Heart-based right brain enrichment programs and early learning centers

By a Teacher

At six, Jessica had a very mild case of cerebral palsy, and her mother was very worried about accelerating her educational regime so that she would not fall behind in public school.

When she heard about our brain-building program, Jessica's mom, Karen, signed up right away. Karen was reserved, polite and somewhat skeptical. But Jessica was eager to come to class.

After getting over her initial shyness, Jess would hug and kiss me when we played. We had a lot of fun!

I usually teach mother and child together. But Karen wanted to sit in the background and watch. She felt uncomfortable when she was invited to play. Sensing this, I concentrated my efforts on Jess, and we soon had a very close relationship.

In the first two weeks, Jess had great difficulty in imaging and memory recall. For example, when I placed three picture cards in front of her (a hat, a bird, a car) and then took them away, she couldn't remember any of them, even when she studied the cards for awhile. So we concentrated on flashcards and simple matching games, with imaging and memory play interspersed sporadically, to give her a chance to become acquainted with the process. All the while her mother looked on passively.

At the beginning of the third lesson, Jess ran in and hugged me. Then she spotted a lesson on the shelf that grabbed her attention. It was a little ceramic fairy with 12 sparkly plastic gemstones.

We brought it out, and I introduced the lesson. We looked at the different gems and then I asked her to close her eyes.

"Look at the fairy's treasure in your mind. Do you see it clearly? How many green gemstones are there?"

Jess kept her eyes closed, but put her hand out in front of her pointing in the air, counting the stones she could see in her mind. "One. Two. Three. Four. Five."

Her mother gasped and put her hand over her mouth.

"That's great, Jess! How many are round?"

She counted again. "Three."

"That's terrific!" I smiled as her mother inched closer.

"How did you know that, Jessica?" she asked. Jessica opened her eyes and looked at her mother.

"I saw them, Mommy," she replied excitedly as they shared a hug.

After the lesson, Jessica ran to play with new kittens who, to the delight of all my students, were kept in an adjoining office, under a desk. Her mother looked after her and said, "You know, I've been playing these games with her every night at home and she has never done this. I was beginning to think that they were silly."

When I turned to comment, I noticed that her eyes were wet with tears. I smiled at her and said, "Karen, I'm just a nice lady in the classroom. Imagine how much farther she will go with you."

It has been some time since we shared those lessons. I recently received a thank you note from Karen. She said that she has relaxed and has begun to enjoy her child instead of trying to "accelerate" her. She is hugging her more and worrying less. She's playing more and planning less. She's coming to see that Jessica is perfect just as she is.

Jessica, meanwhile, is enjoying school and doing very, very well.