Saturday, March 20, 2010

Crossing the Midline

Crossing the midline refers to an imaginary line which runs down the center of the body and the ability to crossover with opposite appendages ie hands, feet.  Sound simple and confusing?  Think of the standard windmill exercise of touching the right hand to the left foot and vice versa.  That would be a classic example of crossing the midline.  This crossing the midline stuff is important for the brain in reading.

The brain is divided into two spheres, left side and right side with a sort of  bridge between the two called a corpus collosum, which wires everything together.  The real kicker is the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body while the left side of the brain controls the right side.  Add to the mix that we as humans seem to favor one side of our brain over the other.  You may have heard the phrase "left brain dominant" or "right brain dominant".  This refers to how an individual is influenced by the side of their brain which for whatever reason, is strongest.  Here's how it breaks down:








Left Side                                                                        Right Side









                                                                                         









logic                                                                              feeling









details                                                                            sees the bigger picture









facts                                                                               imagination                                                                        









words                                                                             symbols









language                                                                         images









past/present                                                                    present/future









math                                                                               philosophy









science                                                                           religion









comprehension                                                               understand meaning









knowing                                                                          believes









acknowledges                                                                 appreciates









order/pattern                                                                  spacial perception









object names                                                                  object function









reality based                                                                    fantasy based


                                                                        









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