Basic Exercises

FIRST SERIES OF EXERCISES

General mission of the first exercises:

They are simple exercises to stimulate the faculties of learning, integration and assimilation for the child, thus assisting in developing a better concentration.
These exercises of laterality increase the capacity to cross the middle line. That means that they favor the integration and the activation of the two hemispheres of the brain.
The right hemisphere has a quite intuitive function based on the feelings. It globally perceives the reality and offers a general understanding of a subject. It is also associated with artistic abilities.
The left hemisphere is mainly analytical, it separates and compares the different aspects of a reality. Its way to understanding is based on logic. It sees the details of a subject and is often associated with the rational abilities of the human being. These two ways of approaching and perceiving must be united for the learning to be activated. All new concepts first must be rationally understood and be felt very intuitively to be assimilated by the memory.

For that reason the following exercises propose ways (form) to simultaneously stimulate both parts of the brain. Several difficulties of learning, like dislexia, are the result of an incapacity for both hemispheres of the brain to work at the same time. It is as if the function " synchronized work " was disconnected. Stimulating both hemispheres, these exercises activate the centers of the memory, the vision and hearing of the child. These centers are the basic tools for scholastic learning because they transmit the information received by the child. In addition these exercises allow the children to locate themselves spacially (spacial orientation) to give a better understanding of their surrounding, and promote one better motor coordination and greater capacity for concentration.

Not everyone will wants to enter university and may prefer a more technical education or manual practice.Our exercises will prepare them for daily life and they will help them to a greater autonomy and social opening. (Ex: 3C) and the Horseman game

1. Straw and lid of a bottle

Objective: With this exercise, the child will become aware of the concepts of right, left, up and down, in relation to a middle line. Previous requirement to any learning: spacial orientation and the 4 basic positions of base that represent the letters b d p q

 

	and are usually the 4 letters with which the children have greater difficulty. For this reason this simple game is very important.
p y q

Material:
A straw and a stone or any other object that can represent a line and circle ( a pencil and a rubber for example or a straw and a cork). The teacher and each child must have a straw and a stone.

Procedure:
A. The teacher in front of a small group (1 to 4) puts the straw and the stone in a certain way and the children must reproduce with their own straws and stones the same figure. For example: the teacher puts the straw verticaly and the stone on the top-right side of the straw ( see doc. for more examples) and invites the children to do the same. The teacher can verify that all the children place the objects correctly.
B. With a big group (class), the teacher draws on the blackboard a bar and a small circle on the down-right side. Later he can easily verify if the pupils have reproduced the form correctly.
C. Without using the words right-left... He asks : Is it the same? and he ask the child to compare the location of the objects.

Variation:
Hang the the previous document.
Each design is identified with a number and the educator asks the children to reproduce, for exemple # 2. Then it is easy for him to walk around the classroom and to make sure that all have understood the principle of the exercise.

First physical exercise

It is a bilateral exercise that allows the children to improve quickly.

Starting point: put feet together and arms to the side of the body.
Execution: I raise my arm.
I raise the opposite knee –
( maintaining the arm in the air)
I return to the starting point (CENTER)

Next, repeat the process but with the other arm.
NOTE: It is preferable that the child describes orally
what he/she is doing.
Attention: The teacher stands in front of the group and raises his right arm. The pupils probably are going to raise the left arm. It’s okay because they are not aware of the mirror effect. The important issue is that he raises the opposite knee.

Second physical exercise

Starting point: put the feet together and arms to the side
of the body.
Execution: I open my arm ( on the side )
I open the opposite leg.
I return to the starting point ( CENTER)
Next, repeat the process but with the other arm.
4-5 times for both exercises

2. The Arrows

With this exercise the child experiences with his body the 4 directions right, left, up and down. The child thus learns to orient himself in the space.

Material: arrows indicating the 4 directions (right, left, up and down) drawn on thin cardboards.
Procedure:
The teacher shows one of the arrow to the childres and they must reproduce with the body the direction that indicates the arrow. If the arrow is to the right, the child must raise the arm with an angle of 90 degrees. If the arrow indicates up, the child raises the arms towards the head. If the arrow indicates down, the child bends the knees, arms down, hands near the floor.

Variation:
When the 4 positions are assimilated, the teacher can use the document where the sequences of arrows are written. The teacher asks the children to reproduce the first sequence of arrows. The childrens will assume each position one after the other in a continuous movement.

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Click to print a large version of the exercise

3. Document with the line and circle Material: Doc. At the end of the present exercise. Procedure: The educator points to one of the figures of the document and asks the children to reproduce it with the body. The body of the child represents the vertical line and its arm or leg represents the circle. If the circle is above, the child must raise the left or right arm with a small angle on the side. And if the circle is down, the child slightly opens the right or left leg For example, if the circle is above and to the right, the child must raise the right arm to the side with a small angle.
Click to print a large version

4. Recognizing Shapes

SECOND SERIES OF EXERCISES

The associations of images.

Objective:
The ability to associate is fundamental for reading and writing. Stimulating this ability, the understanding of the text and the spelling can be improved, which at the same time facilitates the learning for all the other scholastic matters because there is better understanding of the instructions to follow.
The association of the diverse forms and curves is very beneficial at the beginning because we have to remember that the letters include these elements. Thus the child is going to identify the letters more easily and is going to have a better decoding system, with more facility to understand and be able to read faster .

Material:
It is possible to print the series of the different exercises that follow (10-15 sheets).

Click on the pictures to get a large version

All the next 15 pages of exercises are based on the idea that the child regognizes basic forms and directions. The child by association finds the identic picture on the other side. Those are again basic to learning in any language.

The House Game ( an example )

*** We reduced the game from 12 to 6 houses so that it was more accessible, more understandable

GAME
With the pieces of # 1,” which house can I build” ?

*** In their training, they had been advised not to say yes or no, but to ask why ?? “Give me 3 reasons”. Normally the children answer too rapidly ( without thinking ) and they guess what looks similar.
We want them to analyze a little.

In the present example, the answer is 3
Then # 1 goes with # 3

The reasons
The green triangle of # 1 goes with the green triangle of # 3
The red square goes with the red square
The yellow rectangle goes with the yellow rectangle

The fact that the student has to give the reason for his
answer, gives him the chance to analyze and verify his answer.
He cannot verify the answer by luck.

WE CAN WISELY INVERSE THE PROGRAM

The teacher asks
Give me 2 reasons why with the pieces of # 1 I cannot built the house # 6

THE WHY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT

And the same with the sticks game and many game of association. They are in the pedagogic section.

Lenny and Melanie also made an introduction with the children for the understanding of the writing problems and the fractions( the meaning of a fraction).

5. Sequences

In daily life in the scholastic environment, we are constantly confronted with situations where we have to memorize a series of actions or instructions to follow. For example, the professor asks the pupils to take the english book, to open it up on page 36 and to read the exercise #.2.
There are 3 instructions to memorize: english book, page 36 and exercise # 2. A child with difficulties memorizing a sequence of instructions is seriously handicaped because he does not know what the professor is asking. The child may know the answer to the question in the book, but can not follow the teacher’s verbal instruction. Therefore he feels lost and it appears that he has learning difficulties.( S.T.L.P.)
In addition, if the child is shy, he won’t dare to ask the professor to repeat the instructions. Then in order to help the student to assimilate several instructions in sequence, the following exercises stimulate the immediate memory and the visual and auditory abilities of the child.

3.A. Exercises of memorization

This exercise is an introduction of the sequence exercises.

Material: a blanket, several objects ( start with 4- 5 objects and increase gradually depending on the abilities of the children ), sheets of paper and pencils for each one if possible.

Procedure:
The teacher places the objects on the floor or on a table and says the names of the objects aloud with the children. Then he asks the children to observe them with attention (20-40 seconds). The teacher covers the objects with the blanket and asks the children to write on a sheet the names of the objects that they have memorized. If the children do not know how to write, the exercise can be undertaken orally. When everybody has finished writing, the teacher removes the blanket and evaluates the results with the children.

3.B. The movements in sequence

Material: None

Procedure:
A. The teacher stands in front of the group and shows them a series of movements. Starting with a series of 3 movements the teacher can increases them progressively, according to the abilities of the children.
For example: the teacher raises a knee,then touches his
nose and then applauds.
B. He touches his ears,then puts a hand on his head and then touches his knee. It is preferable not to use the words right and left ( in the beginning ) because the children are going to reproduce what they see and not raise the left arm when the teacher raises the left arm: they are going to raise the right arm. The use of the words right and left is going to cause confusion.

Variation:

A. When this exercise is integrated, only oral instructions can be given. For example, the educator will not show the movements but is going to say: " Applaud, jump and touch the floor". Or " Raise the left hand and then the right foot". As several children do not know how to differenciate their right from their left, it is preferable to explain it to them before executing the exercise.
B. The teacher places objects on the table and asks the childrens to look at them. Then the teacher moves the objects around and ask a child to replace them as they were originally.

 

3.C. The actions in sequence

The order of the sequence, to be able to execute sequences is very important, according to several psychologists worldwide. The sequences can be made verbally or orally.

Objective:
It is important to remember here that one part of these exercises have as goal and fonction to prepare the child for daily and working life. Some exercises permit a pleasant working life and prepare the child to become more independent.

Material:
       - 3 chairs, 10-15 different objects, or 3 circles with a rope
       - and thin cardboards with instructions to follow for the visual part.
Procedure:
The 3 chairs are in a line and there are 5 objects on each one. The teacher asks the child to remove an object from each of the chairs. The important thing is to give the instructions for each chair. For example, the teacher asks the child to take the blue pencil from the first chair, the car from the second one and the notebook from the third one. The 3 instructions are given at the beginning of the exercise and the child has to remember the objects to take from each chair. The instructions can be given orally to stimulate the auditory faculties.
Another way to undertake this exercise is to give to the child a sheet of paper with the instructions. First the child reads them and then, without looking at them again, he has to go and remove the requested objects.The stimulation is visual. The ideal is to carry out the exercise both ways.

3 chairs and one box of colored pencils:
Go to the first chair and take the yellow pencil
Go to the second chair and take the red one
Go to the third chair and take the pink one
Variation:
Slightly increase the difficulty level at the third stage:

3 chairs and one box of colored pencils.

Go to the first chair and take the blue one
Go to the second chair and take the yellow one
Go to the third chair, take the red one and put it on the second chair.

It is possible to progressively increase the number of chairs and objects. The actions also can be more complex. For example,
to take the blue pencil from the first chair and to
put it on the third one, then, to take the scissors from
the second chair and to put them on the first one.

VARIATION ( OPENING )

BY USING IMAGINATION a teacher, an educator, a parent or a volunteer can help to prepare a
student for school and life,
Playing outside: with only three pieces of wood ( 3 branches ) of different sizes ( small, medium long) and also with three rocks again of different sizes.

Material:

An educative game:

Go and pick up
The little rock
The largest stick
The medium rock
Execution:
The child comes back with the
required objects.

 

Remember that SEQUENTIAL ORDERING is a must. It is highly recommended by psychologists and specialists around the world.
And you can practice it simply with this type of exercises.

NB: The teacher must do his best to make the exercises attractive and stimulating for the child, so as to create an atmosphere in which the learning is entertaining. For that, a method can be invented. The child will then be stimulated and will show his potential more easily.