I saw on the local news that the Brain Gym [1]® program is being adopted (purchased) by some local schools. You may want to read what the Bad Science website [2] has to say. Their main complaint is that it claims to be scientific, but has all the hallmarks of pseudoscience in both its structure and its teachings.
A post on EduBlogs.com [3] opines:
the claim that Brain Gym’s 26 trademarked activities are specially suited to improve academic attainment dubious at best…
“Trademarked activities”? If you want to move your hands like this, then you have to pay for it. It reminds me of the way software companies sue over patents on inevitable and obvious chunks of code that clever lawyers manage to patent in the name of a particular umpteenth person to come up with it. But I digress.
This BrainGym® fad has been running its course in the UK, and now it has found fertile ground in the U.S. market. Market? Anything “educational” that involves a wide range of trademarks and license fees sends up a red flag for me. Their own website (the first link in this post) makes many marketing claims, but they don’t present any evidence that it has any educational benefits. No studies are cited. No experts referenced, nor results tracked.
I’m just saying, approach with caution.
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