Brain Spark!
Does the Brain Spark Program
Really Work
The Brain Spark
Program will benefit anyone beyond
the developmental age of 3-4 whether
they’re having a learning difficulty or
are simply looking for a competitive
edge in school, at work, or on the
playing field
.
The Brain Spark works for three
primary reasons: 1.identification of the
specific Learning Readiness Skills
through the assessment process,
2.development of specific instruction
to develop these skills, and 3. intensity
to develop these skills quickly,
permanently, and automatically.
Student Behavior- Hazy, Lazy, or
Crazy
There are many reasons why a student
might be failing at school: poor school
attendance, frequent changing of
schools, allergies/asthma, side effects
from medications, poor motivation,
seeing, hearing, or speech problems,
lack of support from home, an
inexperienced teacher, unsafe school
environment, break up of the family,
etc. However, too often the student is
the one who is blamed. He’s just lazy.
If he would only apply himself he
would do better. She’s spacey and a
day dreamer. She’s in her own little
world. She’s got ADD/HD. She has a
learning disability. He has dyslexia.
He’s just crazy! These labels often do
nothing more than confuse you. The
label describes a set of behaviors as if
the presence of the behaviors IS the
diagnosis. Too often, once parents are
given a label they and the child’s
school lower their expectations of the
child’s potential. Worse still the child
lowers their own expectation. It’s
much easier to place the blame on the
LABEL. It’s much harder to pursue the
truth and find appropriate care for the
child because you have to fight the
system. You have to really “rage
against the machine”. In general,
medicine offers drugs and surgery and
schools merely offer lowered
expectations and modifications to the
curriculum. These modifications mean
less work, easier work, and busy work.
How is the child supposed to catch up
to her peers when she’s doing LESS
work?
When the neurobiology underlying
how we learn is better understood an
effective treatment plan can be
developed and implemented. Do you
remember the old expression “you
have to learn to walk before you run?”
Developmentally speaking one will not
easily learn reading or math if the
foundational skills for learning are not
in place and easily useable by the
child. With this in mind, we must
analyze what’s really going on in their
heads and not simply label their
behavior. For example, picture yourself
watching a movie where the video and
sound tracks are slightly out of sync.
Got the visual image? Now, how does
this make you feel? Frustrated?
Annoyed? Irritated? Drive you crazy?
If I were watching you watch a movie
like this with a checklist of ADD/HD
symptoms I would quickly
“determine” that you had ADD/HD
based upon your behavior. The kids
we’re discussing process their sensory
world this way. They don’t easily
integrate what they see and hear and
this disconnect leads to confusion.
Confusion makes the world feel unsafe
and leads to fear. These children
respond by elevating their fear
response. You know, the classic fight
or fight response. Prepare to defend
yourself against a perceived or real
threat or turn tail and run away. This
fear response, when chronically
elevated, drives kids to be overly
sensitive to flicker, motion,
sunlight/glare, sound, and touch.
Additionally, it tends to drive excess
motor behavior (hyperactivity),
daydreaming (mental flight), and
fatigue, as well as disrupting long
term, short term, and working memory.
Purpose and Background
The Brain Spark program was
developed to train thinking skills. It is
physical therapy for the mind, plain
and simple. The cognitive skills to be
developed may include motor
coordination, processing speed, visuomotor, visuo-auditory, visual attention,
visual-verbal integration, and visuocognitive abilities. The program is
based on both clinical and scientific
research. It pulls information from
many disciplines including but not
limited to neuro-optometric,
speech/language, neuroscience, visual
psychology, and education. The Brain
Spark program is being continually
modified to reflect the most recent
research in brain/mind/body function.
Who Can Benefit from Brain Spark
Although we can all benefit from the
Brain Spark program, it is specifically
targeted to two main populations. If
you are a struggling learner, regardless
of age, the Brain Spark program will
be of tremendous benefit. Even if you
are an above average learner but you
spend an extraordinary amount of time
to keep up you may feel stressed and
anxious. The Brain Spark program will
increase the efficiency rate at which
you learn. You will become an even
better learner, you will learn more, and
you will learn it in less time than ever
before. You will become a peak
performer!
The following discussion is aimed at
the school aged struggling learner.
However, as an adult you may
recognize many of the symptoms listed
below, symptoms you may have
struggled with your whole life, and for
which you were labeled: a slow
learner, dyslexic, reading disabled,
ADD/HD, spacey, clumsy, etc.
These symptoms include:
trouble staying on task, feel the
pressure of time on math worksheets or
timed tests, have trouble remembering
what you hear or read, have difficulty
with spelling/math concepts, don’t like
written language assignments such as
book reports, or struggle with
sustained attention then the Brain
Spark program was designed just for
you. Please ask the office for a more
complete survey of symptoms, if you
don’t already have it.
How Do We Learn
We learn through sensory (input to
brain) and motor (output or action
system from brain)) integration. For
example, we receive sensory input
through touch, taste, smell, auditory,
and vision. The human brain is
overwhelmingly visually driven. For
instance, there are roughly 3 million
nerve fibers sending sensory
information to the brain. This includes
30,000 auditory nerve fibers per ear
processing the speed of sound at 1,100
feet per second. In stark contrast, there
are over 1 million optic nerve fibers
per eye processing the speed of light at
186,000 miles per second. Yes, that’s
right. One million fibers per eye
multiplied by 186,000 miles per
second! And the two eyes must be
exactly synchronized (eye teaming).
Much of our vision takes place with
little to no conscious awareness. For
instance, I’ll bet the last time you
bought a car you “suddenly” started
noticing that same make, model, and
color everywhere around you. Your
unconscious visual filter changed the
way you saw the world!
This aspect of vision, which is critical
to everyday performance, is way
beyond the simple ability to see 20/20
letters on an eye chart. I am talking
about the way the visual system
influences what we hear, what we
perceive, how we move our bodies
through space, what we think, and even
how we develop a sense of self.
Most students have passed a vision
screening at school or in the
pediatricians office. Shockingly, most
have even been examined by another
optometrist or ophthalmologist and
been told their ‘vision is a perfect
20/20.” That statement is true as far as
it goes, but it is too limited in scope.
As you are beginning to realize, vision
involves virtually every sensory skill
and involves the whole brain. Vision
has influence over and is influenced by
most every aspect of the mind-brainbody connection.
The Brain Spark program is very
different from other educational /
learning programs. Whereas other
programs emphasize the academic
skills of reading or math, the Brain
Spark program emphasizes the skills of
“how to become an efficient learner”.
These Learning Readiness Skills
(LRS) are the neurobiological
foundations of higher order learning.
For example, if you cannot remember
what you see or hear, you simply
cannot be an effective learner.
Furthermore, when these skills go
unrecognized (and untreated) it’s not
unusual to be labeled as a slow learner,
ADD/ADHD, dyslexic, or learning
disabled. More extreme symptoms will
find the child on the autistic spectrum
scale or be at increased risk of
developing a mood disorder (panic
attack, anxiety, anger, or depression).
Oftentimes, these children fall into an
educational black hole and never reach
their full potential. These children
usually feel out of step with the world
around them. They wonder why they
“don’t get it”, while learning comes so
easily to their peers or siblings. They
often struggle with developing a sense
of self and often feel insecure. Many of
the children know they’re not
measuring up and yet are helpless to
change things.
When a child is born they have the
sensory skills to take in information.
However, the child must learn what
that information means and how to act
upon it. These cognitive skills must be
developed through successful
interactions between the individual and
other people, as well as the individual
and their environment. These skills are
often referred to as Learning Readiness
Skills (LRS). LRS relate to the brain’s
ability to retain what is seen and heard
and to integrate this information into a
workable foundation to think abstractly
such as when developing reading and
math skills. Reading is a visual symbol
system that uses symbols (letters) to
represent speech sounds. Math uses
visual symbols (numbers) to represent
the movement of time, space, mass,
and velocity. These visual symbols are
nothing more than curved, straight, and
angled lines connected together. In and
of themselves these symbols have no
meaning. The human mind brings
these symbols to life by mapping
meaning onto them.. These skills do
not come easily or do not come at all to
millions of students in this country
because neuro-developmentally they
do not adequately possess Learning
Readiness Skills. Trying to learn
reading and math without these LRS
skills is nothing more than an exercise
of frustration for child and mentor
alike. Frankly, trying to teach children
who does not possess these skills
fosters their poor sense of self. These
children constantly hear “Try harder”,
“Stop being so lazy”, “You’ve seen
this word a thousand times”, “How do
you think you spell that word”, “Stop
acting so stupid!” Over time, these
children psychologically beat
themselves up. Their perception of
themselves is mirrored through the
eyes and behavior of the adults around
them.
What Does This Program Do
The Brain Spark program does not
teach reading or math skills. Other
programs are available for that when
and if necessary. This program does
not teach academics. It does teach the
cognitive underpinnings that reading
and math programs require. The Brain
Spark program teaches the Learning
Readiness Skills required for abstract
thinking. Reading tutoring, special
education programs, learning disability
programs, and over the counter phonics
programs all involve academic
retraining or modifications and
accommodations to the curriculum.
The Brain Spark program makes
learning better, faster, and more fun.
How Do We Test For These
Cognitive Skills
There are specific assessment tools
available for measuring the Learning
Readiness Skills (LRS). The following
LRS skills are some of the skills
considered in the Brain Spark program:
Visual and auditory attention- the
ability to attend to detail through the
visual and auditory systems. For
example, the brain must attend to
visual and auditory input and select
that input from competing stimuli, i.e.-
when your spouse is watching the
game on TV and doesn’t notice the
kids are swinging from the chandelier
or have painted to dog blue.
Working memory –this involves many
different subskills. The following three
are described:
1. Chunk Size- how large of a
chunk of information can you
hold in mind. For instance,
telephone numbers are broken
into 3-4 number chunks
because it’s easier to remember
626-332-4510 than
6263324510.
2. Information Processing Speedhow quickly can you process
what you see and hear.
Processing speed is a marker of
intelligence. It is both
measurable and trainable.
3. Multi-tasking- how many items
can you hold in mind, can you
establish relationships between
items to further your
knowledge, can you self
monitor your behavior, can you
create a mental plan and see the
consequences of your
behavior?
Simultaneous Processing – the ability
to visually process a scene or to read
and comprehend at the same time. It is
sometimes referred to a visual logic
and reasoning.
Successive Processing – the ability to
handling information in a sequential
order. This skill is related to both
reading and listening comprehension.
There are connections here to spelling,
chemistry, math/algebra, and history as
remembering steps/dates in order is of
critical importance.
Divided, Sustained, Selective Attention
These cognitive skills facilitate the
ability to work hard at a task even
when it’s difficult, to ignore
surrounding stimuli, or to divide
attention between tasks. For instance,
listening to a teacher talk while she’s
writing on the whiteboard and you’re
trying to take notes as you are looking
back and forth is a divided attention
task. Having your brain fatigue after
only 5-20 minutes of effort is related to
sustained attention. Being bothered by
fluorescent flicker, computer screen
flicker, motion on the edges of your
vision, or background noise is related
to selective, sustained, and divided
attention. In fact, many/most
assessments for ADD/HD are
primarily measurements of visual
attention.
Motor Planning and Sequencing
This relates to our internal rhythmic
clock. Remember the expression “he’s
marching to the beat of his own
drum?” This rhythmic clock is
measurable and trainable. What’s the
relevance you ask? Difficulties in
timing often result in physical
clumsiness, clumsiness in receptive
(heard) and expressive (spoken)
language skills, and clumsiness in
organizational and attentional skills.
These are not language skills as such,
but are connected to the neurobiological underpinnings of how we
learn. These are the kids who often
look like rag dolls when they run (if
they ever run) with arms and legs flung
about in all different directions. They
usually don’t play sports. They are
usually the last ones picked and the
first ones picked on. They oftentimes
didn’t crawl when they were little. Or
perhaps they struggled with learning
how to manage buttons, zippers, to tie
their shoes, to ride a two wheeler, or
even to jump rope.
Visual Processing- this includes visual
attention, memory, sequencing, motor
control, imagery, logic/reasoning,
analysis, speed, etc.
Visuo-auditory Processing – vision can
influence what you hear (search the
internet for the McGurk effect to see
this in action). Additionally, remember
the expression “a picture’s worth a
thousand words.” When listening to
spoken language or when reading we
typically convert to visual imagery in
order to remember the content. If not,
it truly is words in one ear and out the
other.
Auditory Processing- this includes
auditory attention, memory,
sequencing, analysis, and speed. In
beginning reading or in reading
difficulties this skill relates to the
ability to hear, blend, segment, and
manipulate the sounds in words.
Cognitive Skills Are Learned And
Can Be Developed
It is often said that genetics loads the
developmental gun and that
environment pulls the trigger. Even if
one is genetically at increased risk of a
learning challenge these skills can be
developed. Even if a child was exposed
to drugs and alcohol while the mother
was pregnant, these skills can be
developed. Even if your child is on the
autistic spectrum scale, ADD/HD,
dyslexic, learning disabled, depressed,
anxious, etc. there is help and these
cognitive skills can be developed.
Parents think nothing of spending 3-7
hours per week engaged in music
training, karate, or other sports in order
to develop skills in these activities.
But, they are greatly surprised to hear
of such a program as Brain Spark when
it comes to developing Learning
Readiness Skills.
The Brain Spark program works
because it’s based upon sound
neurobiological and neurophysiological principles of how the
mind-brain-body connection works.
Does the Brain Spark Program
Work
.
In review, the Brain Spark works for
three primary reasons: 1. we’re
identifying specific Learning
Readiness Skills through the
assessment process, 2. we’ve
developed specific instruction to
develop these skills, and 3. we do it
intensely enough to develop these
skills quickly, permanently, and
automatically.
Don’t get me wrong. This does take
work and it does take time. If you
cannot arrange your schedule or your
child’s to commit to the program this
isn’t for you. If you cannot keep your
scheduled appointments and do the
work we ask of you at home, this
program is not for you. If you are
satisfied with the progress your child is
making this program isn’t for you.
However, if you are interested in
helping your child reach their full
potential this program is for you.
Typically, this program requires 3
office visits each week for an hour and
2-4 hours of work at home with
materials we supply. With this
intensity we are ordinarily finished in
10-12 weeks. Other scheduling
arrangements can be made (less office
time or less time at home) with the
understanding that the 10-12 weeks
may turn into 15-20 weeks or longer.
The time frame may change based
upon the presenting diagnosis. For
instance, fostering the development of
an autistic child or a child with fetal
alcohol syndrome will take longer.
Successful Learning Readiness Skills
Once the Learning Readiness Skills
have been developed by the Brain
Spark Program, it’s not unusual for the
whole family dynamic to change. The
child will often become a happier child
and have more confidence in their
skills. They are not as stressed out
about school. Homework becomes less
of a battleground. They listen better
and are better organized. Heck, they
often clean their room more (no
kidding).
You may notice that you have more
free time in the evening with your
child or spouse. You may not argue as
much with your child as they can better
process and remember what you’ve
told them. You may not argue as much
with your spouse about your child’s
school work or how they are working
with the child.
You most certainly will have a much
better understanding of your child and
perhaps even of yourself.
The Brain Spark Program is a powerful
effective tool for developing anyone’s
cognitive skills.
I look forward to answering your
questions. Please feel free to write or
call. I’ll do my best to meet your
needs.
Dr. Douglas W. Stephey
Doctor of Optometry
Master’s in Education
208 West Badillo Street
Covina, CA 91723
626-332-4510
ru2020@cyberg8t.com
www.optometrists.org/stephey
www.pavevision.org
www.interactivemetronome.com
www.balametrics.com
www.readamerica.net
www.samonas.com