Goal & History
(√) What is the Primary Goal of WTM?
We teach awareness of the Sensory Body. To help children learn to feel their bodies so they understand what is going on inside with the outer world.
Children learn from bundles of sensations in their bodies. Becoming aware of these bundles is foundational to who they are and how they learn. In every emotion, thought, or need there are hidden sensations. WTM helps them find a key to sense the balance of their outer worlds and their inner authenticity. Learning who they are changes the trajectory of their lives.
Look for the messages behind your child’s movements, and new doors of patience and insight open. Wonder, are their movements a bridge between their inner and outer worlds, and what are these movements trying to create? This is the primary goal of the WTM method.
Children learn to sense the nature of their physicalness to empower themselves. Through the the tangible reality of their bodies, children grasp how to verbalize what is going on emotionally and mentally. New insights relieve frustrations and sensitivities. Once in awareness of the body to the mind the heart opens, their actions become kinder, and they calm down.
Parenting, teaching, counseling are complex and demanding jobs. When you teach children how to find themselves, they learn to help themselves.
(√) What is the History of WTM?
We have been active on educating the public of this program for 18 years.
Wellness Through Movement (WTM) began in January of 2007 when the elementary school, Hawaii Preparatory Academy (HPA), became interested in the Feldenkrais® Method and physical education (P.E.) classes. Ms. Catherine Rosasco-Mitchell, a Feldenkrais® Practitioner, joined physical education (P.E.) teacher, Susie Jones, to create the WTM program.
During the same period at the start of WTM, Rosasco-Mitchell was asked to take care of emergency-newborns of drug addicts. Her first baby brought her into the extreme need for children and learning difficulties. She decided to design a program for elementary schools, regardless of children’s condition.
For 13 years, Rosasco-Mitchell refined and tested the techniques and games. Eight years of testing was done at our pilot school, Kohala Elementary (2008 -2016). (Other testing grounds include Hawaii Preparatory Academy (HPA) lower school, Parker School, and Waldorf School of Hawi, Hawaii.)
After three years of testing children a serendipitous discovery happened. According to teachers and parents at the Kohala Elementary School, well-being and cognitive disorders improved. In 2018 Rosasco-Mitchell presented her hypothesis that reeducating the sensory body improves well-being and cognitive disorders. Scientist concurred, movement patterns and behavior could be interdependent.
As of August 2022, Rosasco-Mitchell works with professional educators and researchers to compile a comprehensive educational website of WTM.
Who’s involved?
(√) The key people are Catherine Rosasco-Mitchell, Kohala Elementary School, and the Waimea community
Founder and Co-Creator 2004 – Present
Catherine Rosasco-Mitchell
Feldenkrais® Practitioner
For forty years, Rosasco-Mitchell tested tens of thousands of people with chronic conditions and found the unity of motion between mind, body, and soul key to healing. At the age of 21, Catherine Rosasco-Mitchell’s research began through self-inquiry and the trenches of a crippling illness, rheumatoid arthritis. The medical system said there was no cure. It was then she had to travel to unfamiliar territories of healing. On the road to recovery she discovery modalities lost in western culture.
She studied with Moshe Feldenkrais and his training from 1983-1987. Rosasco-Mitchell earned her degree in Social Science, with a multi-disciplinary program combining psychology, communications, and economic. Independently, she continued her study in the sciences of nutrition, body ownership, brain elasticity, developmental psychology, and ancient spiritual practices. She is certified in Brain Gym®, Yoga Ed®, and Schools Attune®.
After twenty-seven years of working with chronic conditions in adults she became devoted to children. With twenty-one years, the “Wellness Through Movement (WTM)” program achieves standards for physical education (see program Part II). She is the author and producer of the school-wide animation video program “Get Sensational Attention.” She also authored the book, “A New SENSORY Self Awareness.”
Her passion is to synthesize the sciences of developmental psychology, physics, anthropology, philosophy, and theology. Dance and nature are the joys of her life.
The Kohala Community
Dates are years with the program.
Co-Creator 2004-2006
Susie Jones
M.A. Hawaii Preparatory Academy
Forty-year educator, Susie Jones was the physical education teacher for Hawaii Preparatory Academy. Susie initiated bringing Feldenkrais® work into her physical education curriculum. She served as the “fun advisor.” She took time during her Christmas break to help with the curriculum for the Wellness Through Movement P.E. program. We want to send a special thanks to Physical Education teacher Susie Jones, and the Hawaii Preparatory.
We miss you Susie! May you rest in peace.
Pilot School 2005-2013
Principal Danny Garcia of Kohala Elementary School
Principal Danny Garcia, Teachers, and Parents The North and South Kohala communities have helped pioneer this program. A particular thanks goes to Principal Garcia on the Big Island of Hawaii for his contribution. And a special thanks must go to the staff and teachers of our pilot school, Kohala Elementary. Academy (2004), for their innovation towards education and helping spark the fuel to create the WTM program.
Three other elementary schools need to be acknowledged. They helped critique and test the curriculum. These schools are Parker School, Montessori of Honokaa, and Waldorf of Kohala.
Editors and Teacher Advisors 2020- 2022
Cherry Sanford, Teacher and Parent
For thirty years, Cherry had a wide range of teaching experiences in both public and private schools spanning Grades K-12. Teaching mostly at the elementary level, she has had high school and middle school experience as well. In addition to full time teaching positions, she has been a teacher’s assistant and substitute (both daily and long-term) in numerous classrooms in Hawaii, California, and Utah. For several years, she home-schooled her own elementary-aged children. Cherry was key in making the content understandable for parents and other teachers on this website. Mahalo Cherry for all those Tuesdays with Joyce O’connor editing content.
“I especially love working with young children. I am inspired by their enthusiasm, their inherent honesty, and their incessant desire to make activities playful and fun. As an elementary teacher for many years, I was interested in finding ways to optimize the qualities already natural to children and help them thrive in learning and in life. When I found WTM The Bridge, I discovered that by helping children become aware of sensations in their bodies, they could unlock doors to greater understanding in themselves and the world around them. I believe this is a huge step forward for educators across the nation and the globe. As it turns out, children already possess all they need for successful learning and growth. We, as trained educators in the process, merely need to show them how to find the keys.” Cherry Sanford
Joyce O’Connor, Teacher and Parent
O’Connor is a forty year veteran of education and specialized in juvenile rehabilitation. She is also a mother of four daughters. She has degrees in education, a Masters from Columbia and a Bachelors from Syracuse.
Science and Research Support
Mahalos to all people we know (and don’t know) working towards this kind of awareness and research in the fields of body-mind functioning. A special thanks to Art Souza, school superintendent and co-creator of the SRCD presentation, Carolyn Palmer. And to our lone donor Duncan Dempster helping support the SRCD trip. A special mahalo to our IT person, Andriy Yankovskyy, of Ukraine (God Bless you and your country) for the graphics in the poster and book. We also want to thank the North Hawaii Community Resource Center again for stepping forward as our fiscal agent.
(√) Who are the Original Advisors?
Original Board of Advisors (2005-2013)
Catherine Rosasco Mitchell B.S: Teacher of Kinesthesia, 20 years
Susie Jones M.A: Physical Education Instructor/Administrator HPA
Esther Hughes M. Ed.: CSSS RT Comprehensive Student Support System Resource Teacher
Jody Lubrecht Ph.D.: Consulting Clinical Psychologist
Doug Connors: Laupahoehoe Train Museum, Grant Writer
And many, many teachers, administrators, and parents, we thank you.
(√) Who Made the Book Possible?
Jo Piltz, Catherine Rosasco-Mitchell, Principal Danny Garcia, and John Holland (2012)
(√) Who are the Long-Term Advisors of WTM?
Hundreds of Children!
Mahalo (thank you) to the hundreds of children from the elementary schools of Kohala, Parker, Hawaii Preparatory Academy, Waldorf, and Montessori.
William Prothero, Professor, UC Santa Barbara (2006-2018)
Bill Prothero has had forty years of experience doing both Earth Science and educational research. His research activities have been in ocean floor seismology, studies of earth structure beneath volcanoes, and the creation and evaluation of learning environments supported by internet technology. Bill is dedicated to making a difference in the consciousness of humanity with the environment and each other. His personal time is spent developing new educational software, playing jazz, and riding his bike.
Pat Linton, Former CEO of North Kohala Community Hospital (2007-2013)
Pat Linton also served as the Founding Executive Director of the new Seward Community Health Center in Seward, Alaska. Pat and Catherine met years ago when he came to North Hawaii to design, construct and open a prototypical hospital that blended allopathic and complementary medicine within a total healing environment in collaboration with Earl Bakken (inventor of the pacemaker and co-founder of Medtronic). Pat has served in a number of senior leadership positions throughout his career and has been dedicated to improving personal and community health in holistic ways through all of these endeavors.
His mission can be summed up by his quest to bring together his professional interests in healthcare leadership and his personal interests in spiritual growth through their common goal of healing. By creatively applying what he has explored and learned, his hope has been to better contribute to the good of all in the communities he serves.