Children in many schools in Britain and the US start the day with exercises, but not the usual kind. They might, for example, practise balancing and co-ordination manoeuvres or the 'cross crawl' - moving with their left hands on their right knees. And if they roll their heads and yawn theatrically, it has nothing to do with being tired. Welcome to 'Brain Gym'.
Brain Gym, a set of exercises based on neuroscientific theory and designed to increase brain function and alertness, has caught on fast. A plethora of educational programmes have appeared on the market claiming to be based on the 'functioning of the brain' and using scientific jargon to back their claims.
Brain Gym advocates argue that certain types of physical activity aid learning and that pressing 'brain buttons' on the body can 'improve blood flow to the brain'.
Other methods include accelerated learning programmes, some based on 'activating' the left or right sides of the brain, and neurolinguistic programming, which suggests that ways of organising information can help knowledge absorption.
Teachers use a variety of methods but there is still no explanation for what causes the 'aha!' moment, when teaching that seems to be having little impact on young minds suddenly falls into place.
Neuroscientists, meanwhile, have been seeking the teaching Holy Grail - an explanation of what makes learning 'sink in'. It is only recently that the two have started collaborating.