Minds in Motion Conference Review
August 5 & 6, 2010
North Side Middle School, Elkhart, IN
Attended by Emily Eschelbach
The fog was heavy the Thursday morning I drove to Elkhart to attend a two day seminar. I knew if I could find the North Side Middle School auditorium in this white soup, I would already have accomplished something noteworthy. Inside, I joined other teachers who like myself are convinced that there is an under explored link between movement and learning.
Minds-in-Motion is a series of movements and exercises designed to stimulate the vestibular system in the inner ear. Why is this system important to learning? It is the unifying system in our brain that coordinates information received from the eyes, ears, skin and muscles. Candace Meyer, the presenter and founder of Minds-in-Motion has identifies 15 daily steps to activate and develop a student’s balance and learning capabilities. The entire circuit takes only about 10 minutes. Many schools set up the maze in vacant classrooms, meeting rooms or hallways. Some of the students in Elkhart Public schools have been using the maze for the past school year. They had seen many benefits from this movement based activity.
The Minds-In-Motion Maze, done on a daily basis can
· enhance students’ brain processing abilities
· alleviate clumsiness and disorganization
· improve sills for reading math and handwriting
· increase focusing ability
· improve visual and auditory learning skills
· empower students to walk, stand and sit in a controlled manner.
Recent research is proving that poor integration and inefficient coordination between the numerous brain systems involved in the learning process can be dealt with through sensory integration and motor development exercises. Many scientists are now using balance as the central component to address sensory integration disorders and brain processing inefficiencies that cause learning problems.
This conference was an eye opener for me. I am going to do some further reading about the vestibular system and its effect on learning. New research has brought the vestibular functions of the brain into a new light in regard to the world of education.
I am thankful that my friend who is a teacher in the Elkhart Public schools invited me to come to the Minds in Motion Seminar. Because they offered it without a registration cost, I was able to accept without reservation.