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“Please do not judge the right-brain world with the left-brain yardstick of what can and cannot be done, or of guessing what is right or wrong.”
Yumiko Tobitani
When I first heard about Right Brain Education, I confess that I had a hard time wrapping my head around the abilities that it brings out. During my journey to understand, I sought out testimonials and examples of what Right Brain Education did for families. This is what I found…
My Encounter with Shichida Training
Essay by TG (from Quantum Speed Reading: Awakening Your Child’s Mind)
If I were asked what has been the best thing about Shichida training, I would right away answer, “I have learned how to create images and do many things with them.” Image training is used in all our Shichida schools and has become second nature to me, and lately I have been feeling that this is something really wonderful. Imaging can be used in many situations, plus it is really simple to use. For example, remembering textbook material or study notes is a “left-brained” exercise. But using the right brain to memorize is fun and is so smoothly done. In the past, I used to hate this convenient imaging ability. I’ve been doing this image training at the Shichida School since I was a little kid. I couldn’t get why we were supposed to imagine a red ball all the time and thought it was a meaningless because I didn’t know how to use it. As I carried on with the training, such feelings led to stress and a strong dislike for those images in me. Despite getting the Shichida training at such a young age, there were no visible results when I was little. But this began to change when I entered elementary school. A painting I had done of a crayfish based on an image was selected for study. I still remember this clearly. By moving that crayfish around inside my head, changing its color, or changing my angle of looking at it, I woke up to the fun of being able to change the image freely. At first, I was shocked, but later on I got the feeling that these images are great. It was after that I was able to do lots of things with imagery. These are some of them.
Treating Sickness
Whenever someone in my family gets sick, I get called right away. I see that there is a virus in the painful areas or the feverish parts of the sick person. So then I visualize becoming a micro person and going inside their bodies to heal them. Then they start to get better, so we don’t use drugs in our house.
School Study
When I need to memorize something, I make up a story and remember it with images. For example, if I have to remember something about history, I imagine I am a historical person of that era, and no matter how difficult the theme is I get it easily.
Getting Motivated
When I decide to do something but I don’t have much enthusiasm, I imagine in detail that I have already succeeded in achieving it. When I do that, it is not just a picture (in my head) but also has the sounds, sensations, and feelings that I imagine. Things go 100 percent well when I vividly imagine other people around me who are happy about it.
So I have done lots of things with image training, but what outdoes everything else easily and has the greatest potential is the Quantum Speed Reading. I found out about this from Ms Tobitani at the Kasai school and started doing it. From the moment I started, I “got” this ability even though it is difficult to learn. Since I had previously done the image training that it is based on, all I had to do was shift my thinking. There is no way to compare how much faster I have gotten at reading textbooks and study notes through doing QSR. After about a year, I took the entrance exams for middle school. When things were not going well with the study, I imagined myself doing well and was able to get over the problem. Then when it came to deciding on which was the best school to choose, I suddenly had an image of Azabu Middle School and my future school life there.
When I asked my prep school teacher for advice, however, he said, “It’s dangerous for you to change your school of choice now. And especially getting into Azabu Middle School, which is known to be difficult. You should shoot for a school that you know for sure you’ll get into!” When I heard that, I swore I would get into Azabu! So right away, I went to the front gate of Azabu Middle School and had my picture taken standing there. Then I looked at the photo every day. After that, my prep school grades started getting better and better. Then, on the entrance-exam day, I imagined myself studying at that school. At that moment, all the tension went away and I was able to relax and take the exam. For the difficult questions, I just closed my eyes and saw the textbook I had speed-read “vibrationally” and got the answer from it. I saw how amazing the image training is because the test results came out just as I had visualized. Thanks to image training and Quantum Speed Reading, I entered my school of choice, Azabu Middle School.
I feel good about having done the Schihida training all this time. At the Shichida schools, they tend to think that everything happens at the preschool level with the proper training, but in my case it started in elementary school, so nobody should give up but should carry on with it. I am most grateful to Ms Tobitani of the Kasai school and to both my parents. When I become a parent, I want to teach my children the Shichida method. I will be actualizing my visualization of reading this essay in front of everyone in November.
Shichida Testimonials
I have found Prof Shichida to be a loving, compassionate man. He deeply loves children and has been willing to keep an open mind to make these unanticipated discoveries about learning the right-brain way. The right-brain activities that I observed were game-like, taking no more than a few minutes each, held the children’s interest, looked like fun, and seemed to build on innate abilities. Many of his pioneer batch are now adults with phenomenal abilities. It behooves us to keep an open mind and to further investigate these phenomena. It is hard to ignore the magnitude of this evidence, whatever the scientific explanations may turn out to be.
Prof C. Matthews, USA
Thanks to the appropriate early education, she acquired perfect pitch by the time she was 3 years 8 months old. Now, she is in fifth grade. She can play many instruments including the piano, violin, electronic organ, koto or the Japanese harp, and drums. She participates in many music competitions at the prefectural and national levels. She has received a great number of prizes.
My daughter does not practice half as much as some of the other children because of her right brain is so developed. She can master a compulsory piece for a competition in just 2 days.
My daughter now loves composition. She has composed a surprisingly large number of pieces and plays them for us. When I ask how she composes a piece, she say, “The music comes into my head naturally. I just copy it onto paper.
Mother of MK (10 years old), Japan
She plays the piano. She does not need to practice so much to play correctly. Her piano teacher is always amazed. She can swim one kilometre easily. She is an enthusiastic jogger. She runs three kilometres at 6:30 every morning. She also enjoys playing soccer three times a week.
Mother of SY, Japan
I can copy a page into my head if I look at it for an instant. I then read it in my head, even though the book is closed.
Mihara, 7 years old
Fidelia was slow in learning to speak and started to speak at the age of two and a half years old. At age 3, she had difficulties in learning; her motor skill and her social skill were poor. She was also extremely shy and lacked confidence.
Having been with The Shichida Method for 2 years, she demonstrated confidence and competence in her learning abilities and her social skill; she is able to interact with cihldren as well as adults. She is able to read independenty and can concentrate on a given task without being easily distracted. She has a superb memory and is able to recall the sequence of events and stories. Besides her high academic proficiency, she is a very independent girl who knows how to carry out her routine wiht little or no guidance. The Shichida Method has stimulated her potential and groomed her into a high performer. This makes her learning life easy and happy. My hubby and I are very pleased with The Shichida Method. Here, we would like to take this opportunity to thank all the instructors who have showered her with love.
Mrs Chan
In January 2007 when Mustaqim was 2 years 5 months old, my husband and I decided to send him to the Shichida classes after hearing lots of interesting stories from our friends about their kids who are also in Shichida classes.
My husband and I have been reading books to him when he was still a baby and we realised that he really loves books and it can actually calm him.
After 4 months in Shichida, I realised that his memory ability has tremendously increased whereby he can remember every word from his favourite books and is able to read those lines correctly from the first to the last page. I was surprised to learn that he is able to read those lines that appeared on different pages correctly though I intentionally skipped the pages. This is amazing as I was the one reading those books to him repeatedly but still fail to remember those lines without looking at it! He loves books and will beg me to keep on reading books to him and when I am reluctant to do so, he will say, “Mummy, read for me please…” in his sweetest voice and I will drop everything and read to him.
Mustaqim can remember the poems given to by his sensei and happily recite them to his relatives and myself. He can also remember nursery rhymes easily. One day when he was playing alone, he suddenly sang a few lines of my favourite English song. I do not have to sing that song alone anymore while cooking as I have a duet partner.
Another great progress is in his social skills; he is always the first one to start conversations with people. Every time we drive pass the guard house to our residence, he is now the one to waive and acknowledge the guard.
It has been a fantastic journey in my life to witness how intelligent, independent, and caring my son has become. My husband and I honestly hope that The Shichida Method will mould him to be a better person.
Mrs Mubashir
My child is in third grade. She is always a top student in school. She can finish her homework during the recess period with no problem. Her teachers are puzzled why she can finish anything so fast correctly. She reads many books before going to bed using the speed reading technique. She watches news on TV. Since she memorises what she sees as images, she is able to retain more information than adults do.
Mrs Sato
To me, my daughter Zahra was an amazing little girl. She joined The Shichida Method at 6 months old and loves coming to class.
Zahra is a positive and happy child. She is confident, independent and assertive. She is a fast learner too.
At 1 year old, she can count to 10 and sing in perfect pitch. She can sing her nursery rhymes very confidently after hearing it only a few times. In fact she sang melodies before she even learnt to speak!
Her physical development is also good. She can run sturdily on her feet and dances well to music. I believe she is unique and truly special.
She has a wide vocabulary of around 150-200 words and can sometimes string sentences with 3 words.
Our family members are enchanted and amazed by her abilities as she is only 1 and a half years old. Zahra is usually the centre of the family’s entertainment. My husband and I feel so blessed to have Zahra as our daughter.
Mrs Jamaluddin
From Parents with children who have learning disabilities:
I am a mother of a 21 month old suffering from Down Syndrome. Our child is progressing at an amazing speed everyday. We see him every day and can see remarkable changes in him.
I cannot help admiring the effect of right brain education even with an impaired child. I must express my greatest gratitude to you, Professor Shichida. My son can sometimes hold up his torso with his four limbs, but generally the lower half of his body is still weak. I am trying to take it easy because weak muscle tension is characteristic of an impaired child. Anyway, we have been working hard to improve his muscle power and physical strength. I think this workout has benefited him greatly.
Similarly, his intellectual growth is so advanced that it is almost hard to believe he is impaired. He has an excellent memory. We only need to teach him any word by using the picture cards, and things around us a couple of times for him to know their names. He remembers the words he has learnt once. His vocabulary has increased to about 200 words. Especially during the last one or two months, his linguistic progress was remarkable. I am thoroughly impressed by the power of your education method.
A Mother’s Report
My son is 10 months old now. He suffered from meningitis when he was 7 days old and part of his brain was badly damaged due to a viral/bacterial infection. He joined the Shichida class in April 2004 and since then, his progress has been fantastic. Last month when I brought him for a medical check up, the doctor was surprised at his progress. My boy is now like a normal baby and no one can tell he had actually suffered from severe brain infection before.
In fact, our doctor is so impressed that she wanted to find out what we have done right to stimulate him as she wants to tell her other patients’ parents to do the same. As such, I have introduced The Shichida Method to my doctor.
Mr Choong
TweedleWink Testimonials
These testimonials are from the US because that is where TweedleWink originated.
My first daughter is ten years old. She is so loving and caring. No one would ever know that her reading and math abilities are high school level. She is like somebody who is practicing 1 Corinthians 13:4 : Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude… She is in the gifted children’s class… Our second daughter is seven years old. She is showing her great memory in her work. She can memorize poems, songs, forms of Taek Won Do easily… My third child is four. My mother says that he talks and behaves like an adult because he is emotionally so mature. He understands other people’s situations and feelings.
Miyuki
Mother of 3 children, Washington, USA
My parents are amazed at his ability to recognize obscure types of birds, add up sums troublesome for 10-year-olds… John has acquired is a tremendous love of active learning and self-direction using all types of learning styles and activities. He has such an intuition, passion and curiosity about life. I am constantly astonished by his knowing what I am thinking to the exact precise words and concepts.
Maria
Mother of 1, California, USA
I have been using right brain education all of my life. It has helped me a lot in school and at home. I can scan a page of information and remember a lot of the facts that were displayed on the page. This form of learning is GREAT! Because I have been using right brain educational techniques since I was born I was reading at the age of two. I am very glad to have been exposed to this type of learning at a young age.
Caleb
11-year-old student of the program, Montana, USA
Caleb is a 4.0 student in 6th grade at a college preparatory school. His speed reading, depending upon the material is: 360-480 wpm (Novels are faster, resource material is slower). At 2nd grade, he was reading at 9th grade level. He can mentally image projects from beginning to completion accurately enough to modify plans, in his mind, and start again until he has, what he thinks, is a working model. His memory is very strong, but I have not tested the digit span lately. Last year is was 250 sequential memory/40 images all-at-once (my goal is to make this a relaxed program and testing can interfere with that.)
From Paulina (Caleb’s Mother)
Caleb’s abilities are well beyond his years. Is he a real sixth grade boy? I keep looking for wires and plugs, but can’t seem to find any!
From Caleb’s report card
I have seen young children identify and match dozens of upside down math, language and picture cards. I have even seen babies match cards using their feet to indicate their choice. I know of a child who at a young age could routinely guess the correct number of jelly beans in a jar.
Dr. Celeste Miller
Education Department Chairperson, Winona State University, USA
Heguru Founder – Ruiko Henmi
Mrs Ruiko Henmi is the Principal of Henmi Educational General Laboratory. Mrs Henmi is a very popular teacher who is often featured on TV programs. She has developed various right brain educational programs at Tachikawa campus. Her bold and meticulous training system has benefitted thousands of students in the HEGL school program.
On the discovery of Hado Reading:
Fifteen years ago, Ruiko Henmi, an operator of schools focusing on right-brain development, saw a 7-year-old boy read a paperback in less than a minute and she did not believe it was possible he retained any of the information it contained.
She then saw other children racing through books using the “hado yomi” (literally, “wave-action reading”) ultrafast speed-reading method, which consists of flipping through several hundred pages a few times in less than a minute and understanding the content. Many of the children were her students.
Two years later, she gathered 100 children who claimed they could do the ultra-fast reading and had them do it in front of her eyes. She then gave them 15 minutes to write a summary of the book.
Most of the children got the summary correct, and some of them even filled eight pages of A4-size paper. That’s when I was convinced it was real. I thought developing the right brain must have helped.
Ruiko Henmi, CEO of HEGL (Henmi Educational General Laboratory)
On the potential of the right brain:
This training lets them use a part of the brain they don’t use in their daily lives. It stimulates their brain to enhance its potential.
Ruiko Henmi
Such potential can help some students read 10,000 books a month. Those who do so can enter the “Ichimankai” (literally, “the 10,000 group”) and are eligible to take more advanced courses for right-brain development at Henmi’s school.
Out of 1,000 students in Tachikawa, 250 are in Ichimankai. Altogether, there are more than 1,000 people in the Ichimankai, including alumni of her school, Henmi said, noting Ichimankai members can control the left and right sides of their brain simultaneously.
Adults can learn too:
Henmi stressed that adults can also develop their brain potential.
I want people to know that everybody has hidden abilities. And if you develop such abilities, you will be able to live like yourself and have a happy life.
Ruiko Henmi
Shichida Founder – Makoto Shichida
In his book, Makoto Shichida shares the experience of a woman whose mother unintentionally developed her right brain as a child. Her mother’s mottos in childcare were:
- stimulate the subconscious abilities from an early age
- enhance memory through training
- talk to and read a substantial amount to her children
This is a list of her capabilities:
- She can read books quickly – in one swift reading, she can simultaneously understand and memorise the contents.
- One day’s preparation is sufficient for her to take an exam the following day because of her photographic memory – she can memorise and understand a page after reading it once. When she solves a problem the memory of the solution remains in her head.
- She can visualise images clearly. Experiences in her past and scenes (of towns and the appearance of people, such as the colour or style of their clothes) appear in her head as vivid images memories.
- She can visualise images of things that will happen in the future and the things that she predicts comes true. She can foresee future plots of drama through images therefore she believes she can perceive wave information as Shichida described it.
- She can remember, whenever necessary, sentences that she has read only once before which helps her when she writes papers or when she has debates with others. She describes “it is like an abundant information fills the drawers of my head” and she can use the information whenever she requires it.
- She can predict what course a conversation will take and speak accordingly.
- When she draws a picture, the completed piece appears in her head beforehand.
She shares that compared to left brain education, the effects of right brain education is not immediately evident. As a result, many parents quit halfway after trying to train their child’s left brain. She believes that the problem is because many parents do not understand how effective ESP training and image training are.
The Bottom Line
- You can develop your child’s right brain on your own (without having to send your child to a right brain school).
- Don’t quit even when you feel you aren’t getting results. Most of us are impatient to see the fruits of our labour and often expect instant gratification. To this, I would like to add the example of a boy receiving Shichida training who shared that he took a lot longer than others before the results of his right brain development became apparent.
TweedleWink has a motto that states: “relationships before results” which I believe is very important in right brain development. Always keep that thought close to your heart because it is relevant to everything you do with your child, not just with right brain development.