The Whole Brain

Linda,

This is the problem with my son too. He can do all the individual pieces much better than integrating them. It actually shows up in specific types of testing. My son is doing a big report for school which involves writing five sentences about something about Florida for the letters A to Z. A is for Appalache indians, B is for beaches, C is for citrus…you get the idea. He might capitalize the first word of one sentence out of five. I make him go back and read what he wrote and he does it all correctly. He can proofread (what he can spell) but not do it all at once.

The therapy we’ve done with Neuronet has worked on this and made a big difference. Brain Gym has exercises based on this principal too. The book you have sounds interesting too.

Beth

Unknown to many of the so called experts 20% of the optic nerve’s function has nothing to do with seeing. A visual disturbance can prevent the body from doing the thinng we want it to do because of signaling the optic nerve is sending to the brain form the peripheral visual fields.

Try putting masking tape on his glasses or goggles on the inside part near his nose and see what happens. His vision will seem normal to him but peripheral field distractions will be blocked.

let’s rmember “x” is the unknown factor, and a “spurt” is an uncontrolled bowel movement- paraphrased from a wise man in Hyde Park on a sunday morning.

Linda, you, me , Beth, and Laura should really meet somewhere so we can observe our sons together… : )

My son’s original problem was motor planning - putting it all together.
His reading skills all seem to be there but he can’t put it together says his reading specialist at school.
Our VT evaluation completed only a few weeks ago said he can see with both eyes, but can’t put it together properly in his brain.

Time and time again this is the descripition of him.

I recently read an article on math disabilities (which he doesn’t seem to have at all…) but the author described non-verbal learning disabilities as a disability primarily of integration. I had never heard it described that way but that is what my son has - a disability of integration. Putting the pieces together. Which is why I think each therapy works a little, and yields improvements even in other areas.

Beth,

Thanks, I suspected they were similar from your description. I think this is also a big part of the inconsistancy issue. We were doing math problems last night and he added a very difficult 3 digit problem in his head with regrouping and then 2 minutes later couldn’t do 8-6 on the page. I think this is why he is better in his head. It involves only one area of the brain and writing brings that whole motor thing into play.
ACH motor!

Karen,

I totally agree that our boys are linked on some level. Yes, it would be amazing to see these boys together. I hope you see the same improvements we have seen in VT. My son had a major break through with the near far exercises. I have been told this is a ‘whole brain’ activity. He used to get weak in the knees doing that.
How is your son progressing?

Just so you know I didn’t see any carryover into academics until 12 weeks.

I was talking about all of this last night with his vision therapist. She was excited about his breakthrough. She said, “This is the beginning.”
She also said, “Don’t worry, he will get there.”

I have to say that along with the reading jump I have seen an improvement in math recently. We have been preparing for testing next week and he seems to be grasping the word problems much better.
I taught him some times tables tips that I use and he just couldn’t grasp what I was talking about before. He was using them with ease last night.
I have a trick for the 9s if anyone is interested.

No easy answers, no magic bullets, but here is something else for pulling it all together: have you worked on any whole-body sports? Mine are swimming and skiing (downhill), and many years ago trampolining. Not just splasking in the water or playing in the snow or bouncing around, but serious coaching — in my case individual lessons — to develop skill. The skill is valuable in itself and a matter of pride in the peer group, and it isn’t formal “education”. The pulling together of the whole body and visual coordination is helpful in integrating other things.

My son’s Neuronet therapist tells me that the integration issues are white matter issues. According to O’Rourke, Nonverbal learning disabilities are deficits of white matter. His therapist has worked with him extensively and says that he does not have a nonverbal learning disability at the level of a syndrome. But clearly it is just a matter of degree. We have made major strides here but the combination of deficits still makes things difficult.

BTW, we are moving our son to a parochial school next year, where his siblings are, and having him repeat fourth grade. Emotionally, my son is young for his age and this year has been part of a third grade boy scout den (chosen because of the outstanding leadership), where he has fit in very well socially. We’re hoping that the move will allow him to consolidate his skills as well as avoid the very large public middle school. There is a resource teacher at the parochial school and the adminsitration knows he is LD. They will give him any accomodations or modifications he needs. He has gone to camp there for two summers and they know him.

We’ve seen a lot of progress this year. He has actually learned to write and can summarize information from a text. His reading comprehension has made great strides. He has received an A and a B on his most recent reading comprehension tests at school (he had received a string of D’s and F’s earlier this year). Math was going well until we hit fractions and long division (his teacher says she doesn’t think he is developmentally ready—another argument for holding him back). His spelling is better, although still far below grade level.

Beth

Test

Karate and gymnastics are great ones for this, followed by swimming. Two therapists my son has worked with have family members who made great progress overcoming their LDs after extensive (five days a week) karate. One is now a doctor and the other is in a masters program. Both were teenagers when they did this so it was clearly their choice. Also, my understanding is that the corpus collusium (the bridge in the brain) matures at about 13 (my Jewish slt called it the bar mitzvah effect) and that also makes a big difference for many kids.

Playing the piano also requires integration. Autopsies have shown that musicians have enlarged corpus collsiums. Of course, cause and effect can not be established. Most likely, this is a gift they have which is further nurtured by musicial training.

Beth

I agree that sports are very important. My son will do the swim team again this summer. They got rid of the old coach, she was terrible. I really think lacrosse is also very good. He has to balance the ball in his stick, run, and plan how to get around the other team to score. He also has to use both sides of his body.
There is alot going on. He loves lacrosse.

I am putting the little one in Karate this summer. My son doesn’t want to take it but is now reconsidering. He is worried his little brother will become a black belt and be able to take him.

I have a very good friend who had LD as a child. She said she had pretty bad motor issues. She did vision therapy and she remembers her dad taking her outside to play catch every night after work. She has great parents. I know them and I don’t think I ever met more supportive people.
She ended up going to a very competitive private school for high school and was one of the best on the tennis team. She even played in college. She was very successful in her career as well.

I live in a pretty high end development. There are 4 adults on my block with LD. They are all very successful in different ways. They were all heavy into sports when they were younger.

I don’t think all learning disabilities are related to motor development. For example, the founder of a LD school we visited told us he took refuge in sports. He was naturally good at them. He was a classic dyslexic, from his description. But for certain type of LDs—more right brained/white matter I think, motor coordination seems to be related to the LD. My son has become progressively better at sports as we have remediated his underlying processing issues. For him, this has been a major benefit of therapy and has helped him feel more normal.

Beth

It would be very interesting if we could get all our boys together. Maybe if we’re all still here by the time they’re in high school we’ll have to arrange it! ;-)

My son has been doing Karate now for about 5 months and loves it!!! It has been great for his self-esteem and they do a lot of activites that I would almost describe as therapeutic.

I’ve also had my kids do swim team (previously swim lessons ALL summer) every year since they were 3 and I do think this has helped a lot too. And the trampoline has been really good. My son uses it (on his own) almost every day. If he’s bored he just goes out and jumps for about 15 minutes.

I believe my son may now be more a classic dyslexic than I thought. It seems as if a lot of his motor planning problems have been remediated. Even though he’s not a great athelete he can still participate. Neither of my children are competetive.

Karen, I know it’s still too early to tell, but how’s the vision therapy going?

I am interested in the whole brain concept. I live in New Zealand and could not find more info on this book on the web. Could you tell me how I could obtain a copy of this book.
With thanks Sue Murray

As Beth stated, brain gym is similar so you could look for their book. I think it is cheaper anyway. I know they have a site.
I gave a phone number in my first post that should help. It is the phone number for the author’s clinic.

Hope this helps.

I can’t tell how VT is going. Its only been a few weeks, and the near/far Hart chart exercise is MUCH easier, but I’m a little concerned he’s not doing it properly. He pauses so long between near and far, fiddling with the paper, that I can’t imagine his eyes are really being exercised. He came home with the 3 balls on a string exercise, and according to him can do it easily. I know in the office they work on other exercises, but I have’t been bringing him myself. Next week I plan to go and touch base with the doctor. The other home exercise is reading with the flippy device that changes the amount of magnification while one eye is patched. He still seems to move his head more than he should…. But I know its too soon to expect much change.

His decoding is still stronger following LMB, but is still erratic. He is reading some really complicated multisyllabic words, but then misreading short vowel sounds. Kinda like Linda’s son and math? I think its hard for them to automate this stuff. Linda, by the way, my son learned his times tables easily this year. Their math curriculum had them cut out array cards and use them as props as opposed to rote memorization. It seems to have worked for him. Email me if you want more detail.

I read thru all the above posts, and wanted to also comment that ds has been swimming since a baby, and is quite good. He also started learning to ski this year - he looks a little awkward, but he can do it. I’m hoping to add karate or something like it next year (when he won’t need a tutor anymore !!) I think the meditative quality of an activity like that might be a good anxiety reducer too. Self regulation skills without going back to OT!

Beth - congratulations on making that decision. It must have been difficult to decide to hold him back, but you know him so well I am sure you are making the right choice.

Sorry for the long post - I wanted to respond to all of your comments.

How interesting about integration issues and NLD. I was talking with another mom today about NLD and how our kids don’t fit that mold, but do seem to have some executive function difficulties.

There really is a lot of overlap with LD’s.

Good luck with the new school! I’m sure your son will be happy to be where his siblings are.

I think learning differences are a lot like emotional differences. Friend’s of ours has a son with OCD who has done very well on Prozac. The father has some OCD characteristics (big stove checker) but certainly doesn’t have it. So it is a contiuum of sorts. Learning wise, we all have weakenesses. Our Neuronet therapist tells me she seldom has a child in her office who doesn’t have with significant deficits in three of the five areas she exams. She says that less than that kids are usually able to compenstate.

We found out the other day that the LD teacher at the elementary public school my son attends is leaving. Makes me more sure that we’re making the right decision (our public middle school has 2,600 students, if you can imagine–of course, you are in CA—it may be just as bad.)

Beth

I picked up a brochure at the YMCA for aikido. It is one of the martial arts but it seems to have more of an emphasis on mind-body coordination.

Here is what the brochure states, “Kokikai Aikido is a self defense training system that stresses timing, centering, and coordination rather than meeting force with force. The goal of kokikai aikido is to enable all individuals to reach their strongest state and realize their full potential, both in the art of self-defense and in their daily lives.

Most people associate strength with muscle power, but kokikai students learn many ways to become stronger. Mind-body coordination, relaxation, good posture,and proper technique can increase a person’s strength. In practicing kokikai aikido, students learn to coordinate mind and body to respond calmly to conflict…..

There seems to be an emphasis on using a calm approach.

There is a website for the international organization of kokkikai: www.kokikai.org

I thought it sounded very interesting. I am thinking of doing this with my son. They don’t start until the age of 8 so it would be good because in the karate class he would be lumped with little ones just starting out.

I might even do it myself.

Whether or not you do it yourself, stay in the first class and watch the instructor.

I tried aikido once and it was an absolute disaster because of the instructor’s style; tried karate many years later and this time the instructor was good and it was fun. NOT the difference between karate and aikido, but the difference in presentation.

The presentation that worked was a man who took the time to break down the skills and show each part.

The one that was a disaster was a man who just said “do this” and made a combination of ten or so moves with his hands (over and under and twisting and back and forth, very quickly). When I looked blank at him and said “Excuse me, I can’t follow that” he just said “do this” again and did the same thing again without even slowing down.

There is a style of teaching that holds that you should present the skill as a whole and let the student work towards it. May possibly work for some, sometimes, a disaster for those of us with visual/coordination/timing issues.

So just check out that the instructor is actually *showing* and *explaining* and *teaching* skills.

You raise a good point. My son took Karate and didn’t like it–because he had trouble following the moves.

The teacher is more important than the particular “brand” of maritial arts.

Beth

2,600 students!!!!! Oh my gosh! Was it built to accomodate that number or near it?

My daughter’s Jr. High is somewhere around 1600 (but I know it was built to accomodate less). I’ve heard the Resource specialist there is new and their program isn’t very good. Although it’s highly unlikely my son would be going there any time in the future because we are no longer in that district and probably would not be choosing to move into it in the future.

I doubt it. I heard the NEW high school has 4600 students and it only has three grades in it. It is the first new high school in the county in quite a while and everyone wanted their kid in it. I understand it was overcrowded from the first day.

Portables and the like are facts of life here. We have extremely high rates of immigration from S. America these days (over 40% of my town is hispanic) and an exploding population. The building of schools can’t keep up with the population demands.

Beth

I think my daughter can beat anyone hands down on the big school/overcrowding issue. Her high school was built in the 1970’s for a maximum of 2500 students. With no windows. By the time she went there 97 - 01, it got up to 3400 students. There were 18 portables in the parking lot — they had windows and were the most popular classrooms. She had the best Latin teacher in the country, and they had Latin 1 classes of 45 students in the auditorium — and a waiting list to get into them. Then the year after we left (good for us, a shame for the rest of the kids) a real prize of a new superintendent had half the portables towed away in a midnight flit “because other schools needed them more” (more than a school 1000 kids over space??) — two weeks before school opened; you can just imagine what that did to the scheduling of a place with 3000 students and 140 teachers …

By the way, she *loved* the place. She likes watching for a while before joining groups, hates being singled out, and it was her personal choice to be in a big group. And the size of the place (plus the good prioncipal, befoer the new superintendent convinced him to leave) allowed them to offer every AP class going, five bands, three orchestras, seven foreign languages plus sign language … for her it was the best thing ever.