Bob is now able to use his right arm to feed himself, write his name legibly, make a sandwich, dial the phone and tie his shoes. Bob’s therapist recently ran into him at a high school swim meet. He gestured to her to climb up high in the bleachers to join him where they “caught up” on all of his latest activities!
After completing IM therapy, Adam indicated that he is now better able to concentrate, focus, and understand key points more clearly. Adam also said that he is less impulsive and has more patience. This 28 year old, was admitted to a brain injury program for cognitive rehabilitation at Healthsouth outpatient center. After completing his treatment he went back to work at his finance job. Impressed with the recovery that he made he decided to continue his IM treatment. Read the full story
That was my knee-jerk advice to friend and colleague, Dr. Gordon Taub, when he called me in 2004 to assess my interest in consulting on a “synchronized metronome tapping” (SMT) invention called Interactive Metronome (IM). IM was supposedly directed at improving the academic achievement of elementary school students. My skepticism was grounded on the fact that for many years in education (and special education in particular), non-academic interventions focused on remediating underlying cognitive deficits (e.g., psycholinguistic process training; visual-motor or spatial integration training; motor planning retraining) were subsequently found to be ineffective in improving reading, writing and math. Yes, performance could be improved on tests of the specific cognitive processes trained, but the results did not transfer to academic improvement in the classroom.
By the early to mid-1980’s non-academic cognitive process intervention programs had been debunked as ineffective for improving school achievement. It was from this skeptical lens that I offered Dr. Taub my advice. I went as far as telling Dr. Taub that I could not risk my professional reputation by being associated with yet another “magic bullet” claim for school learning, especially for “at risk” learners. The magic bullet lesson had been burned well into my school psychology psyche after...
Erin had a diagnosis of PDD/Autism. She was verbal, but unable to have a purposeful conversation. Her voice was very high pitched, and other children turned away from her when she would go up to them and start reciting lines from various Disney movies or Barney episodes on TV. She had been attending traditional OT/PT and Speech therapy visits for 7 out of her 8 years of life and the family was reaching burn out status, as her progress seemed to be very slow.
Prior to her discharge, we decided to give one more thing a try. Interactive Metronome. Mom had been reading about progress in attention and focus with children who performed the IM exercises. She wasn’t sure how Erin would do, but since it was summertime and their schedule wasn’t as busy it would be worth the time needed to give IM a try.
Ricky is a 10-year-old boy with a diagnosis of ADHD, aspergers syndrome, anxiety and fine motor delay. Ricky attends public school and is in the 4th grade where he had been struggling with paying attention in class, completing assignments, and focusing on tasks. Ricky’s mother was very fearful that in 4th grade he would get lost in the shuffle and fall behind in his schoolwork. Ricky would never choose to sit and read a book. Getting homework done took hours each night and included a fight from Ricky.
While no one is 100% fluent, stuttering is defined as three SLDs per 100 words. Thanks to IM therapy, William is no longer clinically categorized as a stutterer. IM therapy not only made William a more fluent individual, it gave him the confidence that he needed to engage new people and participate in conversations. Check out his story here.
It seemed like the end of the road for this near-drowning victim. Adam suffered from a plethora of impairments due to his accident. IM was introduced as part of Adam’s therapy plan to help with his attention and focus. Before IM, Adam could not sit unsupported or feed himself… and now he has received the Chair Scholar Scholarship, a prepaid four-year college tuition for students with significant disabilities seeking a regular diploma. Find out how IM helped him succeed.
When Emily began IM she struggled in all academic area areas although she did enjoy the social aspects of school. And after only 15 sessions, she is she can solve mental math calculations that she was not able to do before. Emily spends more time thinking and working through things mentally. She is also able to maintain and match the rhythm of the horse during her riding lessons. These improvements over the course of the year can be attributed to the integration of IM in her therapy sessions. Read the full story below.
IM is not only for those with a disorder. Did you know that among other sports teams we have worked with Notre Dame? IM works on timing and precision speed which are critical for an athlete. Check out this media clip
Lily had many difficulties ranging from attention problems to sensitivity to certain clothing fabrics. After receiving traditional OT sessions, Lily started doing IM therapy; it was there where improvements started to appear. Because of Lily's sensitivity to headphones, and an issue with sweaty palm, her training was difficult but after minor adaptations, she got to enjoy certain exercises. She completed 17 sessions and not only her family, but her teachers and friends noticed the change. At school, she was attending better during classroom activities and completing her work on time. At girl scouts she was now earning badges which required memorization and direction following. Her mother noted that at a party she was able to participate in the party games, and even won a game! All of these things added up to a much more self confident little girl. Lily began asking to have friends over more often, and struggled less to complete homework every night.
