Children
Children With Special Needs
"If he could, he would. If she could, she would."
- Anat Baniel
ABM® NeuroMovement® starts with where your child is and what your child can do rather than force your child to do something they cannot do or push for a specific action or outcome.
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We steer away from the concept of trying to "fix" a child through the use of force or excessive repetition of exercises and instead look to "connect" with your child and wake their brain up by providing it with new information and conditions to thrive.​​​​​​
All children learn and develop through a process of small changes to achieve the breakthroughs that we recognise such as crawling, walking, talking etc. Learning to move is not a linear process. We do not learn to crawl by crawling, nor do we learn to walk by walking. All of these milestones are complex actions made up of many smaller components - a variety of functions and relationships between the different parts of the body.
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We look at the whole body and use movement to awaken the relationships between the different parts. As these relationships are enhanced and get clearer, new functions emerge organically, as part of a child's developmental process.
Rather than jump ahead to the final goal, ABM® NeuroMovement® and The Nine Essentials create favourable conditions to support your child in their process and can be helpful for the following conditions and more:
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Hypotonia
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Cerebral Palsy
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Genetic Conditions
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Learning Difficulties
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Brain Injury or Stroke
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ADHD / Autism Spectrum
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Undiagnosed Developmental Delays
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Autism Spectrum
"When you know what you are doing, you can do what you want"
- Dr Moshé Feldenkrais
We offer a different approach to working with your child compared with conventional therapies that try to fix, stop or inhibit undesirable behaviours through repetition or force.
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We meet and connect with your child where they are, go with their unique system and join them in their subjective experience.
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We use intentional, functional movement and The Nine Essentials to allow them to gain a clearer sense of self, where they are in space and notice what it is that they are doing. We introduce subtle variations within their comfort zone to encourage organic learning.
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Our experience has shown that when a child on the Autism Spectrum can gain awareness and control over their own body and what they are doing, this can calm the nervous system, allow them to move and communicate more efficiently, increase their self-agency, and also improve their ability to self-regulate, engage with their surroundings and perform daily tasks.
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Please feel free to contact us for more information.
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Typically Developing Children
Typically developing children can also benefit greatly from ABM® NeuroMovement® and incorporating The Nine Essentials into their daily life to help them reach new levels of physical, emotional and cognitive performance. Improved posture, coordination, focus, balance, flexibility, attention span, organisational skills and logical thinking are just some of the positive outcomes experienced by children with special needs and typically developing children.
High-performing athletes, musicians and dancers can overcome stiffness, pain and limitation, often brought on by practising the same patterns over and over again for many years, and find comfort, flexibility, ease of movement and improved performance.
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K is a child with CP who had been standing and walking on her tip toes for several years. During a multi-day intensive, she came to standing with both feet flat on the floor and was able to stand, march and walk with her heels touching the ground with each step.
L was 3 years old and unable to sit upright unsupported unless in W-sitting. During a series of FS lessons where he gained greater differentiation in the pelvis and hip joints, and learnt to bear weight through his hands and arms, he began to transition to different positions and was able to sit cross-legged and in side-sitting without additional support.
P had been cruising for several months and was unable to transition to standing or walking unsupported. During a series of FS lessons, she gained greater awareness and differentiation in her lower body and began to walk independently.