Brain Gym Exercises -

This is an account of how we used two Brain Gym exercises to help Liz go from anxious and stuck to reading easily.

Brain Gym Exercises - Start with "PACE"

Brain Gym movements usually begin with PACE. PACE stands for Positive, Active, Clear and Energetic. The first step in PACE is to drink water. This ensures the brain and nervous system have that essential element.

One day I was working with Liz at her school. I worked as her reading tutor in Tucson for over a year. Liz has dyslexia and language processing difficulties (for more information, see Dyslexia in Children).

My students and I nearly always start a lesson session with Brain Gym movements.

We often use the PACE Brain Gym activities at the beginning of a lesson.

Even when working with adults using Emotional Freedom Techniques, I always start with Brain Gym movements and other energy exercises to balance the brain, calm the body, and help get all body mind spirit systems working optimally.

The first step in getting in "PACE" is to drink water - helping to make sure the nervous system and brain has what it needs to function well.

Dyslexia Games - Go Fish

Liz and I were progressing through the lesson. I was using the Wilson Reading Program. She was identifying letter sounds correctly, reading the words I built for her easily - basically doing just fine.

The next part of our lesson involved Liz reading the words we were working with printed on word cards. We played a game of Go Fish I had adapted for my dyslexic students.

This version of Go Fish went like this.

I'd pick one of my words, mat, for example. I'd say to Liz, "I have a word that starts with the sound /m/. I have 'mat.' Do you have any words that start with /m/?"

Liz would scan her words and if she had one that started with the /m/ sound, she would read the word and give it to me. Then it was her turn to ask me for a word starting with one of her words' sounds.

Liz Loses Her Confidence

As the game went on, Liz's voice began to get softer and softer, as her posture weakened and she slumped down into her chair.

She began having reading anxiety. The words she had easily read before were now impossible for her to read.

Brain gym exercises like the ones we did here can seem like magic. Moving from one mental and emotional state to another can be quickly facilitated with physical movement of any kind. Brain Gym movements are designed to balance and enhance the body's energies and help the brain hemispheres communicate for optimal intelligence.

I asked her to stand up and together, we did the Brain Gym exercise, The Elephant. With this movement, you hold your arm out straight,put your head on that shoulder to stabilize and stretch the neck, and make a large infinity symbol or "Lazy 8," in the air. Repeat with the other arm.

After that, I traced an infinity symbol on Liz's back, using my finger tip.

This all took around one minute.

Liz nearly bounded back to her chair, eager to continue our game.

After our Brain Gym exercises, she read her words easily, correctly and in a confident voice.

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