School should be an adventure in learning for kids and so should life, but do you know how your child learns? To enjoy learning, understanding your dominant learning styles can bring in a lot of awareness to improve classroom experiences. When kids understand best how they learn, they can approach homework, projects and test-taking differently.
With observation at home, you can gather enough information on each of your kids to discover how they learn to their benefit.
Know How Your Child Learns
Most kids use a combination of learning styles. There are many to explore, among them: visual, auditory, verbal, kinesthetic, tactile and logical. Each person’s learning style is uniquely their own.
Yet the idea of learning styles is not without controversy. In fact, the Center for Teaching at Vanderbilt University says there are more than 70 different learning style schemes and zero evidence to support the idea that “matching activities to one’s learning style improves learning.” But how can that be? How can there be zero evidence that knowing how you learn supports learning? No research ever measures a parent’s learning experiences with their kids at the kitchen table, yet moms and dads know their kids best.
Beneath the categories below are simple approaches for test-driving learning styles. As you work with your kids on homework and more this school year, knowing what works best for them can make their learning adventures more enjoyable. Learning should be fun. Try using the below tools to support your child’s education, in the awareness that most teachers present information in several formats to accommodate all students’ learning styles.
Visual Learners
Draw pictures, doodle or color.
Use flashcards for memorizing.
Make a lesson into a comic strip.
Search for and read fun, visual blogs.
Research topics with an eye for colorful infographics.
Watch videos with a steady stream of images or drawings.
Play a video game or flip through a magazine as a break.
Auditory Learners
Use music in the background while learning.
Read work out loud into a recorder or to the dog.
Listen to stories in audio format.
Write down what you notice as you listen or after you listen.
Listen to yourself read out loud.
Turn what you are learning into a rhyming poem or song lyrics.
Listen to some upbeat music while taking a break from learning.
Verbal Learners
Read up on topics of interest.
Look up word definitions to spark ideas.
Write out thoughts and rewrite thoughts to clarify what you think.
Talk through thoughts with another person.
Turn written words into spoken words.
Play with stories, poetry, articles, lists, etc.
Immerse yourself in reading as a break from learning.
Kinesthetic Learners
Physically act out the ideas you are trying to understand.
Draw ideas out on large sheets of paper or on a whiteboard.
Memorize information while you are in motion.
Use storyboarding techniques.
Use your hands to integrate thinking.
Engage in pantomime or improv.
Teach others what you’ve learned.
Take frequent breaks when sitting to stretch or move.
Clear your mind by going for a walk or a run.
Tactile Learners
Use art projects with assignments.
Pull together separate parts into a collage or sculpture.
Create a visual representation of lessons.
Hold flashcards for memorizing.
Keep your hands and fingers moving while learning.
Trace words or images to help you study.
Watch video demonstrations for greater understanding.
Work with clay, putty, or dough when stuck on integrating ideas.
Take frequent breaks when sitting for long periods.
Do something crafty a break from learning.
Logical Learners
Notice patterns in whatever you are studying.
Classify or categorize things.
Break information out into small chunks.
Use if/then or if/when statements.
Set goals and track progress.
Mak and use a to-do list.
Use examples, stats and research.
Create a word problem and solve it.
Work with timelines, diagrams and flowcharts.
Tidy or organize things as a break from learning.
Play word games or word search puzzles.
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