents that note changes immediately - after just one IM session. It seems so bizarre, but I hear comments enough that I know they are happening. Emma laughed for the first time after her first IM session. When listening to this mom speak, it seemed as if almost every session brought on a new behavior.

A word of caution: When I share such things, parents sometimes get the idea they will see gains in one day. That's the exception, not the rule, but when it happens, it's so exciting!

To read Emma's story , click the blue link, then on the Most Recent Posts link, then the search button. On the 10th question down on this page you can read the story (You'll see "18 month old" at then end of the title). I expect it won't be located there long as it's a 'recent post'. I was hoping I could link right to the story but no such luck.

FAQ: What does Parent/Child Team IM look like?

How do I provide IM to the younger client (8 years and under) while keeping costs down. In the past I saw the younger child one on one only, but that is more costly for parents. Group modes make IM much more affordable, but younger children can not work independently enough to succeed in a group format.

This is how I'm solving the problem.

The child and the parent become a team. Together they try to reach various IM goals that I give them. In actuality, it's the parent that's learning the IM program and the child is going along for the ride! I've used this hand-over-hand approach for as young 3 years (other providers for as young as 18 months) with great results. An added benefit is that the parents gain from the IM program, too. Parents need to be close to average in their own timing to qualify for this format.

As the child develops a sense of rhythm and moves towards independence, the parent falls away gradually, leaving the child doing IM on their own. Kindergartners through 2nd graders usually work in this format. Kindergartners seldom become totally independent in 15 sessions; 2nd graders often become independent about half-way through. Children with significant auditory, sensory or timing issues often need some synchronization (hand over hand) training even as old as 10 or 11 years.

I provide parents with a full line of specific coaching goals to help you along. You may still be concerned that your child and you have too much history - a very valid concern. In reality, the biggest challenge to this format of IM is that about half of the children don't actually work well for their own parents. Therefore, at the first sign of frustration (from you or the child), I swap parents. You may actually end up working with another child while another parent works with yours. I have found this very effective and works for most children.

Feedback from a first grader's mom the first time I tried this has encouraged me to keep fine tuning this format. She was so pleased with the gains her son had made! And keeping the cost down by working in a group mode had helped them afford the program. She urged me to keep offering IM in parent-child teams, so I have. Parents, what you say does have power. Speak your mind!

Note: If the parent needs to take off work to do IM, the monetary savings may not be as great. Individual mode may be just as good of an option, though I think parents enjoy the program and challenge as much as the children in groups.

Note 2:  Sometimes mom or dad could benefit from IM too :) One mom recently shared not just how much she was enjoying the gains her son had made, but that her husband (doing hand over hand with the son) now was picking up more after himself - something she was thrilled about. :)  

Parent Input

I have just sent a link to this site to my present IM parents. Parents, I want you to post comments on this site especially on the Data Speaks Spread sheets about your child's IM training. I would like to ask you to keep all information confidential. You may share age, sex, struggles, and definitely IM changes that you have seen, but no names of your children please. Think about what information would have been helpful for you to know and share that with others. Thank you so much. I will work on a way to organize your comments but in the meantime, just make random posts if you want. Thanks, Lori