Staying motivated is the key to success in life and with Interactive Metronome training. Check out Wendy Harron's great tips on keeping children motivated to excel with IM.

Developmental disabilities affect nearly 14% of the population, and that is a big deal to us here at Interactive Metronome® (IM). We want everyone to reach their fullest potential, whether it is in the classroom, board room or on the field. It's that TIME of the year. Get moving this spring with IM.

These ADHD therapies offer fun and games with a serious purpose: increasing your child's focus.

by Paul Gilbert

Ben is a 12-year-old with ADHD, who used to have trouble in school. His grades were below average, and he was easily distracted, unable to remember much of the material taught in class. Ben struggled with homework assignments and studying for tests. He felt defeated, and was frustrated by his parents' attempts to get him to study harder. He put in the extra effort, but nothing seemed to help.

Learn how IM helped improve Michael’s communication.

Michael is following 1-step commands that are given to him. He is pointing at and identifying simple shapes. He is focusing on a fine motor activity for up to 15 minutes in duration without exiting the activity.Michael’s family is thrilled with the progress he has made with IM. He loves to go to music class and has started singing Baa Baa Black Sheep, Row, Row Your Boat and Itsy Bitsy Spider. When they go to lunch, he grabs his tray and moves it along the lunch line. He’s also opened up to his classmates, and is thoroughly enjoying their company!

Self awareness impacts so much of our daily life. Awareness of where we are in space has a huge impact on safety. Awareness of other people around us impacts development of our social skills. Awareness of how we maintain our body impacts development of self care skills. 

I have had the privilege of working with many children who are recovering from their bout with cancer. I have had many children who have gone through intensive chemotherapy and radiation that are left with some motor challenges after their treatment is over. These kiddos are near and dear to my heart, as a child in my family was one of the victims of the terrible thing called cancer. His diagnosis was sudden and tumor removal surgery was scheduled within a few days. When he awoke from surgery, you could tell things were “different”. His speech was slurred and his movements were shaky. His balance was very impaired, as we watched the little soccer star have difficulty with every step. His parents were just heartbroken. Chemo and radiation followed the surgery as well as a bout of rehab which included IM as part of his therapy regimen!

Every few weeks, I have a new batch of kids who will be receiving IM during their occupational therapy sessions. This also means there is a whole new batch of parents who like to know what exactly it is that their kids are doing and working on. I always refer them to www.interactivemetronome.com as well as having them search Interactive Metronome on youtube so they and their children will get some idea of the specialized treatment that their child will receive over the next few weeks. So hopefully the terminology listed below will help you get a better understanding as a parent when your child comes running out to you from their session saying something like “I got 15 bursts today and my task average was 65!”

I just thought I would share this great testimony that I received with all of you: 

Amy,
Just HAD to share some exciting news!

You may recall me asking your advice on the 10-year old boy with Muscular Dystrophy that I’m working with. He has extremely low muscle tone, and as a result, we had to make a lot of modifications to the program for him. He could not perform the required arm circles when doing both hands tasks, and therefore found the speed very slow and hard to maintain. Most of the feet tasks couldn’t be done, as he is confined to a wheelchair. However, we do some of them when he is in his walking sling. When he started IM, even the 1 minute tasks completely exhausted him...

I am currently working with a little 7 year old boy who has a developmental coordination disorder. When you observe him, you notice things that are subtly different from his same aged peers. His body movements are somewhat awkward and he has a hard time figuring out how to move his body through space. He can’t skip or perform a jumping jack and riding a bicycle is difficult for him. His fine motor skills are also affected and it’s difficult for him to have a steady hand when building with blocks or printing his letters.

IM and Transverse Myelitis – a tool to recovery

Transverse Myelitis can be very scary. Its onset is fairly quick, and its symptoms can be long lasting. It can be very treatable though, and typically when patients are medically stable, they can benefit from some type of rehabilitation therapy...