Anat Baniel Method and Feldenkrais for Children
Diese Seite auf Deutsch
Sessions for children
I am trained in both The Feldenkrais Method and the Anat Baniel Method for children with special needs. I have been working with adults and with children with special needs since 2004.
Working with these methods can help children with a variety of issues to improve their ability to learn.
Many of the children who come to me have movement limitations, often due to a condition or a brain injury. The sessions can also be very helpful with speech difficulties and with children who have been given a spectrum diagnosis.
Here are some of the ways the sessions can be helpful:
- From the inital baby movements like turning the head, reaching and kicking to rolling, crawling, standing and walking and all the stages in between.
- Helping children more clearly to sense themselves in relation to the environment and others
- Reduce tension and pain
- Address sensory issues and oversensitivity
- Improve gross and fine motor skills
- Reduce the impact of trauma
- Gain confidence and feel calmer and more settled.
How do we work with children?
We use gentle movements and a focused/precise touch to assist children to learn what they need for their next level of development. Each lesson is a response to the child’s current capacity and ability. My aim in a session is to help each child learn, and become comfortable with, the relevant developmental steps which will assist them to go further.
In which ways can the method help children?
The method is beneficial for children with a variety of neurological, developmental and genetic conditions because it works with the nervous system’s capacity to learn given the optimum conditions. The principles of ABM are summarised in The 9 Essentials
I work with children both with and without a diagnosed condition, but frequently see children with the following diagnoses:
- Cerebral palsy
- Periventricular leukomalacia (PVL)
- Autism spectrum
- Developmental delay (diagnosed and undiagnosed)
- Regression/delay due to neurological disease or stroke
- Difficulties walking, crawling, standing, or with balance, co-ordination and other motor skills
Testimonials from parents and adults I have worked with
Structuring the sessions
There are different ways to structure the sessions. Some parents come weekly or fortnightly for a period of time while others will come for an intensive group of sessions once every month or so. It is helpful to have consistancy and, at the beginning, I encourage parents to come for 8 sessions quite close together after which we can assess the progress and make a plan for how to continue.
Zoom online sessions during Covid restrictions
Mini-intensive of 4 sessions over a 1 week period. (each session is 40 minutes)
The same parent or caregiver will be present for each of the 4 sessions.
Mini-intensives can be repeated as desired. I highly recommend new families to do 2 sets of mini-intensives within a month of each other.
The mini-intensives will help the parent/caregiver to apply Anat Baniel’s 9 essentials. This is a great way to support the developmental needs of the child while hands on sessions are not possible or if travel to sessions is difficult. My goal is to find ways to give you practical, effective ways of connecting with your child to support their development without adding to the amount of work you already have to do.
The purpose of these online sessions is not to make you a practitioner who works hands-on with your child, but to make useful adjustments to daily routines, games and interactions that will put into practice the 9 essential’s developed by Anat Baniel.
Links
External link to Neuro-scientist Prof Michael Merzenich PhD, has written a foreword to Anat Baniel’s book – KIds beyond Limits
External link to The Anat Baniel Method .