Instructions
This guidebook offers a variety of stimulating activities for people who are recovering from a brain disorder . Most activities are intended to be done in a 1‐on‐1 setting with two people .
1 . Person with a brain injury – This includes anyone who has experienced a brain disorder that impairs the person ’ s basic cognitive ( thinking ) skills , which might include paying attention , concentrating , and remembering new information and events .
2 . Facilitator – This includes anyone who leads the activities , which might include a family member , a therapist or others . Many activities can be done by the person with brain injury on a device , like a computer , tablet , smartphone , or game console . Some setup assistance by the facilitator may be needed .
Activities This guidebook provides simple cognitive activities that can be done in a home setting at little to no cost and without professional expertise .
� Activities are ranked by their level of difficulty , with higher level activities harder to do than lower level activities .
� NOTE : These activities are not meant to substitute for professional therapy , and doing activities does not guarantee recovery .
Stimulation Targets Each activity aims to stimulate one or more of the cognitive skills that may be affected by a brain disorder .
� Academics – activities aiming to stimulate reading or math skills .
� Attention / Concentration – activities aiming to stimulate focus on tasks .
� Fine Motor – activities used to stimulate movement of the muscles in the fingers , hands and forearms .
� Language – activities to stimulate one or more of four basic language skills . 1 . Listening ‐ hearing what is said . 2 . Speaking ‐ communicating ideas with spoken language 3 . Reading ‐ reading what is written . 4 . Writing ‐ writing something to be read .
� Memory – activities that encourage recall of information immediately after presentation and following a delay
� Problem Solving ( reasoning ) – activities that stimulate thinking through problems to find solutions .
� Speed of Processing – activities focusing on speed of completion for simple tasks after learning to do them .
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