Attention Deficits

Gemm Targets the Underlying Causes of ADD

The many sources of attention deficit disorders (ADD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) fall into three categories:

1/ Learning Disabilities.  If learning or reading is difficult or exhausting, students are prone to distractibility and struggle to stay on task for long periods.  

2/ Sensory Integration.  If internal thoughts are not in synch, there is noise in the brain and attending is a challenge.

3/ Environmental Factors.  Studies have linked diets, allergies and other environmental factors to ADD. 

Gemm uses cognitive software with professional oversight that provides help with ADD stemming from the first two categories.

Gemm's ADD Programs

ADD Related to Learning Disabilities

Consider these scenarios:

-- Student listens in class but can't take the lesson in at the speed delivered and/or simply can't understand the lesson.   Student finds the lesson exhausting or boring and tunes out. 

-- Student finds reading exhausting or struggles to pick up the meaning of the text.  And so student avoids reading where-ever possible and only reads in short spurts.

These students are often diagnosed as having ADD.  But what they really have is a learning issue.

We use the Fast ForWord program to treat a number of learning and reading issues that create focus issues.  The program includes attention stamina as one of its four primary cognitive skill targets -- this is because most students with a learning issues have attention difficulty.

When Gemm is able to improve learning efficiency and effectiveness, homework and school is less exhausting and more interesting.  Staying engaged is a natural byproduct. Improved focus is one of the most common feedback comments we hear from our clients.

ADD Related to Sensory Integration

Sensory integration -- timing in the brain -- is a growing area of interest for scientists studying ADD and ADHD with symptoms such as:

-- poor balance or difficulty learning to ride a bike

-- weak hand to eye coordination,

-- lose their position on sports fields.

Gemm Learning tackles sensory integration based attention issues using BrainWare Safari software.  It has twenty different exercises most of which have an attention angle.  Specifically it has timing and multi-sensory exercises that tackle the cause of ADD, as well as exercises that seek to train the student in the different attention skills needed, namely:

• divided attention -- the ability to focus on two tasks at once, such as listening to a teacher and taking notes.
• selective attention -- ability to avoid distractions.
• sustained attention.

BrainWare Safari is provided by Gemm as a home based attention deficit program available nationwide with Gemm program manager guided support.

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