Recent brain research demonstrates that the left hemisphere of the brain processes information in a linear, organized way. The right hemisphere processes the same information as a whole, with a focus on nonverbal, spatial components. Current educational practice is inordinately skewed to develop only the left hemisphere of the brain. Data from numerous studies of students' composition skills reveal a steady decline in students' ability to comprehend and to apply their learning. A strategy for improving childrens' ability to read critically and creatively uses prior experiences to build attention and to foster comprehension. The child, using clues available from a story title and an introductory illustration or paragraph, is asked to predict the outcome of the story. As the child compares the details from the story with his prediction, he is using the holistic, synthetic processes of the right hemisphere of the brain. A suggestion for increasing children's writing abilities calls for allowing them to use stream of consciousness thinking and inductive processes to identify idea patterns and to synthesize concepts and generalizations before beginning to write. Although reading and writing activities focus to a large extent on a linear analysis performed by the left hemisphere of the brain, these techniques also call upon the right hemisphere to contribute equally. (JD)