Wee Readers

At the root of Educational Kinesiology is the concept that body motion is integral to the brain’s ability to learn.  This field of study was established during the 1970s by Paul Dennison, PhD.  In 1987, Dr. Dennison and his wife, Gail Dennison, created the Educational Kinesiology Foundation, now known as Brain GymŪ International.

The Brain GymŪ is a system that uses 26 precise movements to improve concentration and performance.  Some people consider Brain GymŪ an innovative approach to enhance learning.  Proponents of the Brain GymŪ say that the specific movements taught help children focus more in the classroom, achieve better writing and verbal skills, experience improved posture, and perform higher on standardized tests.  They emphasize that the system is based on scientific principles and that the results can be extraordinary.

Others call it pseudoscience and a highly successful con. Skeptics point to the fact that most published research about the Brain GymŪ system lacks independent validity and that conclusions rely heavily on anecdotal evidence. They suggest that periodic stretch breaks or simple breathing exercises combined with short water breaks achieve the same results with little training and significantly less cost.

The Brain GymŪ is officially recognized and used in public school systems across the U.S., from Fairfax County, Virginia to the Tucson Unified School District in Arizona.  Internationally, the Brain GymŪ is present in at least 27 countries, including places like Australia, China, Indonesia, Kenya, Mexico, Norway, and the United Kingdom.  Materials have been translated into more than 15 languages. Visit Brain GymŪ International for more information.

Note of clarification: Some websites state that the Brain GymŪ has been endorsed every year since 1990 by the National Learning Foundation, which is then sometimes explained to be a branch of or evolved out of the White House Task Force on Innovative Learning Technologies. It is true that the Brain GymŪ was recognized as an outstanding innovation by the National Learning Foundation in 1990: however, the White House Task Force on Innovative Learning Technologies disbanded in 1989 and it never was officially linked to the private National Learning Foundation.