The Power of Brain SKILLZ

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” Dr. Seuss

The developing mind is a fascinating field of study, one which SKILLZ Worldwide takes very seriously. While the physically supportive elements of our childhood development programming are certainly important to ensuring the overall success of each of our students, support of their changing, growing, learning and evolving minds are all key to helping their intellectual, emotional and social growth & development thrive.

Because of SKILLZ passion and care towards understanding the intricacies of the developing mind, eight science and psychology based skills have been purposefully developed to support the growing mind on and beyond the mats:

1. Speed of Processing

2. Divided Attention

3. Attention Control

4. Response Inhibition

5. Long-Term Memory

6. Working Memory

7. Auditory Processing

8. Visual Processing

Let us take a closer look at the first two Brain SKILLZ for example:

Speed of Processing

“Speed of Processing refers to how quickly one can process incoming information.”

When this skill is a strength:

• Missions can be performed and completed decisively and with accuracy.

• The best choice and ability to execute corresponding action steps accordingly comes easily.

When this skill is weak:

• It can take longer than perhaps expected to complete a given mission.

• Errors and mistakes tend to be made as the mind tends to jump to conclusions before the logical steps of completion have been formulated.

Divided Attention

“Divided Attention enables you to remember information while doing multiple things at once.”

When this skill is a strength:

• One can see multiple missions through simultaneously.

• More missions are able to be completed faster.

When this skill is weak:

• It is hard to do multiple things simultaneously.

• Mistakes are often made when trying to do more than one thing at a time.

Through the power of game-based learning, our team is honing in on supporting Brain SKILLZ like Speed of Processing as well as Divided Attention to help today’s youth be able to intellectually thrive in and beyond the academic setting through our experiences together on the mats. How? By putting brain power into action!

Say for example a Basic SKILLZ martial arts student is working on their Coordination stripe; understanding how the left and right side of the body work together. Their instructor holds two dodgeballs in their hands. One ball is red while the other is blue. As the instructor tosses the ball into the air towards the ninja, they call out “Right, Red!” The student then has to practice their Brain SKILLZ, Speed of Processing in this case, to right hand punch the incoming red ball before it is too late.

By giving the developing minds of kids and teens the opportunity to to be challenged, new neural pathways of operation are able to be created and then strengthened! How incredible is it that we can access brain building tools to support today’s youth on and beyond the mats all through the power of play!

If you would like to learn more about how we are integrating Brain SKILLZ into our ninjas experiences on and beyond the mats, please let us know! We love helping our students and families thrive and are honored to help support today’s youth in the journey of growing into their best selves.

About the Author

Meg Klettke is the proud owner alongside her husband, Alex of Family Strong Sussex, a SKILLZ Lifetime Gold studio in Southeastern Wisconsin. With a background in traditional and alternative therapeutics, Meg is an active advocate for today’s youth.

Her passion for supporting and nurturing the whole child resonates through all she does as a Proud Ninja Mom of two boys with special needs, Advanced Certified Pediatric Ninja Specialist and Content Creator for SKILLZ Worldwide.