How
Neurodevelopmental Programs Can Improve Function
By Marilee Nicoll Coots,
BA, Neurodevelopmentalist, copyright, 1999
About 25% of school age children have
problems related to learning, attention, or hyperactivity. Many of these
children have received a "label" such as learning disabled, dyslexic,
attention deficit disorder (ADD) , attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
(ADHD), or simply slow learner. Some are said to have a processing problem or a
problem with short or long term memory. Among this group of children, many have
articulation or language problems, sloppy handwriting, or appear to be poorly
coordinated.
When a child is having a problem with learning, attention, hyperactivity, or
with school, there is a reason for that problem. Often the underlying problem is
due to a disorganized nervous system.
Neurodevelopmentalists consider function to be reflective of neurological
organization. They believe that the function or lack of function which we
observe in people who have been "labeled" is rooted in the development
of the brain and nervous system, neurodevelopment. When there are developmental
inefficiencies we see a lack of function, a symptom. These symptoms reflect
neurological disorganization. As neurological organization improves, development
progresses, and we see an improvement in function. So if we can cause
development to progress we will see a change in function, an improvement in the
symptoms.
Neurodevelopmentalists have discovered that developmental changes can be
accomplished by appropriate stimulation. To be effective that stimulation needs
to be delivered with high intensity, high frequency and short duration. It also
needs to be applied over a long enough period of time for the changes to occur.
Through using specific activities with many children, neurodevelopmentalists
have learned which activities work best to specifically address the various
developmental levels and cause neurodevelopment to progress to greater degrees
of organization. Many of these specific activities have been drawn eclectically
from other disciplines, tested and refined. Neurodevelopmentalists assess
children to determine the inefficiencies underlying the symptoms, design a home
program of specific activities to address those inefficiencies and train the
parents to carry out the activities at home. This approach, properly applied,
has been successful in totally eliminating many of the symptoms which have kept
children from educational achievement.
Our Philosophy:
- Families have a right to treatments and
educational materials which do not offend their religious beliefs. Parents
have the right to educational materials and which are supportive of their
faith.
- Parents, not professionals, are
responsible for making decisions for their child. Parents should have the
freedom to utilize eclectic treatments and educational materials consistent
with these decisions. Professionals should support that process.
- The parent/child relationship is the
most important element in a child's development. The amount of progress made
by a child is dependent on the amount the family can work one to one with
that child.
- Learning and attention problems should
be addressed primarily without resorting to labels, drugs, or compensation
approaches.
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