Left Brained? Who me?

 I chose to read the article Left Brain vs. Right Brain Teaching Techniques and will admit I was quite intrigued by what I read. First of all, I found out a few things about myself  and why I do the things I do. I had myself pegged as a right brain learner and after a self analyzing survey discovered that I was 52% left brained and 48% right brained. Interesting fact, indeed, to me and my husband, who predicted that I would be so far right brained......not so true, after all. Then, I got to thinking about the characteristics of my own children and what makes them tick, and how this brain research speaks volumes about each of our personalities and affects every facet of our lives.  Next, I pondered how in day to day teaching we are faced with the difficult task of enriching  the knowledge of the diverse group of learners we come in contact with each day. Just how deep this goes and just how difficult it is to get everyone on the "same page" continues to be a struggle for many teachers. Maybe, that is what is so challenging about teaching, how can we expect everyone to learn the same way, when none of us think exactly the same way. Perhaps, as teachers we need to be more cognizant of how we teach along with what we teach. These days the draw is towards how much content is covered or what test material needs to be regurgitated at this time, let's be honest, do we stop to plan and focus on how the students are receiving this information? I really enjoyed the article because it gave useful ideas and techniques to encorporate into daily lessons that will touch upon the needs of both right and left brain learners.
Lessons need to be a potpourri of presentations, discussions, manipulatives, music, maps & charts, a time for self-expression, along with note-taking and pencil/paper activities. This enriches the education experience and the learning process of each hemisphere of the brain.