Left-brain learners are a logical bunch. They tend to look at the world objectively. They like to analyze and organize.
As I explained in Left-Brain, Right-Brain, Whole-Brain Learning, all learners use both hemispheres of the brain to learn, however many people have a dominant side that they rely more heavily on in many learning situations. Being aware of your child’s dominant hemisphere (if he has one) will make it easier for you to teach him more effectively.
In this post, I’m going to share with you the unique characteristics of left-brain learners as well as some tips for helping you teach a left-brain learner effectively. It is my wish that sharing this information with you will provide you with useful strategies for teaching your child.
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Characteristics of Left-Brain Learners
Below are traits of left-brain learners. Keep in mind that not all of these characteristics will be true for all left-brain learners. However, if you find that the majority of them are true for your child, he may be a left-brain learner.
Left-brain learners:
- are analytical
- prefer to plan
- remember names
- like to take pieces of information and put them in a logical order (sequential)
- are realistic
- want to know what the rules are so that they can follow them
- make lists
- understand cause and effect
- like to achieve goals and feel a sense of accomplishment
- control their feelings
- solve problems methodically and systematically
- are rational thinkers
- like to play it safe rather than take risks
- find the differences in things
- think concretely
- like to understand the how and why of things
- tend to be auditory and/or visual learners
- like controlled experiments
- understand symbols easily (i.e. letters, numbers, math symbols)
- are usually on time
- prefer to look at details
- are strategic
- prefer to be practical
- are inclined to be good listeners
- like to read
- like to write
- favor structured assignments to open-ended ones
- would rather answer true/false, matching, and multiple-choice questions
- are organized
- prefer deductive reasoning
- favor a consistent, structured environment
- can work well by themselves
- may memorize best by repeating things either in writing or orally
Tips for Helping Left-Brain Learners
If you use a regular curriculum to homeschool your child, you may find that there are few adjustments that you need to make to help your left-brain learner. That’s because traditional curricula are typically geared towards left-brain learners. However, the tips below can help you set up a good working environment for your child as well as provide helpful information on how to instruct your child.
- Provide a structured environment for your child to learn in
- Use a parts-to-whole approach when teaching concepts
- Provide information in logical or sequential steps
- Allow your child to make or use lists when appropriate for learning
- Let your child do sequencing activities
- Use a schedule
- Give your child a list of daily assignments on a dry-erase board like the one at right or in a planner
- Let your child listen to lectures (yours and others)
- Give written or oral directions
- This child may favor a quieter environment to work in with either classical music playing in the background or no sound
- Let your child use planners, binders, calendars, folders, etc. for staying organized
- Have oral discussions about concepts
- Provide concrete examples for abstract concepts to make them more real
- Encourage your child to find effective strategies for problem solving
- Let your child do puzzles like Sudoku, crosswords, word searches, and anagrams
- Give your child more structured assignments and less open-ended ones
- Let your child conduct controlled experiments for Science
- Keep in mind that left-brain learners like to know the how and why of the way things work. Try to point that out when you are teaching your child.
I hope you find these tips useful for teaching your child.
If you would like to learn about the other dominant hemisphere, click on the link below.