Blog

Each person learns in different ways. Differences are what makes students so unique, and most students learn via a variety of techniques. Some are visual learners, some are auditory learners and there are those who are kinesthetic learners. No learning style is right or wrong to for the student. It is important that you determine how your student retains the lessons in school. Students may gather and retain information visually, through listening, and by the need to touch, feel and manipulate. To succeed in school, it is important that parents and teachers discover what style is the major learning curve for each student.

Learning styles have nothing to do with intelligence. You just process information different than the student sitting next to you. Researching the learning styles of the children in your classroom will make teaching lessons much more rewarding.

Types of Styles

Are you a visual learner? If so you tend to work best in an environment where information is presented to you visually either in a picture or graphic design format. Visual learners look at the lessons presented, process the information and work together in understanding how to solve the problems. Visual children like film, illustrations, flip cards and even maps as aids. Students who learn by visually benefit greatly from discussions that are outlined and written in front of them; on the board or a computer screen.

The auditory learner discovers information from teachers by listening to information or presentations. They do very well in group discussion learning environments. Auditory learners love to see lessons written on a blackboard or offered in a wide variety of multimedia learning materials. Taking information from pod-casts, webinars, and audio lectures are where you excel.

The kinesthetic learner makes gains by acting and carrying out physical activities. They are not good at listening to lectures or even watching demonstrations. They need to get down in the trenches, so to speak, and hands-on learn. At times, a kinesthetic learner struggles to read, listen or even sit still in a formal education environment. Kinesthetic learners are great at chemistry, sporting activities, art, and acting. They can focus on two different projects at the same time and are awesome at remembering which project comes first. If you have good eye-hand coordination, it is possible you lean toward kinesthetic learning.

However, you really need all three styles to commit information to your memory. Visual, auditory, and kinesthetic all work together to make a whole. It is true that learners are stronger in one area than another; the real trick is figuring out the preferred model a student uses and capitalise on that strength.

When assisting your children in their learning, or even when trying to assess the best way you learn, try different methods and combinations. Experiment with different learning patterns. You will learn something about yourself, too, as well as open up a whole new experience in primary school for the student.