How to Discover Your Child's Unique Learning Style
Everyone has a preferred learning style: the way they understand, express, and remember information. There are three main styles of learning: visual, where information is mostly taken in through the eyes,; auditory, where learning takes place best when things are heard; and kinesthetic, where the learner needs to make physical contact with the thing being learned. When you can identify your child's learning style, you can identify some ways to help her get to grips with homework, master test-taking skills, and in general make the most of her educational experience.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
-
1
Look for cues that may signal that your child is a visual learner. The word "look" itself may be a clue. A child who is always saying "Look at me," "Look at this," and "Did you see that?" may be cuing you in to his visual orientation. Such a child may respond well to information presented with plenty of illustrations, charts, and graphs (the more brightly-colored, the better).
-
2
Keep an ear out for a child who's always asking you to "listen up." Such a child may well be an auditory learner. Auditory learners are especially responsive to hearing information read aloud or discussed, and may respond well to learning certain types of information in a sung, as well as spoken, form.
-
-
3
Understand that a child who constantly needs to be touching everything may not be trying to drive you crazy. She may just be a kinesthetic learner who really needs a "hands-on" approach to learning. This type of learner responds very well to the use of manipulatives. Even such material as does not lend itself well to tactile presentation may be made memorable to the kinesthetic learner if she can associate some type of movement with it.
-
4
Discuss the different learning styles with your child's teacher. A good teacher will be aware of all three learning styles and able to incorporate methods of teaching to all three of them into her classroom instruction. He may also be able to give you some hints as to how to identify and work with your own child's particular style.
-
1
