The two symmetrical portions of the brain are known as hemispheres. They are simply called the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere, or left brain and right brain. Each hemisphere is responsible for different modes of thinking. It is interesting to note that everyone prefers or utilizes one hemisphere more than the other. Both hemispheres are connected by a group of nerves called the corpus callosum. This is how the two sides receive input from each other.

The right brain controls the left side of the body, and the left brain controls the right side of the body. The sides of the brain are entirely different in the way that they take in information. Many times this difference can cause confusion in the decision-making process of the conscious mind.

As newborns, babies have not created a preference over which way they are going to think, and neither of the hemispheres has been developed more than the other. However, once the baby has begun to grow and develop and receives any type of formal education, the child will usually begin to develop one side of the brain over the other. Since the educational system is mainly geared toward left-brain thinking, in most cases the left hemisphere of the brain becomes more developed than the right. As a result, children who utilize more left-brain activity usually do better in school.

The left half of the brain is where speech and many other important skills dealing with logic and reasoning come from. This is the part of the brain that is in control of the right side of your body. Anything that is familiar is acknowledged by the left brain. It is the analytical and judgmental part of your mind.

The types of activities that are associated with left-brained individuals are problem-solving activities such as assembling puzzles, language usage activities, utilizing math or geometry, and recognition and analytical activities such as playing chess and categorizing things.

Left-brain people are able to follow rules exactly as stated, without deviation. They are in their comfort zone when they have clearly stated directions to follow, and when there are none they will create instructions or parameters for themselves. Left-brain individuals are very logical and like things to be spelled out for them in detail. They have difficulty when trying to understand vague or abstract ideas. When things are not clear they become confused. They express themselves easily with words and are extremely articulate and literal in what they say. They like everything to be proven and matter of fact.

The right brain is the more creative and emotional part of the brain. It is the part of the brain that controls the left side of the body. The right brain deals with anything that is new or not familiar. It concerns itself with the present and the future and is very creative in its outlook.

The right brain looks at the big picture rather than the individual details. It takes in information in large pieces or chunks. (It is the duty of the left brain to then take that information and break it down.) The right brain is very visual and is responsible for creative imagery and imagination. The types of activities that are associated with the right brain are creative activities involving anything having to do with seeing, feeling, imagination, visualization, colors, sizes, and smells. Things having to do with faith, spiritualism, holistics, or the future are based in the right brain.

A way to encourage right-brained students would be to have them work in groups or use other creative methods of learning such as projects, games, or anything that requires creativity. Other techniques that can be used for teaching right-brained students include visual aids, roleplaying, storytelling, and analogies.

The functions of the two parts of the brain are not clearly designated. Each can do the other's work, just not as efficiently. Most people have a tendency to lean toward using the left or right brain while thinking or learning. For instance, right-brain-dominated people are often poor spellers as they tend to rely more on their intuition rather than actually studying the order in which the letters in a word occur.

Although it would be wonderful if you could use both sides of your brain simultaneously, in reality only one side can be utilized at a time. In most cases it is the left brain that will ultimately win the conflict, thereby creating an imbalance within the mind.

Since the left brain assumes a position of dominance, it can be difficult for both sides of the brain to become equally as developed, thereby stunting the growth of the right brain. There are ways to shut down or mask the left brain temporarily to give the right brain time to function. One of the most effective ways to do this is by boring the left brain through techniques such as meditation, deep relaxation, or self-hypnosis.

During these relaxation techniques, the left brain seems to step off to the side so that the imagination and creativity of the right brain can transfer its information to the conscious mind. Unfortunately, in this busy world that we live in where the left brain is dominant and there is little time to simply meditate or relax, the right brain often does not have enough time to develop and thereby expresses its creativity primarily in the dreaming and day-dreaming states.