Adapted Spiral Praxis
Disability Training
Course Overview
Parents and Caregivers Option
This course consists of three modules designed to teach you the fundamentals and key principles of working with children with severe motor disabilities, such as Cerebral Palsy, stroke or genetic disorders. The courses are designed to provide parents and caregivers with basic, effective activities to work with their children at home.
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Each module lasts 7 weeks with weekly online classes taking place every Saturday. The course is a highly interactive format where everyone will share their particular experience through the curriculum. In addition to classes, parents will be asked to create weekly objectives for their children and keep a video journal of their child’s progress. Every parent will have access to our note-taking application as well as a community forum where they can share their child’s progress and ask questions. They will also be able to access a bank of online videos that will demonstrate principles that we cover in class.
Professional Certification
A certification option to teach children as an official Adapted Spiral Praxis practitioner is available for those professionals and dedicated parents who wish to learn the deeper technical aspects of ASP. The certification has 3 levels:
ASP DISABILITY LEVEL I
Year one consists of the first three modules of the Parent and Caregiver Option plus a mandatory onsite 4-day training. Completion of the ASP DISABILITY LEVEL I program will allow participants to gain the fundamentals of ASP to work with their own children.
ASP DISABILITY LEVEL II
Year two consists of three modules of mentoring in which participants will be guided toward developing a personalized curriculum for the particular population of children they are working with. Successful completion of the ASP DISABILITY LEVEL II program will result in the participant becoming an officially certified ASP practitioner.
ASP DISABILITY LEVEL III
The ASP DISABILITY LEVEL III certification is a single-module course for those who wish to be able to train and certify other professionals through the ASP curriculum. Master-level candidates are chosen by invitation only and are for students who show exceptional aptitude and passion for bodymind study.
On-Site Requirement
Completion of the full certification requires participating in on-site training with Yuji Oka. Please contact us to inquire about our on-site training opportunities.
Yuji often travels internationally. Contact us for the possibility of arranging an on-site training intensive if Yuji will be in your area. These are his upcoming travel destinations:
Thurso, Scotland — November 16-December 1
Manchester, England — December 2-December 16
Toronto, Canada — December 17-January 3
What is the course about?
ASP Founder Yuji Oka has a background in physics and dance. He created ASP using original bodymind methods and principles he rigorously developed over 35 years of work with children and adults with disabilities. ASP is a system that explores bodymind flow — the internal somatic perceptions that a child experiences while learning movement. Using flow learning, a child can begin to learn movement through their own particular doors of insight.
Flow learning eschews endless drilling and rote repetition in favour of a more exploratory and natural way of learning movement. Parents learn how to impart information to their children through movement and physical contact and play. The fluid and dynamic nature of flow learning principles often results in dramatic changes in the speed of a child’s learning. Adapted Spiral Praxis provides a new paradigm of motor intervention which is more holistic, simple and flexible to a child’s way of learning.
The ASP Disability Level I is structured into 3 modules. Each module is designed to not only give an overview of the methods and principles of ASP but also to provide a real-time curriculum for working with your child over the course of the intensive. The depth, individualization and level of interaction between families are what makes this program unique—participants will have a chance to really dive into the diverse world of disability and the different dimensions of human bodymind.
Module I begins with an overview of the principles and methods of ASP in relation to a child’s learning process. Participants will learn how to observe, assess and begin working with their child by starting where they are at. We will discuss everyday concerns—sleeping, eating, moving, sitting—and discuss motor intervention strategies that encourage a supportive learning environment for your child. Gaining trust and establishing the fundamentals of flow learning is the primary aim of this section.
Module II proceeds to focus on reducing a child’s pain, contractures and spasticities using ASP’s specialized somatic bodywork techniques. This phase is called “ploughing the field” as it clears a child’s body of obstructions that can hinder the growth of movement.
Flow Patterning are more advanced bodywork activities that can “seed” the body with new movement — i.e. giving nascent movements direction and purpose.
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Finally, Module III begins with the exploration of equilibrium positions such as sitting, four-point and standing, and oscillating or initiating movement from those positions. The course culminates with an exploration of locomotion: the fruition of all the hard work done in the first two modules, and where the child finally begins to traverse through space on their own.
Completing all three modules and attending our annual in-person intensive will earn you our Level 1 Certification. This certification is essential for those who aspire to work with children with disabilities using Adapted Spiral Praxis. For full details of dates, times and fees, please fill out our registration below.
Financial Support
Please reach out to us if you are experiencing financial difficulty and cannot afford the program. We offer financial help for eligible participants. Contact us at info@adaptedspiralpraxis.com.