visual spatial portals thinking, feeling movement … spatial portals to thinking, feeling and ......

Visual Spatial Portals to Thinking, Feeling and Movement

Serena Wieder, PhDApril 2013 1

Visual SpatialPortals to Thinking, Feeling and

Movement

Profectum ConferencePasedena, CA 2013

Serena Wieder, Ph.D Serena Wieder, Ph.D. (c) 1

Serena Wieder, Ph.D. (c) 2

Hidden in Plain Sight!!

Visual Spatial Portals to Development

All sensory systems are inter‐related

Underpinnings are all Sensory Motor Processing

Many elements: visual perception, depth perception, figure ground

discrimination….many elements to execution Why the need for this book on V‐S?




• Of course, vision is important!

• We all depend on what we see from the start

• But are you making sense of what you see, and hear, and think, and feel?

• Think of all the ways we refer to vision as sight

– The picture you see is worth a thousand words

– What do you see as the problem?

– He just doesn’t see it!

• Vision is both the present and the future!

• Are some autistic like behaviors really part of a visual spatial problem?

I “see” what you mean!Do you “see” what I mean!


What is Vision? What is Sight?

Sight tells you what your eyes see Vision tells you what it means

•“Vision” is what we rely on to understand what is seen and to coordinate that with information from the other senses, especially language

•Visual information tells the mind how to think and relate, and the body how to move

•Vision embraces space and guides movement through space – it is your sense of direction; knowing where you are, where to go or how to get back

•Vision mediates the construction of symbols


Confused with sight…

too much is related to the eyes – tracking, focusing, converging, etc.

too much is related to visual memory and repetition

too much is related to mimicry (imitation)

too much is related to pictorial and not spatial‐seeing is not enough!

too much related to associations – what you see next

too much reliance on content and not concept learning and creative thought

Why hasn’t Vision received the emphasis of other interventions to enhance symbolic and abstract

thinking?




• Piaget suggested it is the child’s sensorimotor cognitive knowledge that provides the basis for the development of visual spatial intelligence

• Wach’s collaboration with Hans Furth in 1974 used Piaget’s concepts to design the meaningful semi‐structured experiences which promote visual spatial intelligence and elevated sight into the vision of the mind.

Vision now had a theory!

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

“Thinking Goes to School”


Development Depends onMeaningful Experiences

Harry Wachs

Serena Wieder, Ph.D. (c)8

• Development depends on a child’s experiences to make sense of sensory and motor input ‐‐ from sight, hearing, touch, smell, vestibular, proprioceptive, gut, movement, manipulation.

• Sensory experiences occur in the context of interactions with other people and vary with the individual differences of the child as well as the mediation caregivers provide and the conditions of the environment.

• Initial problem solving is not sensorimotor problem solving, but co‐regulated emotional interaction.

DIR® and Visual‐Spatial Cognitive Development




DIR: Emotion‐Based Theory of Intelligence

• Emotions play critical role in the development of intelligence and relationships

• Emotions provide purpose to the mind’s different processing capacities

• Incorporates important insights from Piaget.

• In the past emotions were considered the “enemy” of reason and logic

• We believe emotions actually pave the path to our ability to create symbols and to think

• But we need experience!

First check out sight!

Problems with ocular sensory motor intelligence:

•observe squints•blinking•closes an eye•can’t team eyes •stares at patterns •flicks objects in front of eyes •looks sideways•widens eyes or squints when asked to look •bumps into or plows through objects •touches walls or holds objects while moving through space •difficulties with depth •headaches….•As part of a complete evaluation

Recognizing Problems


Same clothes

Same routes

Same rituals

Same placement

Same floor with mom

I better stick with what I know will be there

It better be the same!Where are my visual anchors?




• Lack of eye contact • Aimless• Not Pointing – following a point, following a gaze

• Poor reading of gestural cues – visual and/or auditory

• Poor social boundaries‐ bumping, poor personal space

• Poor day to day problem solving and reasoning

• Poor daily organization and skills

• Poor incidental learning – so much left to association and memory with poor comprehension

• Fearful, anxious, obsessive…

What else do we “see” as the problem?Social and Daily Living Challenges


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Semi‐Structured Play & Visual Spatial Perceptual Motor Processing

• Does not play matching, visual discrimination, visual strategy ‐ games

• Cannot find desired figures in basket of toys

• Insists on repeating same puzzles or toys

• Selects easy puzzles again and again

• Does not use trial and error or other strategies to rotate puzzle pieces, use cues, tries to push pieces in, etc.

• Avoids construction, tinker toys, Legos, etc.

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Functional Life Skills& Visual Spatial Perceptual Motor Processing

• Using utensils

• Dressing

• Picking up dropped objects

• Clean up

• Getting lost or confused going from one place to another

• Following Directions

• Organizing and completing tasks



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Sports and Activities & Visual Spatial Perceptual Motor Processing

• Prefers individualized activities – swimming, skating, bike riding

• Prefers 1:1 activities – ball, fencing

• Ball hard to throw and catch

• Likes games with clear destination, e.g., basketball, bowling

• Avoids group sports –soccer

• Keeps “crashing” when driving (on bike, truck)

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How do you climb the symbolic ladder

WHEN ...

to climb you must use all parts of yourself?

• you do not speak yet?

• You have the words and the memory but do not comprehend?

• You have an idea or wish but cannot plan or sequence in order to execute?

• You do not know where you are if you turn around or something else is moved or moves?

• You see tiny details but do not differentiate faces?

• You are under‐reactive or self‐absorbed and don’t notice the environment visually or auditorily or both?

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But there’s more!

Perhaps the greatest impact of visual spatial processing challenges is on the sense of self andsecurity in the world ...

AND

The development of higher order abstract capacities for multi‐cause, relativistic and reflective thinking.



I don’t want to get lost!

I won’t be able to find you?Will you find me?

I can’t do that! I’ll do what I know, again! Again!

I can’t find it! I don’t know what to do next?

So, I’ll undo what you did!

Wait till I tell you! I’ll control everything!

It’s real! It’s not real!

Getting Anxious? Visually Bound?


Where??? Stress !!


There is a reason I need my boots!!




Can you go inside the lamp?

Many disciplines and interventions address visual spatial processes

DIR provides a conceptual framework to integrate theseAs interdisciplinary professionals we learn and integrate all

• OT, PT, SMT• Language• Educators• PE teachers and coaches• Developmental Optometrists• MH therapists• Research• Others

Visual Spatial is Central

Joey wanders aimlessly in a room full of toys

Dan lines up his blocks or opens and closes the doors on the barn

Ben pushes cars trains back and forth in front of his eyes lying down with nowhere to go

Sarah devours picnic foods but none for mom

Zak arranges the scene from Lion King perfectly but no one can move

Devin goes down the little toy slide

Lily puts her foot in the play pool to swim

John plays the “Three Little Pigs” for the 50th time

Can say the words but not understand them

So why can’t you play?Emotional and Symbolic Challenges




Anxiety

• Only nice pirates inhabit Treasure Island surrounded by nice sharks

• Dinosaurs fight one at a time – no ambushes allowed

• I am Peter Pan – I’m not Peter Pan! It’s only a costume.

• I move all the figures – you watch!

• Don’t you know there is always a happy ending!!!

Why does this make you anxious?

Anxiety, Opposition and V‐S Challenges


Poor visual spatial knowledge will interfere with movement, sequencing, learning language because visual

experiences will be distorted or inconsistent.

Poor visual spatial knowledge can derail daily adaptation, executive functions, interactions with family and peers,

and learning.

Poor visual spatial knowledge can interfere with symbolic development and abstract thinking.

But vision is his strength!Perhaps it is relative!




What happens when you do not know where you are?

And do not understand the words?

The interplay between visual spatial processing (other aspects of sensory processing) and language

and concepts.


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Emotional/Social Behaviors:

Anxiety & Visual Spatial Processing

• Separation Anxiety• Overly fearful and reactive to body damage,

aggression, unpredictable events • Panic reactions when s/he turns around and does

not see parent or feels lost• Catastrophic reactions to not finding needed

objects or thinking something broke• Helpless or frustrated feelings when task requires

using space, tracking, finding parts, fixing things…

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Emotional/Social Behaviors& Visual Spatial Perceptual Motor Processing

• Over‐reactive to unexpected social overtures, getting too close, being touched...lacks flow

• Under‐reactive to social overtures, can’t follow cues… can’t sustain flow

• Has difficulty “picturing” – visualizing places, situations, people, etc. and overanxious

• Difficulty judging reality and fantasy

• Sees the trees but not the forest

• Sees the forest but not the trees



Saving Honker


Save Winnie! Help!


Vision is essential for symbolic development“Not the real thing!”

• To bring toys and drama into the realm of symbolic thought involves either moving the toys and/or oneself to express ideas through gestures and words.

• Children who cannot look around and move purposefully or have difficulty directing their vision across space,may also lack the direction to move their toys/words to play symbolically, and do not reason or expand their ideas in original or creative ways.



Discovering a Child’s Visual Spatial Profile within the DIR® Profile

I: Regulation and Shared Attention

• Infant uses sight to take in the world and to support regulation and joint attention.

• Infants– orient visually to voice– establish “conversational” gaze and rhythms in sucking/feeding patterns

– have cross‐modal perception: imitate tongue protrusion

– visual recognition of something felt


II. Forming attachments and engaging in relationships

• Gazes while fed• Recognizes and follows caregiver• Forms attachment, social smile established ‐ evidence

of reciprocal interaction


III. Intentional 2‐way affective communication

• Coos, signals visually by looking, latching on, turning (early movement)… social anticipation ‐ reaches up in anticipation of being lifted

• integrates vision and hearing• Begin to separate perceptions from their actions• Begin to act purposefully and logically, beginning to

apply it to space and planned actions – follows rattle that falls, pries open daddy’s hand to get toy…




IV. Complex Social Problem Solving:• Intent and requests more defined• Can initiate and carry out short sequences of cause and effect actions and some words.

• Makes requests through gestures (points)• Social referencing, plays peek‐a‐boo• Uses parents facial expression to influence own behavior


V. Creates Emotional Ideas • Early symbolic interests and actions are based on

seeing objects understood through experience which guides early representation or symbolizing of intentions, feelings and ideas in imaginative play or language , e.g., “talks on phone”, feeds baby doll, pushes car to a destination, moves through space to execute ideas


VI. Emotional Thinking, Logic and Sense of Reality• Use of organized logical thought to resolve visually presented tasks• Realization that objects stay the same when they are moved around

or made to look different • Concepts of:

– 1:1 correspondence– Inclusion– Number, more‐less, equal– Conservation of mass, weight and volume– Linear length, displacement, distorted path– Above presented in written and graphic form rather than manipulatives

• Apply p‐s approach – make assumptions, test, evaluate and modify• Recognize patterns



Visual Spatial Development

• 1. Body Awareness and Sense• 2. Location of the Body in Space • 3. Relation of objects to self and other

objects and people• 4. Conservation of Space• 5. Visual Logical Reasoning• 6. Representational Thought (drawing,

thinking, visualizing)

Visual Spatial Capacities – Year 11. Body Awareness and Sense

• Developing the knowledge of body parts and the ability to coordinate these parts for purposeful movement, guided by all senses.

• Developing mental body map; over a year or so, leads to awareness of body actions and purposeful coordinated movement, guided by sound, vision, and gravity.

• Starts with mouthing and touch. Then looks at body parts, mirrors others’ faces, turns toward sound, and recognizes hands and feet. Can isolate and move body parts intentionally to roll, grasp, and move. Can switch items from one hand to another, clap, hold on to, pull, stand, and cruise (or walk).

Year 2 ‐ Child interacts with someone else’s active body: responds, imitates, and helps with dressing. Also, throws, pulls, rolls truck back and forth, stops ball, stacks, scribbles, etc.


2. Location of Body in Space.

Year 1: Able to locate body parts in relation to each other; to locate whole body in immediate surroundings; and to locate body in broader spatial environment.

• Beginning to move in space—turn, roll, etc.

• Becomes aware of hands and feet on each side, reaches for foot, puts foot in mouth, transfers object from hand to hand. Growing awareness of how parts work together in endogenous (internal) space. Begins moving through space, across distances, and up and down. Can search and throw across distances, and intercept objects coming toward them.

Year 2 ‐Moves through space, across distances, and climbs up and down. Becomes aware of how other people and objects move in space in relation to self. Can search, throw ball, and reach out but cannot catch. Understands space in terms of where he is but not how far or how fast others move.




3. Relation of Objects to Self, Other Objects, and People.

Year 1: Reciprocal interaction with people and things.

• Looks out on world, watches mother’s face or objects moving. Drops or moves toys close and far away—coordinating sight, gravity, and spatial location. Moves toward what he wants and bangs to make sounds. Can do things to others (bop nose for sounds and open hand for Cheerios). Begins experimenting with object constancy (pulls scarf off, peek‐a‐boo).

Year 2 ‐ Discovers he can speed up the cars he’s rolling or his own running. Compares objects, and shows which he prefers. Builds with blocks, uses toys to express ideas (feeds baby or elephant), and locates desired toys. He is developing object permanence: opens Daddy’s hand and, if no candy, opens other hand). Or, sees if the same when he finds candy in both hands.


4. Conservation of Space.

Year1: Space is uni‐dimensional.

• Looks only in only one direction (looks down as object falls), and sees only two dimensions of objects.

Year 2 ‐Moves in and around space, climbs ladder to slide down, does obstacle courses. He avoids objects when chased, and realizes a balloon batted up may come down in a different space. Fearful coming down slide or jumping in pool; may feel higher when looking down; and seeks someone reaching out to him.


5. Visual Logical Reasoning.

Year 1 ‐ Using logic to make sense of sight.

• Knowledge through sensory motor action.

• May do something new, like roll over, but is surprised as if he does not think it will happen. Learns cause and effect by seeing what happens when he drops object, pushes button, spills cereal.

Year 2 ‐Moves from trial and error with shape sorter or simple puzzle to looking at the shape, forming an image of the shape, recalling it, and then matching it to the space. Can also “see” problems, and begins to use language to describe problems (something is too big).




6.Representational Thought

Year 1‐ Direct representation.

• Represents what he thinks by using vocal gestures, pointing, or reaching for object.

Year 2 ‐ Can use words to ask for things he does not see (“I want juice”); and uses pictures to represent objects, people, or where he wants to go. His actions evolve from real to pretend—from sucking toy bottle or trying to go down toy slide or ride toy horses to realizing these toys are too small for him. He progresses to representing actions by feeding a baby doll, pretending to give a shot, putting gas in toy car, pushing a toy swing. Cannot yet make use of space or distance: piles toys on top of one another


Mustovsky et.al.• Children with autism demonstrate decreased

functional connectivity across a neural network critical to motor execution

• Combined contributions of parietal (postural knowledge), premotor (transcoding) and motor (execution) contribute to dyspraxia –abnormal connectivity between these areas may underly difficulties with skilled gestures

• Suggests intervention focus on methods to up-regulate visual-motor connectivity and downgrade somatosensory-motor connectivity

Recent Neuroscience onMotor Functioning

• There is a fundamental difference in how children with autism learn motor skills; they build a stronger than normal association between motor commands and proprioceptive feedback and a weaker than normal association between the same commands and visual feedback. The findings provide a rationale for why children with autism areimpaired in their ability to acquire models of action through visually‐based imitation, including those necessary to understand and interpret the meaning of others’behavior.

Multiple Studies Underway Mustofsky, 2009



Piaget emphasized providing meaningful experiences to build schema, the

building blocks to enhance thinking and reaching higher levels of abstract

thinkingMeaningful Experience is Affect!

Harry Wachs created these experiences in a semistructured program of activities for children with and without learning

disabilities and attention deficits

The Visual Cognitive Profile

“You can’t do one without the other!”Some Principles of Intervention

The VSC activities are very specific but embrace all dimensions

Child has to be fully engaged and enticed through affect and emotional relevance

To be meaningful, has to be related to something the child already successfully experienced – i.e., ‐ has emotional meaning

In everything we do, we are building multidimensional learning

– Give the child a task from a developmental hierarchy in particular and go up and do

– Every task has to require creative thought and not just the right answer – to be meaningful it has to come from the child and the child can explain it

– Not showing what a child can see but understands – e.g., understand half a pizza, or 50 cents is half a dollar

Principles of VSC Intervention




Concept Learning vs. Content If a child learns through content….

…..robotized learning

•Education has relied on content and not concepts

•Give child task and go up or down until you find the level the child functions at

– Can be at different levels…higher in visual thinking but not movement

• Build up weaker levels

• Can’t go any faster than the child

comprehends

VSC Approach


• Meaningful experience has to be related to something the child already successfully experienced

• If we show the child something, he has to make sense out of it and can then build on it and function with it‐has emotional meaning

– Flip block design

– Construct diamond with sticks but could not draw or tell you how to

Where do you start?


The Visual Spatial Cognitive ProfileVSPC

Visual Spatial Cognitive Profile

GeneralMovement

VisualThinking

Logical Thinking

Ocular Discriminative

Movement

VisualAuditory

Discriminative Movement

Receptive &Expressive

Hand Thinking Academics Graphics

Thank you to Mollie Straff who created the following slidesSerena Wieder, Ph.D. (c) 54



General Movement:The ability to efficiently resolve specific movement tasks through cognitive control of the body

General Movement

Mental Map

Balance Reflex Integration

Axis Integration


What are we looking for?

Are any early developmental reflexes sustained?

Is there a well‐developed mental map of the body?

Do they have an understanding of where they are in space in relation to others and things?

Are they able to use coordination and balance to navigate their world?


Why is it important?

• A well‐developed mental map of the body allows for optimal spatial understanding. This decreases clumsiness and enhances the understanding of “personal space”

• Good cognitive control over balance and coordinated movement is needed in order to have the confidence to perform complex movements such swimming or playing sports.




Problems With Ocular Discriminative Movement:Intelligent ocular motility, control, and awareness

Efficient Binocular Function

Focus

Fixation

Convergence

Tracking



• Tracking should be smooth and efficient with no head movement?

• Fixation should be precise at distance and near points?

• The ability to focus with both eyes should be stress‐free?


Why is it important?• Stressful convergence and tracking adds difficulty to academics such as reading and writing

• Inefficient or laborious fixation is often the cause of losing one’s place when reading or difficulty lining up numbers for arithmetic

• Efficient ocular tracking, fixation, and focus are principal factors in hand‐eye coordination, spatial awareness, and maintaining eye contact




Digital Discriminative MovementIntelligent use of the fingers to perform specific tasks

Digital Discriminative Movement

PinchersMental Map Grasp



• Needed to develop the ability to accurately control and manipulate objects with the hands and fingers

• Necessary for stress‐free and clear handwriting


Visual Thinking:The ability to understand and visually manipulate what one sees, as well as understand

ones’ world through the sense of sight

Matching with all media

Understanding same vs. not same

Recall and Negative Space

Transpositions





• Do they understand the concept of “same”?

• Are they able to create and hold a mental image?

• Can they manipulate a picture in their mind?


Conservation



• Visual thinking is what allows us to attach meaning to an abstract symbol or construct.

• In order to efficiently problem solve and think abstractly one must have the ability to mentally picture something and manipulate that image.

• We use our visual thinking ability every time that we recall descriptive details or think through the sequence of a story in our heads.




Visual Logic:The use of organized logical thought to resolve visually presented tasks

VISUAL LOGIC

Conservation

UnderstandMore, less, equal Sort, seriate,

permutate



Do they have an understanding of conservation, number, or one‐to‐one correspondence?

Are they able to sort, seriate, and sequence?

Do they have a conceptual understanding of probability or deductive reasoning?


Logical Thinking ‐ ConservationHarry Wachs





• The ability to thinking logically is needed in order to do the problem solving needed to stay safe

• The ability to logically and confidently predict what will happen next aids self regulation


Receptive and Expressive Communication

Follow VerbalDirections

Give VerbalDirections

Interpret SpatialDirections

Receptive and Expressive Communication

The cognitive development of language to understand and communicate ideas to others



• Are they able to follow verbal instructions? Up to how many steps?

• Are they able to give verbal instructions?

• Are they able to interpret direction given with spatial terms, such as: near, far, top, bottom, right and left?





• This is needed in order to be able to follow directions and give directions from someone else’s perspective.

• This is especially important in a classroom setting, but is equally important when trying to communicate with a peer.


Visuo‐Auditory Thinking

Appreciate soundsin terms of pitch, duration, intensity,

and pause?

Recognize the locationof a specific sound orphoneme within a group of sounds

Visuo‐Auditory ThinkingThe ability to intelligently visualize, interpret, and decode auditory stimulus


Visuo‐Auditory Thinking:The ability to intelligently visualize, interpret, and decode auditory stimulus

Can they appreciate sounds in terms of pitch, duration,

intensity, and pause?

Can they recognize the location of a specific sound or phoneme within a group of

sounds?

Work with “seeing sounds”, syllable blocks,

buzzer board, word shapes.

These activities help to make the association between symbol and sound by creating a mental construct.

Aids the ability to decode and comprehend,

especially with new words

What is it? What do we do? Why?




Graphics:The ability to use good stylus control to graphically represent an idea

Are they able to graphically reproduce simple two‐dimensional

shapes?

Are they able to use graphic control to follow

a line or pattern?

Activities that increase the understanding of salient points of a line, as well as

improve control, awareness and planning when using a stylus. These include: Construct‐o‐Line, Talking pen, templates, Pre‐Writing Sequence, Hare and Hound, Chalk

Tach

Adequate graphic skills are needed to represent thoughts, either written or drawn, proficiently and without stress.



Academics:Comparison to same age peers on academic concepts

Do they have an understanding of numeric literacy, place value and

fractions?

Are they able to recognize sight words at age level?

Are they able to read, comprehend, and infer from a written paragraph at age level?

Do they have an understanding of right and left in terms of themselves, others, and

things?

Experiential and Manipulative based Visual Math such as: Diene’s

blocks, fractions with rods, Numerical literacy with cards, Math Circles

Work with nonsense words and sounds such as:

Jabberwocky, syllable and phoneme segments to

increase understanding of sounds related to symbols.

Without a solid infrastructure for

academics, a child will use memorization and rote learning and will not understand the basic concepts that apply to the work.

Visual Math is needed to develop the mathematical

knowledge needed for arithmetic

computations.



You do what you would do with the same thought about what I would do

-Harry Wachs




Thank You Dr. WiederThank you Dr. Wachs


visual spatial portals thinking, feeling movement … spatial portals to thinking, feeling and ......

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