Last year I was challenged by an educationist in Singapore to come up with a program that goes beyond the magic of reading blindfolded. Part of the research took me back to Sri Lanka, where I tested the program with over 100 students at one College. I also tested it with the Blind School in Colombo – my hunch was that if sighted children can be taught to read blindfolded, then blind children could be taught to read also.
I was particularly intereted in the concept of the Bio computer screen mentioned by Dr Shichida and taught by Bronikov.
Since then I have had another challenge … I have had many enquiries from parents all over the world who wanted to know how they can use Midbrain Activation program at home.
I have completed a multi media program which now needs to be tested. I am offering it first to the forum members before making it public.
Rowan perhaps you could give us some more information. What does your program involve? What time commitments are needed? What can we expect our children to achieve? What age are you aiming for? And of course How much?
Either posted here or communicated directly to your testing group if it’s not public discussion yet, we’d want to know things like-
What kind of results does it produce, quantum reading or something else?
Are there any potential negatives to participating in the program?
How involved is the program, how many lessons are required per day/week? How long does it take from start to finish?
Are the results “permanent” without continued use or will they be lost if not practiced?
Are there any materials that are required that would need to be purchased?
Is there a fee for the test group itself, if so, how much?
How is the training conducted, via skype? Webinar? workbook? Email? Something else?
Does the training teach the children directly, or does it teach the parents who will them teach the children?
Is there any prerequisite to participation? Minimum age? Attention span of a certain length?
To add to these insightful inquiries I was wondering since you are offering a multimedia program how is the vibration method incorporated? Will we be instructed on how to recognize progress of the activation?
Having heard great things about midbrain activation from colleagues in Indonesia I would be very interested.
I have been made aware that the existing programs usually target children between the ages of 6 and 12 because their brains are easier to train. Us parents on this forum have been training and stimulating our children’s brains since they were in the womb. I am hoping since you are posting this opportunity on an early learning forum you will reserve some spots for younger children. It would be interesting to compare the levels of activation across the different age groups.
My son has benefited greatly with right brain education and I have been planning on the investment to try to activate his midbrain. He has shown signs that he has a very good memory. He can memorize a state and their capital after seeing it once on a flash card. We just added two new languages to his daily routine and he is picking them up after hearing or seeing a word one time. He remembers things he learned from months ago even if we did not go over it again. And so on…
I look forward to hearing more details about your program and how they can be as effective as attending a workshop.
I have collated the questions and will be answering them in sections. Here are two:
What does the program involve ?
Basically, it means to try out our Two day SuperBrain Activation workshop at home.
A note about names :
I used the term “Midbrain Activation†as this is well known to most members and will continue to do so. This is a term coined by GMC( Malaysia) and they are quick to point out that their method is NOT activating the Third Eye or the Pineal Gland. Dr Makoto Shichida uses the term “Interbrain ‘and freely discusses the functions of the Third Eye and the Pineal Gland. ( Science of Intelligence and Creativity. Pg 51-)
Outcomes – Results – Expectations:
We have a very ambitious vision: to explore the human potential dormant in our next generation. We want to go beyond the initial ability to read playing cards blindfolded – or reading a book blindfolded. Yes, we want to achieve Quantum Speed Reading and other results as detailed by Ms Tobitani.
One of the reasons for making this available to the forum members is to be able to mark out clear outcomes, baselines, mileposts, and signposts so parents can see tangible results and be motivated to carry on further.
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer our questions. I did glance over your messages and I will go over it tonight with my husband later tonight.
By activating the midbrain are we making the path between the left and right brain wider?
Well I am still interested. Two days I can manage
Good question mela bala. What area of the brain is it…( don’t you dare say middle!) is it a physical area or a perceived area? Would it be possible to scientifically photograph the results or not? I am purely curious, I have no need for this kind of proof, I just like to see the future :biggrin:
Plus are we to expect the same results in children who havnt benefitted from early education as those who have? Or shall we assume some previous right brain training will boost results.
Boy we are just full of questions arnt we?
Well I am still interested. Two days I can manage
-that is if you prefer the live workshop which we can organize
Good question mela bala. What area of the brain is it…( don’t you dare say middle!) is it a physical area or a perceived area?
I will put up a diagram as given by Dr Shichida – it is a definite physical area.
Would it be possible to scientifically photograph the results or not? I am purely curious, I have no need for this kind of proof, I just like to see the future
There are scans of results of some of the activities – again more later.
I always repeat in my photoreading class : Questions are the answer.
The live workshop takes two days – Four sessions of 1.5 hours each.
This has to be answered in the context of outcomes. We need to produce some tangible results within the short period. The purpose of this project is to explore what skills and abilities we can uncover.
I like the example given by my EFT Tutor –The two day workshop teaches you to play the major scales of the piano with both hands. More time and commitment will be needed for one to play symphonies.
Age & Prequisites
The age range is from 6- puberty . The upper limit is dictated by physhiology. All the hormonal changes that take place at puberty affect the brain. The lower limit is flexible. At the last workshop we had a 5 –year old girl who did equally well as the others.
We assume the children are in good health
Children with disabilities are most welcome – Dr Shichida has a special chapter for Special Needs Children.
What modifications can be made for preschool age children to participate? The parents on this forum are exceptional at modifying programs for the younger set and gently introducing them over time. For example, a 2 or three year old may not have the attention span or cognitive ability to handle a full two days work of all of the activities presented. BUT, a qualified, experienced parent might be able to deliver a SIMILAR program over the course of several weeks or longer using modified methods and adult modeling/demonstrating to familiarize children with the activities, etc… Even familiarization might allow the children to particpate by age 4 for example, instead of 6-12. The children (and PARENTS!) on this forum are among the most talented, dedicated individuals I have had the honor to know.
We literally have the benefit of time on our side in that we don’t have to “rush” our children to teach them to read for example, but we know that regular, joyful, consistent exposure over the course of months and years can produce very effective results in a gentle way. It is time very well invested! BUT, we still believe that starting earlier is always better! SO…what can you offer the parents of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers? If a few skilled parents here accessed the course, I suspect we could come up with MANY ways to make the curriculum accessible to a younger child. Message me if you want to discuss this further or even video/voice chat on skype, I find the subject extremely intriguing and these kinds of opportunities are so limited in the west. if you shed some light on the teaching methods or care to let me preview the course material, I’d be happy to give me input on how you can increase the age range of this to make it more accessible to more children here on the forum, assuming there is no biological, developmental reason not to do so.
True thinking TMT. My kids are in the age range for the course plus my boy who Is 4. That is a great idea making suggestions to make it toddler/ preschool friendly. I think the main concern would be the long time of 1:5 hours a session. But was this just one option of many? Personally i like the intensive idea to get started on something. It ensures results quickly and as such motivates the kids ( well in older kids anyway) to practice further. But yes 1:5hours may be too much for Jaykob. Along side his sisters he could manage it probably though. Especially if he was enjoying it.
Is there anything you could recommend for us to do further reading Ruwan? I am still keen so let us know when you are ready!
So did you have any success teaching blind people to read? That’s really interesting. What a challenge to set yourself!
We are all exploring the issue of the lower age limit.
Rest assured we will come up with suggestions.
Also the matter of pre and post reading.
Thank you bringing up the issue of the blind children.
We asked the Principal of the Blind School in Colombo, Sri Lanka for some children who had not been born blind.]
She was gracious enough to beleive in my presentation and provided a class of 17 children - mixed ages and gender.
All 17 were able to pass the basic test of midbrain activation - that is recognize the colour AND the number of 3 playing cards
3 out of 3.
One boy and one girl were able to do the wave reading as demonstrated by Ms Tobitani’s chldren : ie. recognize the content of the book by page flipping. The two also described the cover page of two books -
We called the prncipal to witness - Unfortunately, she could not allow us to take photographs of the individual children due to privacy issues she had had. She did give us permission to take a class photograph.
One of the teachers was with us on both days and she was incredulous.
As far as I know, none of the companies marketing midbrain activation, has tried anything close to this.
Since then, we have come across more advanced software that allows even blind adults to be able to read.
I am certainly interested too, in principle, for my 3 year old, but I must be honest, I don’t know much about mid brain activation or what the programme might involve. Would it be possible to have more details about the type of activities involved and how we might use the programme at home? I know that 1.5 hours would be too long for my 3-year old but will there be an option to use a different approach for younger children? What will they actually be expected to do? Does it involve watching a screen / videos or interacting in some way?
I would also like to know a little more about what would be required as a parent and the ideal time per day. I think most children on this forum would be capable of focusing for say 15 minutes? Is that feasible? With the course being four 1.5 hour sessions, and expecting 15 minutes per day… could we say a month or so of work provided practice is done daily? And cost. It always comes down to that.
Definitely interested in more information! My kiddo is on the older side of 2.5, and attention span/ media type would definitely be one of the most important aspects for us. We have found most programs can be adapted for the little ones with flexibility and creativity!
