Tactile Brain Helps Blind Students Learn BrainWise

Posted On: September 16, 2014

[wr_row][wr_column span=”span12″][wr_text]Karyn Singley Blair, Master BrainWise instructor and school psychologist at Aurora Central High School in Aurora, Colorado, uses a tactile brain developed by Tina Pratt, vision specialist, to teach BrainWise to blind students. Different textures of yarn represent 1) the brain, 2) the Relay Center, Wizard Brain and Lizard Brain, and 3) Braille descriptions of the brain each brain function. When students learn each of the 10 Wise Ways, they place a string from the Relay Center to the Wizard Brain to demonstrate that by learning the concept, they are building a brain connection. The also learn that if they do not use their thinking skills, the connection disappears and their Lizard Brain takes over.

Karyn has been teaching BrainWise since 2000 to teens in the school’s special education program. Now, BrainWise is taught throughout the school. She looks forward to ideas other teachers may have for teaching BrainWise to high school students and special needs students.

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