Foundations of Learning: Understanding Development and Change

62 Pages·1997·0.308 MB·English

by  Lawrence Goldfarb

Foundations of Learning
Understanding Development and Change
Notesfor workshoppresentedbyLawrenceGoldfarb,CFP,Ph.D.
attheBewegungszentrum inInnsbruck,Austria
fromFebruary7through14,1993.
notespreparedby:
DanielRosenfels&LawrenceWm.Goldfarb
Publishedby:
MindInMotion
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SantaCruz,CA95063
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E-mail: [email protected]
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©1994byLawrenceWm.Goldfarb&DanielRosenfels.
Revisededition,©1997byLawrenceWm.Goldfarb&DanielRosenfels
TapingdonebyKeithJohnson
MP3ConversiondonebyJesseDeRooy
LogobyBruceGordonLee,IceKingDesign.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisprintedorrecordedmaterialmaybereproduced,storedina
retrievalsystem,ortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeanswithoutpriorconsentofthe
copyrightowners.
  
ThetermsFeldenkrais®,FeldenkraisMethod®,AwarenessThroughMovement®,andFunctional
Integration®areregisteredservicemarksoftheFeldenkraisGuildofNorthAmerica®.
TableofContents
INTRODUCTION 2
INTRODUCTORYTALK 4
LESSON0—INVESTIGATINGCONTACT 6
LESSON1—EXPLORINGTHEBABYPOSE 7
LESSON2—EXPLORINGTHEBABYPOSE,CONTINUED 9
LESSON3—CIRCLINGTHEKNEE 10
Lab1—Movementobservation 12
EVALUATINGMOVEMENT 13
LESSON4—FROGLEGS 15
LESSON5–TONGUECIRCLES 17
Lab2—UsingSPIFFER 20
LESSON6—SEQUENTIALROLLING,LIMBSOVERCHEST 21
Lab2B—Rollingagain 23
PROBLEMS&PATTERNS 24
LESSON7—FLEXINGO 26
LESSON8—FLEXINGO,CONTINUED 28
TWOPATHWAYS:BIOMECHANICALANDNEUROLOGICAL 31
LESSON9—ROLLINGVARIATIONS 34
TAKINGANOTHERLOOKATSPIFFER—WHATISOPTIMAL? 36
Lab3—SPIFFERanalysisofcomingtositting 36
LESSON10—ROLLINGTOSIDE-SIT 37
SELF-REGULATION 39
Lab4—Teacher–Student–Angel. 39
LESSON11—SIDE-SITTOHANDS&KNEES 41
LESSON12—SIDE-SITTOHANDS&KNEES,CONTINUED 43
LESSON13—COMINGTOHANDS&KNEES 45
Lab4—Revisited 49
THESEVENC’S 50
REVIEWOF7‘C’S,WITHEQUIVALENTSAUFDEUTSCH 51
LESSON14—COMINGTOCREEPING 54
Lab5—Groupconsultation 59
BIBLIOGRAPHY 60
FoundationsofLearning page—1—
Introduction
Thesenotesarebasedonaseminartaught byLawrenceWm.Goldfarb,CFP,
Ph.D. ThisFeldenkraisMethod® workshopwaspresentedattheBewegungszentrum
inInnsbruck,Austriafrom7to14February1993.
FoundationsofLearningwaspresentedtoagroupthatincludedphysicaland
occupationaltherapists,teachers,doctors,Feldenkraispractitionersandtrainees,
andamartialartist.Shortlectures,demonstrations,smallgroupexercisesand
discussionsaugmentedtheexperientialmovement lessons.
Basedonmanyyearsofresearch,thelessonspresentedintheworkshopoffera
newwayofthinkingabout motordevelopment,onenot limitedtoidentifying
basicpatternsofmovement alongalinearsequenceofdevelopmentalstages.
Movingbeyondthisrestrictiveidea,thelessonsinviteyoutoexplorethe
unfoldingofdevelopmentalprocessesandtoinvestigatewhattakessomeone
fromoneleveloffunctioningtothenext.
ThesenotespresentAwarenessThroughMovement® lessonsandlecturesummaries
aswrittenbyDanielRosenfels,oneoftheworkshopparticipants.Theywere
extensivelyeditedandformattedforpublicationbyLawrenceGoldfarb;Dainis
Michelproofreadthem.Later,LauraKernreviewedtheeditingjobandmade
furthercorrections.Theaccompanyingsetofaudiotapeswastapedandedited
byKeithJohnson.
Wearemakingthesenotesavailableassumingthatthereaderhasexperience
withtheFeldenkrais Method.Becausethenotesaremeanttosupplement the
materialpresentedontheaudiotapeset,thelessonsarepresentedschematically.
Thetapesprovideanexampleforthetimingofinstructions.Listeningtothe
tapesishighlyrecommended,especiallyifyouhavelimitedexperiencewiththe
Method.
Afewcaveats:thoughwedonotinstruct thestudent torepeat themovementsat
eachstepofthelesson,eachmovementshouldberepeatedseveraltimes.We
havenotidentifiedmost restsinthenotes,thoughit is appropriatetorestoften.
Becauseweassumethatyouhaveexperiencewiththeselessonsandwilllistento
theaudiotapes,wedonotincluderepeatedwarningstoproceedcarefully.
Remembertousetheseinstructionsasguidelinessuggestingadirectioninwhich
tomoveratherthangoalthatmustbeachieved.Complexpositiondirectionsare
notrepeated,wesimplyrefertothestepinwhichthoseinstructionsweregiven.
FoundationsofLearning page—2—
Theworkshopwastaught inAustria,andsinceDannywrotethenotesforthe
participants,heincludedGermantranslationsofvarioustechnicalterms.Ihave
left theseinthetext.
FoundationsofLearning page—3—
Introductory talk
Inthisworkshopwewillbeinvestigatingsomethingfundamentalabouthow
humanslearn,particularlyhowwelearntomove.Findingthatthepathof
learningmeanders,weconsiderthat learningmaynot requiretheexact
recapitulationofadevelopmentalsequence.
Wewilltakeasystemicanddynamicapproachtomovement.Thismeanslooking
atmovement globally,ratherthanlocally.It alsomeansunderstanding
movement fromthepointofviewofongoingchange,ratherthanthinkingofitin
termsofpositionsandpostures.
 Proposedmodesofclassinteraction:
 § Lecturesandclassdiscussion,focusingonpresentationof
conceptualmodels.Thesetalks,wheneverpossible,will
immediatelyfollowalessonorlab.(Pleasenote:duetotheirlength
andpersonalnature,thediscussionsarenotincludedinthetapesor
notes.)
 § ATMlessons,withoccasionalpausestolookatoneanother.
 § Labs,workinginsmallgroupstoobservemovement and
applyideas.
 Larry’sresponsibilitiesasateacher:
 § Havingknowledge&experienceinthestudyofmovement.
 § Preparingthestructureofthecourse.
 § Creatingasafeenvironmentforlearning.
 § Facilitatingindividuallearning.
 § Learningfromparticipants (andtherebysettinganexampleasalearner).
 § Makingsurewehavefun.
 Theresponsibilitiesoftheworkshoppartipants:
 § Participatefully.
 § Askingquestionsandlettingtheinstructorknowwhatyouneed.
 § Takecareofself,respectingyourownlimits.
 § Maketheworksafeforeachotherinlabsanddiscussions.
 § Makingsurewehavefun.
FoundationsofLearning page—4—
 ThisprogramisnotaFeldenkraistrainingprogram,itwillnot make
anyoneaFeldenkraispractitioner.It isanintroductiontoFeldenkraisideas
andmovement experiences.Itisdesignedtoteachparticipantsabout
movement andlearning.Whatyoulearn,however,isapplicabletoyour
workastherapists,doctors,orteachers.
 Orientationofthecourse: thisseminarisdesignedtoimprovewhatever
youalreadydo.Thematerialpresentedinthisworkshopisadditive,not
subtractive;thatistosay,whatyoulearnismeant toaddtowhat you
alreadyknow.
 Intherapeuticmethods,orthopedicandneurologicalapproacheshave,
historically,beenseparate.Butdevelopmentdependsonchangesinboth
structureandability.
 It isamistaketothinkoftheFeldenkraisMethod(FM)asapedagogical
methodonly.Oftentheprocessishighlightedandthecontent ignored.
Ignoringthemechanicsofhumanmovement ismisguidedbecausethe
constraintsofphysicallawsandanatomyset thecontextinwhichwe
move.Wemust know whatthereistolearn,not just howwecanlearn.
 Learninganddevelopmenttakeplaceinasocialsituation.Childrenraised
apartfromhumanbeingsneverdevelopfullyuprightpostureorcoherent
language.Canweunderstandthechangeswebringaboutinthecontext of
socialrelationships?
 Rice,Pasta,andPotatoes.Whenthekitcheniswellstockedwiththebasics,
youcancookawidevarietyofcuisinesbymakingonlysmallchangesin
howyoucombineingredients.Inteaching,ifyouunderstandthebasic
componentsandstrategies,youcanapplythemtomanydifferentskills
andfunctionalabilities.
 Ourchallengeinfacilitatingmovementisseeingwhatisnotyetthere,aswell
aswhatalreadyis.Weneedtohaveanaestheticsenseoftheharmonyso
that weknowwhat canbepresentinamovement.
FoundationsofLearning page—5—
Lesson 0—Investigating contact
1. Alongscanofcontactwiththefloor.
2. Makingandbreakingcontactwiththefloor.Rollingtoonesideandback,
manytimes.
Whenrollingtothesideandback,noticehowlongittakesto“establish”
yourcontact withthefloorwhenyoureturntolyingonyourback.Doyou
perceivethechangeinsections,orallinonepiece?Doyoueverleaveyour
contact withthefloor?
3. What doadults“know”that babiesdon’t?Howistheirmovement
different?Somedifferencesarestrengthandclarityofintention.
What conditioninghaveadultshad?
FoundationsofLearning page—6—
Lesson 1—Exploring the baby pose
Scan,noticingyourbodyprint.
Baselinemovement: StartwithBarmsrestingonthefloorintheneighborhoodofyour
head.Yourhandsandelbowsrestcomfortablyonthefloor(if
possible,withyourhandsnearyourhead).BringRarmover
yourtrunksothatyourelbowcomesnearyourribsasyourhand
comestowardshoulderorface.Returnyourarmtothefloorand
repeatafewtimes.
Please note: Ifitismorecomfortable,restingonyoursideisoptionalthroughout
lesson.
1. KeepingyourRelbowandRhandincontact withthefloor,startslidingyour
elbowindirectionofyourRknee.Letyourhandcomealongasapassenger.
Note:yourelbowdoesnotintentionallybendfurther.
2. Asin‘1,'onlynowlet yourelbowlift asitslidesdowntowardyourside.Keep
yourhandrelaxedonthefloor(sothatit isslidingalong,notpressinginto,
thefloor).
3. Do‘1,'butwithyourRkneeslidinguptowardtheelbow,without itleaving
thefloor.
4. Asin‘3,'but nowlettingyourkneeliftslightlyfromthefloor.Keepyourfoot
onthefloorallalong.
5. YourRkneeandelbowcometowardeachotherandaway.
6. Placebothyourarmsandhandsoverhead,lettingthemrestingoodcontact
withthefloor.Lift yourbackslightlyoffthefloorandallowit tosinkbackto
thefloor.
What partofyour“back”doyoumove?Doesyourchest cometowardyour
chin?Ordoesyourchinmovetowardyourchest?
Howdoyoubreathe:In?Out?Ordoyouholdyourbreath?Whicheveryou
do,exploretheothertwopossibilitieswhilerepeatingthemovement of
archingyourback.
7. Again,takeyourRkneeandRelbowtowardeachother,lettingyourback
becomeinvolved.Atfirst dothiswithoutyourelbowandkneeliftingoffthe
floor.
Let themovementincreaseslowly.Yourelbowandkneeliftonlyasmuchis
easyandcomfortable.NeitherrollontoyoursidenormoveyourLleg.
8. Continuethemovement.Let yourRelbowandRkneelift,thinkingofhow
theycanmoveintheirowncurves.Todeveloptheroundnessofyour
FoundationsofLearning page—7—
movement,thinkofhowacardrivesaroundacurve.Howisthisdifferent
fromanangularmovement?Canyouperceivethenecessitytogoarounda
curveat aparticularpoint?Yourhandremainsonthefloorasit slides.
Let yourlegcometoarestandcontinuemovingyourarmalone.
[Demo:bookingvs.roundingtrajectory.‘Round’iswhatwe’reaimingfor
here.Inthatsenseit isright,butnot inanymoralsense.]
“Don’tdoanybetterthanyoucan.”
9. Workingwithyourlegnow,putyourRfootstandingwiththekneepointing
towardceiling,YourLlegstayslong.StartliftingyourRlegtothepoint when
yourfoot beginstojustleavethefloor.Noticehowthismovement happens.
What partoffootleavesthefloorfirst?
ExplorethismovementwithyourLfootstandingalso.Whichwayiseasier?
Whichtakeslesseffort?
Nowreturntothemovement youweredoingabove.BendyourRkneetothe
Rsothattheoutsideedgeofthefootslidesupalongthefloor.Yourkneestays
onthefloorat thebeginningofthemotion.Yourkneeliftsofffirst,then--
eventually--yourfootdoes.Yourkneeandlegmoveinacurvedeterminedby
theconfigurationofthehipjointandyourowncomfort.
Noticewhenyouaremakingcontactandwhenyoubreakingcontact.
“Qualitywilltellyoumore[thananythingelseaboutwhatyouaredoing].
Thequalityofyour“listening”makesasignificantdifferenceinthequality
ofyourmovement.Youjust needtobegentleenough,slowenough.”
10.Yourkneeandelbowcontinuetomovetowardeachother,comingaround
anduptogether.Eachlimbfollowsitsuniquecurvestobringitovertrunk.
Yourhandandfooteventuallyleavethefloorasbothlimbscomeoverthe
trunktorest foramoment.Thenyourlimbsgobackdownandyoubegin
again.
11.Lieonthefloorandscan.What isyourbodyprint now?Howhasitchanged?
Hasyourwayofnoticingyourcontactchangedalso?
FoundationsofLearning page—8—