• What is heart coherence, and why is it so powerful?

 

Heart coherence is the state where heart rhythms help synchronize the activity in the brain. This synchronization is where your heart, mind, and emotions function efficiently; positively impacting decision-making, social awareness, ability to self-regulate, and overall performance. ​

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• Who can learn to use heart coherence?

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Anyone can learn to access heart coherence! At Heart of Synergy, we focus on teaching school aged children heart coherence techniques. ​

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• How is heart coherence measured?

 

Heart coherence is measured through heart rhythm patterns. When heart rhythm patterns are jagged, unclear messages are sent to the brain turning on the reactive brain, making it difficult to self-regulate and effectively handle situations. When heart rhythm patterns are smooth and ordered, clear messages are sent to the brain turning on the thinking brain, enhancing individuals’ optimal performance and ability to think clearly and handle stressful situations.

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• Is heart coherence relaxation?

 

Heart coherence is not relaxation—many stress management strategies for relaxation focus on decreasing the heart rate. Relaxation (lower heart rate) is suitable at times but can impact performance in some situations. Having a lower heart rate also doesn’t mean we are patient or in sync. We can still be anxious, impatient, and unable to regulate our emotional responses. 

 

Coherence is a state of calm, however, it is also a state where we are active, engaged, alert, and focused, having a high or low heart rate. 

 

​A great example is if you take someone to the emergency room. In this case, you do not want to be too relaxed or you would move slowly, but you want to be composed, move quickly, and think clearly to communicate with the doctors.

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• How is heart coherence activated?

 

Heart coherence is activated using six different emotional refocusing and restructuring techniques. Students learn to quickly shift their coherence levels from an incoherent state to a coherent state by learning to self-manage their thoughts and emotions using the six heart coherence techniques. ​

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• Can I purchase the biometric technology?

 

Yes! We sell the Inner Balance™ Monitor if you would like to purchase the technology to support your child’s continued self-regulation practice. If interested, ask your HeartMath® Certified Mentor. 

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• How did you get certified?

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Our HeartMath® Certified Mentors in the Building Personal Resilience™ program and HeartMath® Practitioners are licensed and certified through the HeartMath® Institute to teach individuals heart coherence and resilience-building techniques. 

 

We are trained to deliver the Orton-Gillingham approach through the Institute of Multisensory Education (IMSE). Our instructors are trained in Orton-Gillingham Comprehensive (Grades K-3) and Intermediate (Grades 4-12) through IMSE. 

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• How many sessions for the Building Personal Resilience service? How long are the sessions?

 

​Students will participate in 6-8 sessions, depending on their individual needs. Sessions will be 45-60 minutes. After 6-8 sessions are completed, maintenance sessions are offered. 

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• How often are the sessions for Orton-Gillingham?

 

Resilience reading sessions are 30 minutes or 45 minutes two to three times a week, or 60 minutes once a week based on the student's need. After assessing the student's reading performance, we will notify you of our session recommendations.​

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• Do I need to purchase any reading materials?​

 

We will provide all materials needed for the sessions.   

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• What can a parent do to help their child at home?​

 

After the reading session is over, we can provide you with optional reading assignments you can work on with your child at home. The optional tasks will focus on their areas of need, such as sight word practice, reading fluency practice, just right books, etc. 

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• Are parents involved in the tutoring sessions?​

 

Parents are welcome to sit in during the reading sessions, so they can incorporate the learned reading strategies when working independently with their children. ​​

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• Where are sessions held?

 

Sessions are held in our office and virtual. 

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• How will you bring my child up to grade level?

 

Before working with your child, we will complete an assessment to determine their reading level and areas of strength and need. Based on the assessment results, we provide explicit instruction to target the identified areas of need, which help increase their reading level. Many of our students understand and apply the taught concepts and strategies, catching up to grade level or making significant growths from their current reading level. 

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• How will you determine my child is reading on grade level during the Orton-Gillingham sessions? 

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Students will be progress monitored every 6-8 weeks to determine their reading level growth. 

 

After students are introduced to a phonetic concept, they must score 80% accuracy on the end of concept assessment to determine mastery. If they do not achieve 80% accuracy, the concept is retaught before moving on to the next concept.

 

In very few cases, if a student is not making expected progress after concepts are retaught, we would recommend comprehensive evaluations to gather additional data to support your child. Through our ten years of experience and working with students with various learning needs, we are experts in identifying if comprehensive evaluations for special services should be considered.