Psychologist Shares 3 Therapeutic Activities

Most children learn in infancy that they can grab a familiar treat and put it in their mouth, and the good taste will make them happy. They use sight, smell, taste and touch to identify the treat, and movement to reach for it and to pop it in their mouth.

"It sounds like a simple accomplishment, but it represents a symphony of developmental milestones," says Dr. Serena Wieder, clinical director of the non-profit Profectum Foundation (www.profectum.org) and co-author of "Visual/Spatial Portals to Thinking, Feeling and Movement," a ground-breaking new guide to therapeutic strategies for students with learning and autism spectrum disorders.

"How we use our senses to figure out our relationship to the world around us is an essential -- and often overlooked - building block to learning," she says. "In particular, visual-spatial knowledge - understanding where you are in space and where other things are relative to you - is essential to anything you want to do. When development of that knowledge is delayed, it has a domino effect on every other aspect of development."

Children can be affected physically, socially, cognitively and - perhaps most important - emotionally. But their visual-spatial challenges are often hidden.

"We are motivated by emotion. The baby grabs the toy his mother is holding because he knows he'll feel happy and will look at his mother smiling, both sharing this joyous moment. Imagine the frustration and anger a person might feel if he lacks the visual-spatial knowledge to know that he can reach for and grasp what he wants!" Wieder says.

Through years of clinical work, she and co-author Dr. Harry Wachs, O.D., a pioneer in visual cognitive therapy, developed hundreds of activities to help children improve their visual-spatial knowledge.

Here are three activities Wieder suggests for addressing a deficit that affects a child's ability to understand which body parts to move in order to achieve a specific result, such as reaching for a toy or catching a ball. These "mental mapping" activities help a child understand the parts of his body and the way they relate to each other.

• Body Lifts
Have the child lie belly down on the floor with his arms at his sides and ask him to lift each body part as you touch it. Start with major body parts (head, arm or leg, upper torso.) Next touch two body parts on the same side, for example, the right leg and right arm, and ask him to lift them at the same time. Then try body parts on opposite sides. Next, work on more specific parts, such as elbow, lower leg, should. Then try three body parts simultaneously. Finally, touch two and then three body parts and ask him to lift them in the order they were touched.

• Silhouette
Have the child face a chalkboard and trace the outline of her body on it. Tell her the drawing represents the back of her body. Stand behind her, touch her back, and ask her to draw an X on the board where she thinks you touched her. Next, progress to touching her back several times in sequence and ask her to draw X's on the board in the same sequence. Then reverse it. Now, draw a design on the child's back and ask her to reproduce it on the board.

• Joints
Help the child learn how to use the hinges and pivotal points of his body by exploring how he can twist, turn and bend. Ask him to stand and pretend his shoes are glued to the floor so he can't move his feet. Standing a few feet away, hold a yardstick about 2 feet in front of him and slowly move the end toward him. Tell him to decide how to twist, turn, bend, or pivot his body to avoid being touched by the stick.

Once a child has a good mental map of her body parts, her next activities will help her understand their height, width and length in relation to the world around her, Wieder says. These activities will give her the visual-spatial knowledge necessary to initiate purposeful actions.

About Serena Wieder, Ph.D.

Psychologist Serena Wieder is clinical director of the non-profit Profectum Foundation, which is dedicated to the advancement of individuals with special needs through educational programs. She was co-founder of the Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders, and she directed the DIR Institute. Her research has focused on diagnostic classification, emotional and symbolic development, and long-term follow-up of children treated with the DIR approach. Dr. Harry Wachs is a pioneer in visual cognitive therapy.

Mount Carroll, IL-- Timber Lake Playhouse (TLP) will host its annual week-long theatre immersion workshops for teens July 15-19 in Mount Carroll. A one-day workshop for children ages 8-12 will be offered on Saturday July 13. Each year, 20 teens experience intensives in acting, dance, creative writing, theatrical design and improvisation. The program is taught by TLP company members who are also dance and theatre teachers. The week culminates with an original performance incorporating all of the elements covered in the workshops.

This year's teachers include Cameron Turner, an award winning dance teacher in the Chicagoland area,  and Joseph Capstick, who teachers both acting and dance. Executive director, James Beaudry, who has taught in both New York and Chicago, oversees the program.

Classes are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. The all-inclusive price is only $125 for the week. This includes a prepared lunch every day. Teens are given the chance to work with the resident company and experience "behind the scenes" of a working professional theatre. Additional classes are held across the street at Timber Lake Resort. Each student will receive a complimentary ticket Monty Python's Spamalot, which runs from August 1-11.

The one-day workshop for kids is only $25. That program runs from 11:00 a.m. to 3 p.m. and includes a ticket to TLP's 2 p.m. production of Seussical, a musical based on the books of Dr. Seuss.

To sign up for the either the week-long (July 15-19) or one-day (July 13) workshop, call 815-244-2035 or email boxoffice@timberlakeplayhouse.org. Space is limited. TLP is located at 8215 Black Oak Rd. in rural Mount Carroll, IL. Additional tickets to Seussical may be purchased at $6. Additional tickets for Monty Python's Spamalot are $15-$23. For more information, visit www.timberlakeplayhouse.org

Quad Cities extends winning streak to four games, wins 10th of 12 meetings with Kane County

DAVENPORT, Iowa (JUNE 22, 2013) - Jesse Wierzbicki waited until his sixth and final at-bat in the 11^th inning Friday night to extend several personal and team streaks, but he delivered a walk-off RBI single for the Quad Cities River Bandits, who completed a rally from a 5-0, seventh-inning deficit for a 6-5 win over the Kane County Cougars in front of 4,077 at Modern Woodmen Park.

The River Bandits (3-0 second half, 41-31 overall) won their fourth straight game and defeated Kane County (0-3, 30-39) for the fifth time in as many games at Modern Woodmen Park. For a second consecutive game, Quad Cities had 15 hits, with shortstop Carlos Correa and left fielder Ruben Sosa each collecting four hits to lead all players. Correa laced a one-out triple inside the first-base line with one out in the 11^th inning before Wierzbicki extended a seven-game hitting streak and 21 game on-base streak with a single to right-center field against Stephen Perakslis (1-3), who has suffered each of his losses this season against Quad Cities.

Quad Cities held Kane County to just four hits, and left-hander Colton Cain no-hit the visitors while walking one batter in the first four innings. In the fifth inning, however, he walked Cougars third baseman Jeimer Candelario, and first baseman Rock Shoulders doubled to left field for his team's first hit. With the infield in and one out, right fielder Reggie Golden hit a ball off the glove of shortstop Carlos Correa that went into shallow center field and brought in two runs for a 2-0 lead. Cain allowed two hits and two earned runs while walking two and striking out four in five innings. Kane County extended the lead with home runs in the sixth and seventh innings. Center fielder Albert Almora drove a Jamaine Cotton pitch out to left field for a two-run shot in the sixth, and Shoulders led off the seventh with his league-high 14^th homer and a 5-0 lead. The Cougars did not record a hit the rest of the game.

After failing to score in the first six innings against left-hander Michael Heesch, the River Bandits found their offense in the seventh against right-hander Armando Rivero, making his Minor League Baseball debut. Designated Brian Blasik drew a leadoff walk, and second baseman Austin Elkins homered for the second straight game to make it 5-2. Sosa, center fielder Brett Phillips and right fielder Teoscar Hernandez each singled to close within 5-3, and catcher Roberto Pena's two-out infield single trimmed the gap to 5-4.

In the ninth inning, Phillips drew a leadoff walk, went to second on a sacrifice and scored the tying run when Golden bobbled Correa's one-out single to right-center field. Right-hander Juri Perez (2 2/3 innings), and right-hander Gera Sanchez (1 1/3 innings) combined to no-hit the Cougars for the final four innings, though Quad Cities pitchers matched a season high with six walks.

Saturday's victory also means The Captain's Table at 4801 River Drive in Moline will offer The Captain's Table Victory Discount on Sunday, June 23. Anyone who mentions the River Bandits victory can receive a free appetizer or dessert with the purchase of two lunches or dinners with beverages on Sunday, June 23.

The River Bandits and Cougars will play the series finale at 5 p.m. Sunday, when Quad Cities looks for its third sweep of Kane County this season. River Bandits All-Star right-hander Lance McCullers (3-4) will start against Cougars right-hander Felix Pena (2-1).

UP NEXT: To celebrate "Half-way to Christmas", the River Bandits will give away three free 32" flat-screen TVs on Flat Screen Family Sunday presented by KWQC and B100. The first 1,000 fans will receive free sunglasses from Mediacom for the home stand finale. Single-game tickets are on sale at the River Bandits box office at Modern Woodmen Park, by phone at 563-324-3000 and online at www.riverbandits.com. Season ticket and mini-plan packages start at just seven games and begin at less than $50. Call a River Bandits account representative today to choose your seats and get the details of our various mini-plan packages.

Get tickets for the 2013 Mississippi Valley Blues Festival in advance and save some money!  Tickets for the three-day event, July 4-6 at Davenport's LeClaire Park, are $20 per day at the gate.  But through June 30, you can get advance tickets for $15.50 per day at Hy-Vee stores in the Quad Cities, Clinton, and Muscatine.  And, for the first time ever, advance tickets will be available online ($15 plus a service fee), through PayPal at the MVBS website:  www.mvbs.org.  Just go to the Festival tab.

Advance $15 tickets are also available at The Muddy Waters in Bettendorf, Rascals in Moline, Martini's on the Rock in Rock Island, and at the Blues Society office in Davenport (call first: 563-32-BLUES).

Active military personnel and veterans can get Fest tickets for only $10 (gate admission is $20) by showing official military ID at the R.I.A. Federal Credit Union locations listed below through June 30.  Tickets are limited to two per military ID.

·         Arsenal Island, Building #61?Rock Island IL

·         1522 46^th Ave.?Moline IL

·         In the Hy-Vee at 750 42^nd Ave. Drive?Moline IL

·         110 E. 10^th Ave.?Milan IL

·         In the Hy-Vee at 2001 5^th St.?Silvis IL

·         4217 Utica Ridge Rd.?Bettendorf IA

·         3509 Harrison St.?Davenport IA

This year's Blues Festival artists include Mighty Sam McClain, Walter Trout, Southern Hospitality, John Primer (who will receive the RiverRoad Lifetime Achievement Award), C. J. Chenier, W. C. Clark, The 44s, Anthony Gomes, Samantha Fish, and Davina & the Vagabonds?among a total of 27 acts on two stages. The gate opens at 2:00 p.m. each day and the music begins at 3:00 p.m. each day, July 4-6.  Free workshops by festival artists are scheduled for all three days, and BlueSKool for the kids runs Friday and Saturday.

Also this year the festival will see the first-ever Mississippi Valley Blues Challenge.  Three bands from within a 175-mile radius of the Quad-Cities will compete in the final round on July 5, with the winner playing a full set on July 6 at the festival and representing the Mississippi Valley Blues Society at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis in January 2014.

The Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band will close out the 29th Mississippi Valley Blues Festival on Saturday July 6 on the Bandshell in Davenport's LeClaire Park.  Sponsored in part by Wieblers Harley-Davidson of Davenport, Shepherd's set will show why Guitar World named him the world's #3 blues guitarist?right after B. B. King and Eric Clapton.