TMI Journal 2013 No. 1

with intention leads to optimal learning. Some of the exercises recall the movements naturally done during the first years of life when learning to coordinate the eyes, ears, hands, and whole body. Teachers and students have been reporting for over twenty years on the effectiveness of these simple activities. They often bring about dramatic improvements in such areas as reading, writing, math, test taking, physical coordination, concentration, focus, memory relationships, self-responsibility, attitude, and organization skills. Ms. Montoto used the triune brain model of Paul MacLean to explain the three dimensions in which the exercises are categorized: Focus (reptilian brain), Organization (mammalian brain), and Laterality (neocortex). HISTORY OF THE RESEARCH In 2007, the first of these projects was done in nine elementary schools by nine masters-degree students of the Ponce Catholic University, under the supervision of Professor Ruth Reyes, Ph.D. The results of their thesis proved that the Hemi Sync sounds enhanced the learning environment in all of the classrooms. The second study was conducted in 2009 by Marilyn Felix, a doctoral-degree student from the Metropolitan University of Cupey (UMET). Her work showed that the results of earlier studies in several schools in Puerto Rico—using Hemi Sync and Brain Gym to enhance the learning environment and improve reading—could be verified and duplicated. Students had an improvement of 52% in their oral reading based on the standardized test that was repeated in 2010, the day they gave the standardized test called La Prueba Puertorriqueña that determines the level the school is placed in. The whole school practiced several Brain Gym exercises in the courtyard, plus in all the classrooms they had Hemi- Sync music playing while taking the test. The school had a 10% improvement from the previous year with one-day exposure to Hemi-Sync. A third research project, by Joaquin Cotto, a speech pathology student, studied how Hemi-Sync improved the communication  
  of
children   
with autism. All the children were using Hemi-Sync and doing Brain Gym exercises. The results of his thesis were very positive. THREE DIMENSIONS OF NEUROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION IN LEARNING FOCUS: referring to the connection between the back of the brain (brain stem) and the frontal lobes. This helps people to know their missions in life and to keep their attention on the task. It allows one to work on the big picture as well as on the details simultaneously. CENTERING: referring to the connectors between the top and bottom parts of the brain, specifically the neocortex and the limbic system. This is also known as the mind/heart connection. These two parts of the brain, when working together, allow us to temper our emotions with reasoning, to get organized, and to integrate new information with existing knowledge. LATERALITY: relates to the neurological connections between right and left brain. When both of these parts are working together, vision and hearing are enhanced, movements are coordinated and graceful, and skills such as reading and writing become easier. The Focus dimension is the first to be developed by Brain Gym.. Objective of this dimension is to meet the individual’s organic need to feel: I AM SAFE! Brain Gym in the FOCUS dimension Determines Functions Brain Gym
Movements
Attention
Seeing, participating, comprehending
Owl
Where I am in
Autonomous functions
Arm Activation space
Opens and shuts access to higher
Foot Flex
Lengthening reasoning
Gravity Glider activities
Freeze, fight, or flight
Calf Pump
Connects to vestibular system
Grounder Next Page Second is the Centering dimension. Objective is to13facilitate one’s abilities for CONNECTION!
Connects to vestibular system
Grounder TMI JOURNAL 2013 Second is the Centering dimension. Objective is to facilitate one’s abilities for CONNECTION! Brain Gym in the ENTERING dimension Determines Functions Brain Gym
Movements
Emotional
Stability, organizing, feeling
Drink Water intelligence
Converts short-term memory to
Energy Yawn
Where I am in long-term memory
Space Buttons relation to others
Generates pleasure/anxiety
Earth Buttons
Energy exercises response
Brain Buttons
Releases hormones
Balance Buttons
Interactions  
  
   
Third is the Laterality dimension. Objective of this dimension is to validate: I KNOW WHO I AM! Brain Gym in the LATERALITY dimension Determines Functions Brain Gym
Movements
Higher levels of
Thinking, processing,
Alphabet Eight reasoning communicating
Neck Rolls
Analysis and
Interprets all senses
Think of an X communications
Allows complex
Energizer
Midline memory/thought/reason
Cross Crawls movements
Language acquisition
Elephant
Expression (verbal, nonverbal, written) The Focus dimension is the first to be developed by Brain Gym.. Objective of this dimension is to meet the individual’s organic need to feel: I AM SAFE! Second is the Centering dimension. Objective is to facilitate one’s abilities for CONNECTION! Third is the Laterality dimension. Objective of this dimension is to validate: I KNOW WHO I AM! The following benefits observed by researchers and teachers explains why the combination of Brain Gym and Hemi-Sync is so effective: R They are excellent examples of whole-brain learning, used by teachers in the classroom and by students at home. R5They facilitate the communication between different parts of the brain. R55Hemi-Sync synchronizes the brain hemispheres through sound. Brain Gym activates both hemispheres through cross lateral movements. Next Page 14 TMI JOURNAL 2013 R55They can be used individually (by the student) or collectively (in a classroom). They help both teachers and students to focus more efficiently on their work, supporting accelerated learning. R5They are cost effective and very simple to use. R5They improve memory, concentration, coordination, and balance. R5They use relaxation to activate the parasympathetic system, preparing the brain for higher cognitive functions. R5They facilitate sensory integration. R5They improve reading, writing, and math, and enhance creativity. R5They have research to validate their results (Hemi-Sync has 40 years, Brain Gym 20 years). R55They use visualization and positive affirmation, providing tools to help you achieve your goals. Hemi-Sync in the Human Plus Series and some Mind Food Exercises. Brain Gym in a Brain Gym Consultation Balance. R5They help athletes achieve peak performance in sports. R5They are excellent for children with special needs (dyslexia, ADD, ADHD, autism, etc.). CONCLUSION The children of the twenty-first century are growing up in a technological world that changes very fast. The skills we learn today might be obsolete tomorrow as the technology changes and new theories emerge. While rich in opportunities, the challenges it presents demand that we acquire tools and approaches that can help us relax, sleep, and learn faster. LITERATURE Dennison, Paul E. and Gail E. Dennison, Simple Activities for Whole Brain Learning. Ventura, CA: Edu-Kinesthetics, Inc. 1992: Dennison, Paul E. and Gail E. Dennison, Brain Gym: Teacher’s Edition. Ventura, CA: Edu-Kinesthetics, 1989 Dennison, Paul E. and Gail E. Dennison, Brain Gym101: Balance for Daily Life. Ventura, CA: Edu-Kinesthetics, 2007 Hannaford, Carla The Dominance Factor: How Knowing Your Dominant Eye, Ear, Brain, Hand, & Foot Can Improve Your Learning. Captain Cook, HI: Jamilla Nur Pub. 1997. Also published by Great River Books, Salt Lake City, UT. Hannaford, Carla, Smart Moves: Why Learning Is Not All in Your Head. Captain Cook, HI: Jamilla Nur Pub.2005 Back to page 1 15 TMI JOURNAL 2013 BOOK REVIEW Aardema, Frederick. Explorations in Consciousness: A New Approach to Out- of-Body Experiences. Mount Royal, Quebec: Mount Royal Publishing, 2012. ISBN 978-0-9879119-0-2. xvii + 320 pages. $24.95. Reviewed by Matthew Fike, PhD Frederick Aardema is a research assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Montreal who has been going out of body for over twenty years. In Explorations in Consciousness: A New Approach to Out-of-Body Experiences, he sets out “to bridge the gap between prescientific and scientific approaches to the OBE” (xv). In that spirit, he synthesizes a broad knowledge of the out-of-body literature with field theory from quantum physics, using his own OBEs as illustrations. Aardema’s carefully measured claims about the objective reality of the second body and the afterlife, the nonseparation of the second body, and the highly subjective relationship between imagination and perception will not elicit universal agreement. Yet his conclusions, many of which resonate with cutting-edge science, deserve careful attention, especially because they provide a basis for two very helpful chapters that suggest methods for inducing the out-of-body state and for traveling nonphysically. The book’s most fundamental assumption is that because “consciousness precedes matter” it “is wherever it