Discover My Childs Learning Style
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Discover My Child's Learning Style
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Help Me Motivate My Visual Learner Help Me Motivate My Auditory Learner Help Me Motivate My Kinesthetic Learner Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Visual Learner Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Auditory Learner Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Kinesthetic Learner Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles Types of Learning Styles What Is My Child's Learning Style?
Discover My Child's Learning Style
Do I need this EduGuide?
Yes, if you would like to figure out what your child’s learning style is and how you can use that information to help your child learn as efficiently and effectively as possible.
2 How does it work? ONLINE EDUGUIDE www.EduGuide.org
What Is My Child's Learning Style?
Discover My Child's Learning Style
Do I need this EduGuide?
Yes, if you would like to figure out what your child’s learning style is and how you can use that information to help your child learn as efficiently and effectively as possible.
How does it work?
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Quizzes help you know where you stand. Articles give you the background information you need to make a decision. ShortCuts help you take immediate action. Choose one or go through them all.
What will I learn from this EduGuide?
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What the term learning style means How the three learning styles differ What my child’s learning style is How I can help my child learn by using his or her learning style strengths Which wholefamily educational activities will benefit each learning style most
Quick Solutions
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What can I do in thirty minutes? Read the articles “Types of Learning Styles: What Is Your Child’s Learning Style?” and “Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles.” What can I do in do in half a day? Try a motivational learning suggestion or educational family activity described in the ShortCuts. What can I do in a week:? Have your child continue incorporating learning style suggestions into his or her study routines What can I do in a month? With your child, evaluate the effectiveness of the learning style tips and make changes as necessary.
Help Me Motivate My Visual Learner
EduGuide Staff
Visual learners feel less frustrated and more motivated when they incorporate seeing into their studies. As a parent, you can use this knowledge to help your child focus on the strengths of his visual learning style to maximize his learning potential—even in subjects he previously struggled with. www.EduGuide.org 3 Try some of these visual learning style strategies to boost your student’s comprehension and retention: ONLINE EDUGUIDE
Help Me Motivate My Visual Learner
EduGuide Staff
Visual learners feel less frustrated and more motivated when they incorporate seeing into their studies. As a parent, you can use this knowledge to help your child focus on the strengths of his visual learning style to maximize his learning potential—even in subjects he previously struggled with. Try some of these visual learning style strategies to boost your student’s comprehension and retention:
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Use color. Buy a rainbow of colored, finepoint markers, pencils, and highlighters. When your kid takes notes, encourage him to use different colored pens for different concepts. Write spelling words (phthalates), formulas (E=MC²), or key concepts (19th Amendment) three times: first in red, then in purple, and finally in blue. Encourage him to highlight important passages and points in standout shades such as neon pink. Look at the pictures first. Before he reads a passage from his textbook, suggest that he go through and look at all the pictures, diagrams, and charts in the chapter and try to determine what points they are illustrating. When he reads the chapter, picturing the illustrations will help him remember key concepts. Of the three primary learning styles (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic), visual learners get the most out of this tip. Use flashcards. Flashcards can help boost retention in your visual learner. Suggest he use them for math facts, vocabulary, or anything else he needs to memorize. For history class, write dates on one side of the card and the key points about those dates on the other side. See with the mind’s eye. Challenge your student to visualize key facts or spelling words in his head when he’s trying to memorize them. Take notes. Encourage your child to write down explanations for points that are difficult to understand at first. By taking notes and seeing the information in different colors, he will clarify concepts and memorize them more readily. Sit in front. Help your child pay closer attention during lectures by suggesting that he keep his eye on the teachers at all times. Get it in writing. Tell your student, “If your teacher writes it on the board, write it in your notes.” Prompt your visual learner to ask the teacher to repeat verbal directions or supply written directions whenever possible.
Help Me Motivate My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Auditory learners process and remember information best when they hear it and repeat it. You can use this knowledge to help your auditory learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she struggled with previously. Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your auditory learner boost her comprehension and retention. Read aloud and repeat. Have your child use a highlighter to mark key concepts in handouts, textbooks, and written instructions. Then have her read the highlighted material aloud. When she needs to memorize facts—like the parts of a cell or spelling words—ask her to repeat the facts aloud to you several times. At school, encourage her to volunteer to read aloud to the class or a learning partner. www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE l Record and review. To boost retention, have your child record lectures on a handheld tape recorder. (Get the teacher’s permission first). She can then review material at home, while riding in the car, etc. If she takes written notes, have her read
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the teacher to repeat verbal directions or supply written directions whenever possible.
Help Me Motivate My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Auditory learners process and remember information best when they hear it and repeat it. You can use this knowledge to help your auditory learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she struggled with previously. Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your auditory learner boost her comprehension and retention.
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Read aloud and repeat. Have your child use a highlighter to mark key concepts in handouts, textbooks, and written instructions. Then have her read the highlighted material aloud. When she needs to memorize facts—like the parts of a cell or spelling words—ask her to repeat the facts aloud to you several times. At school, encourage her to volunteer to read aloud to the class or a learning partner. Record and review. To boost retention, have your child record lectures on a handheld tape recorder. (Get the teacher’s permission first). She can then review material at home, while riding in the car, etc. If she takes written notes, have her read them into the recorder and play them back to improve comprehension. She can also tape herself reading chapters from her textbooks and then listen to the tape to review. Discuss. Challenge your child to explain new concepts to you. If she’s studying photosynthesis, ask her questions like “What role does the sun play?” When she has required reading for English class, prompt her to retell the main points of the story, poem, or essay in her own words. Practice word association. Encourage your child to use rhymes, acronyms, and jingles to help recall facts more easily, like “In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue”; or Roy G. Biv (the colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet). Use audiotapes and CDs. Have her ask the local librarian if a required book is available on tape. Tip: To increase comprehension, have her follow the text as she listens to the book. Participate. Urge your child to participate in class discussions and debates as well as ask questions during lectures to clarify concepts. Also, encourage your child to join study groups or find a study partner so she can discuss materials with peers. Go to the head of the class. Remind your child to sit in the front of the class so she can hear easily and stay focused on the teacher. Of the three primary learning styles (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic), auditory learners get the most out of this tip. Ask for help. Encourage your child to ask friends and family members to quiz her orally as she prepares for tests. Or encourage her to ask her teacher to explain written concepts orally to boost comprehension and retention.
Help Me Motivate My Kinesthetic Learner
EduGuide Staff
Kinesthetic learners process information and solve problems most efficiently (and happily) when they can turn learning into a hands on activity. You can use this knowledge to help your kinesthetic learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type www.EduGuide.org 5 and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she previously struggled with. ONLINE EDUGUIDE Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your kinesthetic learner boost her comprehension and retention.
Help Me Motivate My Kinesthetic Learner
EduGuide Staff
Kinesthetic learners process information and solve problems most efficiently (and happily) when they can turn learning into a hands on activity. You can use this knowledge to help your kinesthetic learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she previously struggled with. Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your kinesthetic learner boost her comprehension and retention.
Get a Grip on It
Whenever possible, help your child choose projects that let her use her hands. If she is studying the solar system, have her build a model of it. For social studies or history, have her locate the region being studied on a map or globe.
Take Center Stage
Urge your child to participate in science fairs, plays, and art shows so he can shine. If he is social, encourage him to volunteer to work with younger kids or help out at a local animal shelter. These types of activities will boost selfesteem and motivation.
Get More from Reading
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When she reads, prompt her to follow along with her fingers or a bookmark to boost comprehension. Also, encourage your child to use bright colors to underline, circle, and highlight new concepts. Have him rewrite relevant facts or key concepts in his own words. Jotting down main points of new material will help him retain information. Try having him record his notes on tape and listen to study during a long walk. Ham it up! Have her act out a passage from the book she is assigned or put on a skit to demonstrate what she is studying. Be her audience or better yet get in on the act and play a role yourself.
Give Her a Break
To help your child focus better and avoid getting bored, allow her to study in short time blocks (no more than thirty minutes at a time) and encourage her to do a physical activity during that break, such walking the dog or shooting some hoops.
Explore Together
Visit natural history museums, botanical gardens, and planetariums. Keep an eye out for exhibits or programs that relate to things he is learning in class. If he is learning about ancient Egypt, go to a museum to experience items from ancient Egypt firsthand.
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www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Visual Learner
is learning in class. If he is learning about ancient Egypt, go to a museum to experience items from ancient Egypt firsthand.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Visual Learner
EduGuide Staff
As a concerned parent, you can support your child’s visual learning style by choosing meaningful learning styles activities that stimulate and hold her interest. Although you cannot plan every family outing around the needs of just one child, it is possible to include fun family activities that will make family trips or special events particularly interesting and beneficial to your visual learner. Try some of these activities to promote learning and enrich your visual learner’s development.
All the News That’s Fit to Print
Newspapers are still a great way of connecting your visual learner to current events. When you’re on vacation, pick up a copy of the local news and ask your child to find local events or explore funny and interesting items. At home, visit the newsstand together and let your child pick out a Sunday paper like USA Today, which has lots of graphics and might be more appealing to a younger visual learner.
Visit the Library
Get library cards for yourself and each of your children and make trips to the library a regular family activity. Today’s libraries are a wonderful resource for learning styles activities.
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Help your visual learner find books that support his classroom work as well as fiction and ageappropriate magazines to suit his interests. It’s okay if he only wants to read popular books (reading is reading); he will enjoy talking to his peers about the books. To find ageappropriate materials, ask at the reference desk. Or ask yourself some questions: What can my child learn from this? Is the subject relevant to his life experience? Is the language appropriate? Encourage her to join youth reading clubs and contests like the Battle of the Books where prizes add incentive.
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Share Her Gifts with the World
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Urge your child to join the school newspaper as a reporter or photographer. This will hone her writing skills and encourage participation in the life of her school. Challenge your child to submit his writing or photography for publication. In addition to school newspapers, yearbooks, and art journals, there are national publications for teens by teens (Teen Ink, for example). Email the magazine and request writer’s guidelines, free instructions on how to prepare and submit articles, poems, and photography, etc. Some local newspapers also encourage submissions from local students. Call your local paper to ask. If your child isn’t ready to share her writing or artwork, encourage her to keep a private journal documenting feelings and activities. This can be a written dairy or sketch diary, if they are artistically inclined. Have your child interview an older family member and write a short biography for the family to keep.
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Play Games
To build your child’s vocabulary and improve spelling skills, play fun word games like Scrabble, Boggle, Yahtzee, and Pictionary This healthy competition will build testtaking skills and provide fun for the whole family. www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE
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Puzzle books boost brain power and give a sense of mastery. Solving all kinds of mazes, rebuses, crosswords, and word
Play Games
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To build your child’s vocabulary and improve spelling skills, play fun word games like Scrabble, Boggle, Yahtzee, and Pictionary This healthy competition will build testtaking skills and provide fun for the whole family. Puzzle books boost brain power and give a sense of mastery. Solving all kinds of mazes, rebuses, crosswords, and word finds broadens skills.
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Visit Museums, Art Galleries, Aquariums, and Botanical Gardens
Attend exhibits together. Ask your child to choose a display or piece of art that he particularly likes; then ask him to write a short essay or poem expressing how he feels about it. If he is artistic, encourage him to copy a painting in the style of the artist and then in his own style. If you go to botanical gardens, your child can sketch what he likes or take pictures that reflect his interests.
Family Historian
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Encourage your child to take snapshots of friends, family, vacations, and home life. Help her create photo albums or scrapbooks and encourage her to write captions or draw cartoons to highlight her adventures. On family trips ask him to capture the event in words or pictures (or both). It is wonderful to have a permanent record year by year of the fun things you did together. Create a travel journal or family newspaper to chronicle the trip. Remind him to record some funny little things that make family vacations memorable (like the time Dad locked the keys in the car.) If you send holiday cards as a family, ask your visual learner to write an account of the year’s events and select pictures to illustrate them.
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Plot a Course
When taking an unfamiliar route, have your child draw a map and use it together to guide you to your final destination. Before a trip or visit to relatives, have your child read up on the places you will see on the way and share what she learned with the family.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Like most involved parents, you want to choose meaningful learning styles activities to make learning come alive for your whole family. Though you can’t always plan around the needs of your auditory learner, here are some fun family activities that promote auditory skills and will enrich all members of the family.
Take the Whole Family to the Library
Your public library is a terrific resource for learning styles activities. Libraries are getting creative in their efforts to reach young people and are offering many programs that cater to auditory learners. Get everyone in the family a library card to use regularly.
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Reference librarians love to answer your questions (it’s their job). Ask them what kids are reading today and who are the hottest young adult authors. They can guide you through the process of finding just the right title for your reader.
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l Help your auditory learner check out audio books both to reinforce his classroom lessons and for simple enjoyment. Some www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE of the Judy Blume classics are still relevant today like the classic Are You There God It’s Me Margaret or S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders.
visit to relatives, have your child read up on the places you will see on the way and share what she learned with the family.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Like most involved parents, you want to choose meaningful learning styles activities to make learning come alive for your whole family. Though you can’t always plan around the needs of your auditory learner, here are some fun family activities that promote auditory skills and will enrich all members of the family.
Take the Whole Family to the Library
Your public library is a terrific resource for learning styles activities. Libraries are getting creative in their efforts to reach young people and are offering many programs that cater to auditory learners. Get everyone in the family a library card to use regularly.
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Reference librarians love to answer your questions (it’s their job). Ask them what kids are reading today and who are the hottest young adult authors. They can guide you through the process of finding just the right title for your reader. Help your auditory learner check out audio books both to reinforce his classroom lessons and for simple enjoyment. Some of the Judy Blume classics are still relevant today like the classic Are You There God It’s Me Margaret or S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. To improve her conversation skills, ask her relevant questions about the book she is listening to. Listen to her book yourself if you can, or better yet listen to it together while washing dishes, crafting, or riding in the car. If you are short of time, check out the CliffsNotes so you can discuss the characters and plot together. Ask her to explain the main points to you and her feelings about them. Encourage her to learn something new and have fun doing it. Sign up for noteworthy lectures the library offers just for young people: for example, babysitting, how to find a summer job, SAT prep, or how to write the allimportant college essay. You can get a schedule of upcoming events at the reference desk or online.
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Make Music Together
Studies show that listening to music primes the brain to learn. But making music is even more educational (not to mention fun). If you aren’t particularly musical, you can have a karaoke night and encourage your child to be a rock star. If performing isn’t your thing, try these ideas.
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Go to free concerts in the park, jazz festivals, or revivals. Even if it isn’t your child’s favorite, it is likely he will be able to find something interesting to observe in a live performance. Besides, live music is just better no matter what kind. Most libraries have a wide variety of CDs. Borrow some music from other cultures or try to find music from a particular time in history (World War II, the 60s, etc). Listen to diverse music together to develop a deeper appreciation for all types of sound. Share the music you listened to when you were a teen (if you dare!) and listen to hers. If she is into rap, get her to try some reggae. If she is into country, try some classical music. Sign your child up for music lessons so he can experience the magic of music firsthand. The YWCA and YMCA offer classes for a nominal fee. If these suggestions stretch your budget too much, encourage your child to join the school band and take up an instrument that can be rented for the school year fairly inexpensively.
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Be a Captive Audience
www.EduGuide.org 9 Riding together in the family car is a great time to engage your kids in conversation (they can’t get away and neither can you). For your ONLINE EDUGUIDE auditory learner, this is not only a time to bond but to reinforce learning. Listen to your chatterbox talk, even if it is just to shoot the breeze. Auditory learners need to hear themselves and hear others in order to learn and problem solve.
an instrument that can be rented for the school year fairly inexpensively.
Be a Captive Audience
Riding together in the family car is a great time to engage your kids in conversation (they can’t get away and neither can you). For your auditory learner, this is not only a time to bond but to reinforce learning. Listen to your chatterbox talk, even if it is just to shoot the breeze. Auditory learners need to hear themselves and hear others in order to learn and problem solve.
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Discuss everything under the sun: what they are learning in school, current events, and their friends. Ask lots of questions if it is difficult to get them to open up. If you see an interesting segment on the news or article in the Sunday paper, share it and ask your child's opinion. You’ll be surprised! Encourage your child to teach you some new information or a concept that he is learning about. Or if he is studying a foreign language, have him share words for common objects.
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Enlist the Grandparents
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Encourage your child to interview older relatives such as grandparents about the good old days. She will love listening to her relatives' stories and learning about history, roots, and culture. If you can, have your child record the interview so she can listen to it later and save it for other family members. If your older relatives are bilingual, ask them to share the language with your auditory learner allowing a love of a different culture and language to come alive.
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Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Kinesthetic Learner
Like most caring parents, you want to help your children reach their greatest potential and become successful in school and in life. For your kinesthetic learners, choose fun family activities and enrichment programs that support kids who learn best through movement.
Be a Good Sport
Most kinesthetic learners, bundles of energy that they are, love sports and are good at them. Participation in sports can boost their confidence and help them settle down to schoolwork more effectively.
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Encourage your child to join a school sports team. Success at sports can build confidence and motivate kinesthetic learners to succeed academically. Investigate fitness and team or individual sports activities outside of school.
Make Fitness a Family Affair
Hike, bowl, bike, or do yoga as a family. Aside from the obvious health benefits, sharing physical activities like these can strengthen family bonds and open channels of communication.
Take a Hike to the Library
Make trips to the library, preferably by walking or biking there, regular parts of family life. Today’s public libraries have valuable resources for kids of all learning types and interests.
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l Help your handson learners find nonfiction books and magazines about topics that intrigue them. The research librarian will www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE be happy to help. l Accompany your kinesthetic learners to events and programs of interest sponsored by local libraries, museums, park districts,
culture and language to come alive.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Kinesthetic Learner
Like most caring parents, you want to help your children reach their greatest potential and become successful in school and in life. For your kinesthetic learners, choose fun family activities and enrichment programs that support kids who learn best through movement.
Be a Good Sport
Most kinesthetic learners, bundles of energy that they are, love sports and are good at them. Participation in sports can boost their confidence and help them settle down to schoolwork more effectively.
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Encourage your child to join a school sports team. Success at sports can build confidence and motivate kinesthetic learners to succeed academically. Investigate fitness and team or individual sports activities outside of school.
Make Fitness a Family Affair
Hike, bowl, bike, or do yoga as a family. Aside from the obvious health benefits, sharing physical activities like these can strengthen family bonds and open channels of communication.
Take a Hike to the Library
Make trips to the library, preferably by walking or biking there, regular parts of family life. Today’s public libraries have valuable resources for kids of all learning types and interests.
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Help your handson learners find nonfiction books and magazines about topics that intrigue them. The research librarian will be happy to help. Accompany your kinesthetic learners to events and programs of interest sponsored by local libraries, museums, park districts, and civic organizations.
Join 4H, Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts
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Many free organized groups offer an abundance of handson activities that appeal to kinesthetic learners, especially active children who love the outdoors.
My Favorite Things
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Collecting can boost kinesthetic learners’ confidence as it sharpens their cognitive skills. Whatever your child treasures—from stamps to seashells— can form an affordable and alluring collection. Assembling a collection develops children’s classifying skills and stimulates their creative and critical thinking. Many kinesthetic learners dig gardening. Start small, perhaps with a terrarium or an herb garden. Let your child research garden ideas and make a plan. Tending plants lets kinesthetic learners move as they learn science concepts and respect for nature. For messy fun and delicious results, bake cookies. Enroll kids with more than a passing interest in cooking in a culinary arts class at a community center or cooking school. Kinesthetic learners are naturals at such hobbies as sewing, knitting, pottery, building models, and scrap booking.
Get Hooked on Helping
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l Volunteer opportunities for active kids abound. Help kinesthetic learners find a good match based on their interests and www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE learning style. Along with invaluable handson life and work experience, kids’ confidence will soar and their empathy deepen. And many colleges look favorably on community service for admission.
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Kinesthetic learners are naturals at such hobbies as sewing, knitting, pottery, building models, and scrap booking.
Get Hooked on Helping
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Volunteer opportunities for active kids abound. Help kinesthetic learners find a good match based on their interests and learning style. Along with invaluable handson life and work experience, kids’ confidence will soar and their empathy deepen. And many colleges look favorably on community service for admission.
Start a Business
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Put kinesthetic learners’ energy to work by encouraging them to start a business. Whether it’s walking dogs or washing cars, entrepreneurship develops money management, time management, and goal setting skills, among many others.
Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles
EduGuide Staff
How do boys and girls experience school? Somewhat differently it seems, because their learning styles tend to differ somewhat. Although individual differences always trump genderrelated differences, here are some differences between the ways boys and girls in K12 grades classrooms behave that have implications for teaching and learning. Girls are more likely to 1. be good listeners —a trait that serves them well in today's languagerich classrooms. 2. print neatly and follow directions carefully. 3. sit calmly in their seats. 4. gather facts before they draw conclusions. 5. need concrete examples when learning abstract principles. 6. need to talk about their subject before beginning a writing project. 7. work well in cooperative groups. 8. entertain themselves during boring parts of the school day. 9. pay attention to more than one activity at a time. 10. discuss problems with a teacher. Boys are more likely to 1. do well when using mathematicallogical thinking. 2. settle for messy handwriting and disorganized work. 3. need space to spread out their materials; move around in that space. 4. deduce conclusions from general statements. 5. be comfortable with mathematical symbols and general ideas in math. 6. lose focus on a writing task and spend little time talking about what they plan to write. 7. Prefer to work alone; argue over who will lead when working in a group 8. act out and disrupt the class when bored. 9. find it hard to concentrate on learning when they are upset. 10. act as if they don't care about learning when they are confused or frustrated.
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Types of Learning Styles
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entrepreneurship develops money management, time management, and goal setting skills, among many others.
Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles
EduGuide Staff
How do boys and girls experience school? Somewhat differently it seems, because their learning styles tend to differ somewhat. Although individual differences always trump genderrelated differences, here are some differences between the ways boys and girls in K12 grades classrooms behave that have implications for teaching and learning. Girls are more likely to 1. be good listeners —a trait that serves them well in today's languagerich classrooms. 2. print neatly and follow directions carefully. 3. sit calmly in their seats. 4. gather facts before they draw conclusions. 5. need concrete examples when learning abstract principles. 6. need to talk about their subject before beginning a writing project. 7. work well in cooperative groups. 8. entertain themselves during boring parts of the school day. 9. pay attention to more than one activity at a time. 10. discuss problems with a teacher. Boys are more likely to 1. do well when using mathematicallogical thinking. 2. settle for messy handwriting and disorganized work. 3. need space to spread out their materials; move around in that space. 4. deduce conclusions from general statements. 5. be comfortable with mathematical symbols and general ideas in math. 6. lose focus on a writing task and spend little time talking about what they plan to write. 7. Prefer to work alone; argue over who will lead when working in a group 8. act out and disrupt the class when bored. 9. find it hard to concentrate on learning when they are upset. 10. act as if they don't care about learning when they are confused or frustrated.
Types of Learning Styles
What Is Your Child's Learning Style? EduGuide Staff
What Are Learning Styles?
Everyone gathers information about the world through three sensory receivers: visual (sight), auditory (sound), and kinesthetic (movement). Some people rely most on visual cues, others prefer auditory input, and still others learn best through movement. www.EduGuide.org 13 ONLINE EDUGUIDE Educators refer to these differences as learning styles. According to Cheri Fuller, author of Unlocking Your Child’s Learning Potential, “Learning style entails how a person best takes in, understands, and remembers information.” She adds, “…in most children, one
Types of Learning Styles
What Is Your Child's Learning Style? EduGuide Staff
What Are Learning Styles?
Everyone gathers information about the world through three sensory receivers: visual (sight), auditory (sound), and kinesthetic (movement). Some people rely most on visual cues, others prefer auditory input, and still others learn best through movement. Educators refer to these differences as learning styles. According to Cheri Fuller, author of Unlocking Your Child’s Learning Potential, “Learning style entails how a person best takes in, understands, and remembers information.” She adds, “…in most children, one sense is usually more finely tuned and influential for learning than the others.”
Assessing Learning Styles
So how do teachers identify students’ learning types? According to Dr. James Keefe, former director of research for the National Association of Secondary School Principals, only ten to fifteen percent of schools use formal tests to determine learning styles. He would like to see these percentages increase and the information added to students’ permanent records. Most teachers, however, especially in elementary school, observe their students closely to determine learning styles. Then they use learning styles strategies that individualize instruction to take advantage of each student’s learning type.
Find Your Child’s Learning Style
It’s not hard to figure out a child’s dominant learning style. Does your child have a primarily visual learning style? Visual learners are watchers. As babies, they are often drawn to lights, colors, and movement. They revel in colorful toys and piles of picture books. Visual learners enjoy and learn easily from pictures, handouts, videos, and films. In school, they can learn science principles by watching a science experiment rather than having to conduct the experiment themselves. Auditory learners are listeners. They learn to talk early and, as toddlers, enjoy listening to tapes and playing musical instruments. Auditory learners are talkative. They like to read aloud, recall commercials word for word, and do tongue twisters. In school, they memorize math facts much more easily in a song or poem than from flash cards. Kinesthetic learners are handson types. Kids who love taking things apart to see how they work are kinesthetic learners. As babies, kinesthetic learners are in constant motion, their movements are well coordinated, and they are anxious to crawl and walk as quickly as possible. In a classroom, kinesthetic learners can be fidgety. They’ll often be the first to volunteer to do something —anything— active. They want to do an experiment not watch it or read about it. Schooling at the middle and upper grades favors auditory learning. But students whose dominant learning style is visual or kinesthetic can improve their auditory learning skills. They can also incorporate many study techniques that draw on their learningstyle strengths. The first step to taking best advantage of any child’s learning style is to identify and learn about it.
This article was a combined effort, using Annette Kingsbury’s article “News in Education: Learning Styles Vary in Students” and Kathryn Lay’s article “Learning Types: Recognizing Your Child’s Style.”
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“Learning Types: Recognizing Your Child’s Style.”
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Table of Contents
Help Me Motivate My Visual Learner Help Me Motivate My Auditory Learner Help Me Motivate My Kinesthetic Learner Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Visual Learner Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Auditory Learner Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Kinesthetic Learner Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles Types of Learning Styles What Is My Child's Learning Style?
Discover My Child's Learning Style
Do I need this EduGuide?
Yes, if you would like to figure out what your child’s learning style is and how you can use that information to help your child learn as efficiently and effectively as possible.
2 How does it work? ONLINE EDUGUIDE www.EduGuide.org
What Is My Child's Learning Style?
Discover My Child's Learning Style
Do I need this EduGuide?
Yes, if you would like to figure out what your child’s learning style is and how you can use that information to help your child learn as efficiently and effectively as possible.
How does it work?
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Quizzes help you know where you stand. Articles give you the background information you need to make a decision. ShortCuts help you take immediate action. Choose one or go through them all.
What will I learn from this EduGuide?
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What the term learning style means How the three learning styles differ What my child’s learning style is How I can help my child learn by using his or her learning style strengths Which wholefamily educational activities will benefit each learning style most
Quick Solutions
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What can I do in thirty minutes? Read the articles “Types of Learning Styles: What Is Your Child’s Learning Style?” and “Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles.” What can I do in do in half a day? Try a motivational learning suggestion or educational family activity described in the ShortCuts. What can I do in a week:? Have your child continue incorporating learning style suggestions into his or her study routines What can I do in a month? With your child, evaluate the effectiveness of the learning style tips and make changes as necessary.
Help Me Motivate My Visual Learner
EduGuide Staff
Visual learners feel less frustrated and more motivated when they incorporate seeing into their studies. As a parent, you can use this knowledge to help your child focus on the strengths of his visual learning style to maximize his learning potential—even in subjects he previously struggled with. www.EduGuide.org 3 Try some of these visual learning style strategies to boost your student’s comprehension and retention: ONLINE EDUGUIDE
Help Me Motivate My Visual Learner
EduGuide Staff
Visual learners feel less frustrated and more motivated when they incorporate seeing into their studies. As a parent, you can use this knowledge to help your child focus on the strengths of his visual learning style to maximize his learning potential—even in subjects he previously struggled with. Try some of these visual learning style strategies to boost your student’s comprehension and retention:
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Use color. Buy a rainbow of colored, finepoint markers, pencils, and highlighters. When your kid takes notes, encourage him to use different colored pens for different concepts. Write spelling words (phthalates), formulas (E=MC²), or key concepts (19th Amendment) three times: first in red, then in purple, and finally in blue. Encourage him to highlight important passages and points in standout shades such as neon pink. Look at the pictures first. Before he reads a passage from his textbook, suggest that he go through and look at all the pictures, diagrams, and charts in the chapter and try to determine what points they are illustrating. When he reads the chapter, picturing the illustrations will help him remember key concepts. Of the three primary learning styles (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic), visual learners get the most out of this tip. Use flashcards. Flashcards can help boost retention in your visual learner. Suggest he use them for math facts, vocabulary, or anything else he needs to memorize. For history class, write dates on one side of the card and the key points about those dates on the other side. See with the mind’s eye. Challenge your student to visualize key facts or spelling words in his head when he’s trying to memorize them. Take notes. Encourage your child to write down explanations for points that are difficult to understand at first. By taking notes and seeing the information in different colors, he will clarify concepts and memorize them more readily. Sit in front. Help your child pay closer attention during lectures by suggesting that he keep his eye on the teachers at all times. Get it in writing. Tell your student, “If your teacher writes it on the board, write it in your notes.” Prompt your visual learner to ask the teacher to repeat verbal directions or supply written directions whenever possible.
Help Me Motivate My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Auditory learners process and remember information best when they hear it and repeat it. You can use this knowledge to help your auditory learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she struggled with previously. Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your auditory learner boost her comprehension and retention. Read aloud and repeat. Have your child use a highlighter to mark key concepts in handouts, textbooks, and written instructions. Then have her read the highlighted material aloud. When she needs to memorize facts—like the parts of a cell or spelling words—ask her to repeat the facts aloud to you several times. At school, encourage her to volunteer to read aloud to the class or a learning partner. www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE l Record and review. To boost retention, have your child record lectures on a handheld tape recorder. (Get the teacher’s permission first). She can then review material at home, while riding in the car, etc. If she takes written notes, have her read
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the teacher to repeat verbal directions or supply written directions whenever possible.
Help Me Motivate My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Auditory learners process and remember information best when they hear it and repeat it. You can use this knowledge to help your auditory learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she struggled with previously. Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your auditory learner boost her comprehension and retention.
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Read aloud and repeat. Have your child use a highlighter to mark key concepts in handouts, textbooks, and written instructions. Then have her read the highlighted material aloud. When she needs to memorize facts—like the parts of a cell or spelling words—ask her to repeat the facts aloud to you several times. At school, encourage her to volunteer to read aloud to the class or a learning partner. Record and review. To boost retention, have your child record lectures on a handheld tape recorder. (Get the teacher’s permission first). She can then review material at home, while riding in the car, etc. If she takes written notes, have her read them into the recorder and play them back to improve comprehension. She can also tape herself reading chapters from her textbooks and then listen to the tape to review. Discuss. Challenge your child to explain new concepts to you. If she’s studying photosynthesis, ask her questions like “What role does the sun play?” When she has required reading for English class, prompt her to retell the main points of the story, poem, or essay in her own words. Practice word association. Encourage your child to use rhymes, acronyms, and jingles to help recall facts more easily, like “In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue”; or Roy G. Biv (the colors of the rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet). Use audiotapes and CDs. Have her ask the local librarian if a required book is available on tape. Tip: To increase comprehension, have her follow the text as she listens to the book. Participate. Urge your child to participate in class discussions and debates as well as ask questions during lectures to clarify concepts. Also, encourage your child to join study groups or find a study partner so she can discuss materials with peers. Go to the head of the class. Remind your child to sit in the front of the class so she can hear easily and stay focused on the teacher. Of the three primary learning styles (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic), auditory learners get the most out of this tip. Ask for help. Encourage your child to ask friends and family members to quiz her orally as she prepares for tests. Or encourage her to ask her teacher to explain written concepts orally to boost comprehension and retention.
Help Me Motivate My Kinesthetic Learner
EduGuide Staff
Kinesthetic learners process information and solve problems most efficiently (and happily) when they can turn learning into a hands on activity. You can use this knowledge to help your kinesthetic learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type www.EduGuide.org 5 and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she previously struggled with. ONLINE EDUGUIDE Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your kinesthetic learner boost her comprehension and retention.
Help Me Motivate My Kinesthetic Learner
EduGuide Staff
Kinesthetic learners process information and solve problems most efficiently (and happily) when they can turn learning into a hands on activity. You can use this knowledge to help your kinesthetic learner customize her study habits. By recognizing her learning type and focusing on her strengths, you can help her succeed—even in subjects she previously struggled with. Try some of these teachertested learning styles strategies to help your kinesthetic learner boost her comprehension and retention.
Get a Grip on It
Whenever possible, help your child choose projects that let her use her hands. If she is studying the solar system, have her build a model of it. For social studies or history, have her locate the region being studied on a map or globe.
Take Center Stage
Urge your child to participate in science fairs, plays, and art shows so he can shine. If he is social, encourage him to volunteer to work with younger kids or help out at a local animal shelter. These types of activities will boost selfesteem and motivation.
Get More from Reading
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When she reads, prompt her to follow along with her fingers or a bookmark to boost comprehension. Also, encourage your child to use bright colors to underline, circle, and highlight new concepts. Have him rewrite relevant facts or key concepts in his own words. Jotting down main points of new material will help him retain information. Try having him record his notes on tape and listen to study during a long walk. Ham it up! Have her act out a passage from the book she is assigned or put on a skit to demonstrate what she is studying. Be her audience or better yet get in on the act and play a role yourself.
Give Her a Break
To help your child focus better and avoid getting bored, allow her to study in short time blocks (no more than thirty minutes at a time) and encourage her to do a physical activity during that break, such walking the dog or shooting some hoops.
Explore Together
Visit natural history museums, botanical gardens, and planetariums. Keep an eye out for exhibits or programs that relate to things he is learning in class. If he is learning about ancient Egypt, go to a museum to experience items from ancient Egypt firsthand.
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www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Visual Learner
is learning in class. If he is learning about ancient Egypt, go to a museum to experience items from ancient Egypt firsthand.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Visual Learner
EduGuide Staff
As a concerned parent, you can support your child’s visual learning style by choosing meaningful learning styles activities that stimulate and hold her interest. Although you cannot plan every family outing around the needs of just one child, it is possible to include fun family activities that will make family trips or special events particularly interesting and beneficial to your visual learner. Try some of these activities to promote learning and enrich your visual learner’s development.
All the News That’s Fit to Print
Newspapers are still a great way of connecting your visual learner to current events. When you’re on vacation, pick up a copy of the local news and ask your child to find local events or explore funny and interesting items. At home, visit the newsstand together and let your child pick out a Sunday paper like USA Today, which has lots of graphics and might be more appealing to a younger visual learner.
Visit the Library
Get library cards for yourself and each of your children and make trips to the library a regular family activity. Today’s libraries are a wonderful resource for learning styles activities.
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Help your visual learner find books that support his classroom work as well as fiction and ageappropriate magazines to suit his interests. It’s okay if he only wants to read popular books (reading is reading); he will enjoy talking to his peers about the books. To find ageappropriate materials, ask at the reference desk. Or ask yourself some questions: What can my child learn from this? Is the subject relevant to his life experience? Is the language appropriate? Encourage her to join youth reading clubs and contests like the Battle of the Books where prizes add incentive.
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Share Her Gifts with the World
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Urge your child to join the school newspaper as a reporter or photographer. This will hone her writing skills and encourage participation in the life of her school. Challenge your child to submit his writing or photography for publication. In addition to school newspapers, yearbooks, and art journals, there are national publications for teens by teens (Teen Ink, for example). Email the magazine and request writer’s guidelines, free instructions on how to prepare and submit articles, poems, and photography, etc. Some local newspapers also encourage submissions from local students. Call your local paper to ask. If your child isn’t ready to share her writing or artwork, encourage her to keep a private journal documenting feelings and activities. This can be a written dairy or sketch diary, if they are artistically inclined. Have your child interview an older family member and write a short biography for the family to keep.
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Play Games
To build your child’s vocabulary and improve spelling skills, play fun word games like Scrabble, Boggle, Yahtzee, and Pictionary This healthy competition will build testtaking skills and provide fun for the whole family. www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE
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Puzzle books boost brain power and give a sense of mastery. Solving all kinds of mazes, rebuses, crosswords, and word
Play Games
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To build your child’s vocabulary and improve spelling skills, play fun word games like Scrabble, Boggle, Yahtzee, and Pictionary This healthy competition will build testtaking skills and provide fun for the whole family. Puzzle books boost brain power and give a sense of mastery. Solving all kinds of mazes, rebuses, crosswords, and word finds broadens skills.
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Visit Museums, Art Galleries, Aquariums, and Botanical Gardens
Attend exhibits together. Ask your child to choose a display or piece of art that he particularly likes; then ask him to write a short essay or poem expressing how he feels about it. If he is artistic, encourage him to copy a painting in the style of the artist and then in his own style. If you go to botanical gardens, your child can sketch what he likes or take pictures that reflect his interests.
Family Historian
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Encourage your child to take snapshots of friends, family, vacations, and home life. Help her create photo albums or scrapbooks and encourage her to write captions or draw cartoons to highlight her adventures. On family trips ask him to capture the event in words or pictures (or both). It is wonderful to have a permanent record year by year of the fun things you did together. Create a travel journal or family newspaper to chronicle the trip. Remind him to record some funny little things that make family vacations memorable (like the time Dad locked the keys in the car.) If you send holiday cards as a family, ask your visual learner to write an account of the year’s events and select pictures to illustrate them.
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Plot a Course
When taking an unfamiliar route, have your child draw a map and use it together to guide you to your final destination. Before a trip or visit to relatives, have your child read up on the places you will see on the way and share what she learned with the family.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Like most involved parents, you want to choose meaningful learning styles activities to make learning come alive for your whole family. Though you can’t always plan around the needs of your auditory learner, here are some fun family activities that promote auditory skills and will enrich all members of the family.
Take the Whole Family to the Library
Your public library is a terrific resource for learning styles activities. Libraries are getting creative in their efforts to reach young people and are offering many programs that cater to auditory learners. Get everyone in the family a library card to use regularly.
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Reference librarians love to answer your questions (it’s their job). Ask them what kids are reading today and who are the hottest young adult authors. They can guide you through the process of finding just the right title for your reader.
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l Help your auditory learner check out audio books both to reinforce his classroom lessons and for simple enjoyment. Some www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE of the Judy Blume classics are still relevant today like the classic Are You There God It’s Me Margaret or S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders.
visit to relatives, have your child read up on the places you will see on the way and share what she learned with the family.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Auditory Learner
EduGuide Staff
Like most involved parents, you want to choose meaningful learning styles activities to make learning come alive for your whole family. Though you can’t always plan around the needs of your auditory learner, here are some fun family activities that promote auditory skills and will enrich all members of the family.
Take the Whole Family to the Library
Your public library is a terrific resource for learning styles activities. Libraries are getting creative in their efforts to reach young people and are offering many programs that cater to auditory learners. Get everyone in the family a library card to use regularly.
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Reference librarians love to answer your questions (it’s their job). Ask them what kids are reading today and who are the hottest young adult authors. They can guide you through the process of finding just the right title for your reader. Help your auditory learner check out audio books both to reinforce his classroom lessons and for simple enjoyment. Some of the Judy Blume classics are still relevant today like the classic Are You There God It’s Me Margaret or S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders. To improve her conversation skills, ask her relevant questions about the book she is listening to. Listen to her book yourself if you can, or better yet listen to it together while washing dishes, crafting, or riding in the car. If you are short of time, check out the CliffsNotes so you can discuss the characters and plot together. Ask her to explain the main points to you and her feelings about them. Encourage her to learn something new and have fun doing it. Sign up for noteworthy lectures the library offers just for young people: for example, babysitting, how to find a summer job, SAT prep, or how to write the allimportant college essay. You can get a schedule of upcoming events at the reference desk or online.
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Make Music Together
Studies show that listening to music primes the brain to learn. But making music is even more educational (not to mention fun). If you aren’t particularly musical, you can have a karaoke night and encourage your child to be a rock star. If performing isn’t your thing, try these ideas.
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Go to free concerts in the park, jazz festivals, or revivals. Even if it isn’t your child’s favorite, it is likely he will be able to find something interesting to observe in a live performance. Besides, live music is just better no matter what kind. Most libraries have a wide variety of CDs. Borrow some music from other cultures or try to find music from a particular time in history (World War II, the 60s, etc). Listen to diverse music together to develop a deeper appreciation for all types of sound. Share the music you listened to when you were a teen (if you dare!) and listen to hers. If she is into rap, get her to try some reggae. If she is into country, try some classical music. Sign your child up for music lessons so he can experience the magic of music firsthand. The YWCA and YMCA offer classes for a nominal fee. If these suggestions stretch your budget too much, encourage your child to join the school band and take up an instrument that can be rented for the school year fairly inexpensively.
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Be a Captive Audience
www.EduGuide.org 9 Riding together in the family car is a great time to engage your kids in conversation (they can’t get away and neither can you). For your ONLINE EDUGUIDE auditory learner, this is not only a time to bond but to reinforce learning. Listen to your chatterbox talk, even if it is just to shoot the breeze. Auditory learners need to hear themselves and hear others in order to learn and problem solve.
an instrument that can be rented for the school year fairly inexpensively.
Be a Captive Audience
Riding together in the family car is a great time to engage your kids in conversation (they can’t get away and neither can you). For your auditory learner, this is not only a time to bond but to reinforce learning. Listen to your chatterbox talk, even if it is just to shoot the breeze. Auditory learners need to hear themselves and hear others in order to learn and problem solve.
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Discuss everything under the sun: what they are learning in school, current events, and their friends. Ask lots of questions if it is difficult to get them to open up. If you see an interesting segment on the news or article in the Sunday paper, share it and ask your child's opinion. You’ll be surprised! Encourage your child to teach you some new information or a concept that he is learning about. Or if he is studying a foreign language, have him share words for common objects.
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Enlist the Grandparents
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Encourage your child to interview older relatives such as grandparents about the good old days. She will love listening to her relatives' stories and learning about history, roots, and culture. If you can, have your child record the interview so she can listen to it later and save it for other family members. If your older relatives are bilingual, ask them to share the language with your auditory learner allowing a love of a different culture and language to come alive.
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Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Kinesthetic Learner
Like most caring parents, you want to help your children reach their greatest potential and become successful in school and in life. For your kinesthetic learners, choose fun family activities and enrichment programs that support kids who learn best through movement.
Be a Good Sport
Most kinesthetic learners, bundles of energy that they are, love sports and are good at them. Participation in sports can boost their confidence and help them settle down to schoolwork more effectively.
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Encourage your child to join a school sports team. Success at sports can build confidence and motivate kinesthetic learners to succeed academically. Investigate fitness and team or individual sports activities outside of school.
Make Fitness a Family Affair
Hike, bowl, bike, or do yoga as a family. Aside from the obvious health benefits, sharing physical activities like these can strengthen family bonds and open channels of communication.
Take a Hike to the Library
Make trips to the library, preferably by walking or biking there, regular parts of family life. Today’s public libraries have valuable resources for kids of all learning types and interests.
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l Help your handson learners find nonfiction books and magazines about topics that intrigue them. The research librarian will www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE be happy to help. l Accompany your kinesthetic learners to events and programs of interest sponsored by local libraries, museums, park districts,
culture and language to come alive.
Find Educational Family Activities to Interest My Kinesthetic Learner
Like most caring parents, you want to help your children reach their greatest potential and become successful in school and in life. For your kinesthetic learners, choose fun family activities and enrichment programs that support kids who learn best through movement.
Be a Good Sport
Most kinesthetic learners, bundles of energy that they are, love sports and are good at them. Participation in sports can boost their confidence and help them settle down to schoolwork more effectively.
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Encourage your child to join a school sports team. Success at sports can build confidence and motivate kinesthetic learners to succeed academically. Investigate fitness and team or individual sports activities outside of school.
Make Fitness a Family Affair
Hike, bowl, bike, or do yoga as a family. Aside from the obvious health benefits, sharing physical activities like these can strengthen family bonds and open channels of communication.
Take a Hike to the Library
Make trips to the library, preferably by walking or biking there, regular parts of family life. Today’s public libraries have valuable resources for kids of all learning types and interests.
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Help your handson learners find nonfiction books and magazines about topics that intrigue them. The research librarian will be happy to help. Accompany your kinesthetic learners to events and programs of interest sponsored by local libraries, museums, park districts, and civic organizations.
Join 4H, Boy Scouts or Girl Scouts
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Many free organized groups offer an abundance of handson activities that appeal to kinesthetic learners, especially active children who love the outdoors.
My Favorite Things
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Collecting can boost kinesthetic learners’ confidence as it sharpens their cognitive skills. Whatever your child treasures—from stamps to seashells— can form an affordable and alluring collection. Assembling a collection develops children’s classifying skills and stimulates their creative and critical thinking. Many kinesthetic learners dig gardening. Start small, perhaps with a terrarium or an herb garden. Let your child research garden ideas and make a plan. Tending plants lets kinesthetic learners move as they learn science concepts and respect for nature. For messy fun and delicious results, bake cookies. Enroll kids with more than a passing interest in cooking in a culinary arts class at a community center or cooking school. Kinesthetic learners are naturals at such hobbies as sewing, knitting, pottery, building models, and scrap booking.
Get Hooked on Helping
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l Volunteer opportunities for active kids abound. Help kinesthetic learners find a good match based on their interests and www.EduGuide.org ONLINE EDUGUIDE learning style. Along with invaluable handson life and work experience, kids’ confidence will soar and their empathy deepen. And many colleges look favorably on community service for admission.
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Kinesthetic learners are naturals at such hobbies as sewing, knitting, pottery, building models, and scrap booking.
Get Hooked on Helping
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Volunteer opportunities for active kids abound. Help kinesthetic learners find a good match based on their interests and learning style. Along with invaluable handson life and work experience, kids’ confidence will soar and their empathy deepen. And many colleges look favorably on community service for admission.
Start a Business
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Put kinesthetic learners’ energy to work by encouraging them to start a business. Whether it’s walking dogs or washing cars, entrepreneurship develops money management, time management, and goal setting skills, among many others.
Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles
EduGuide Staff
How do boys and girls experience school? Somewhat differently it seems, because their learning styles tend to differ somewhat. Although individual differences always trump genderrelated differences, here are some differences between the ways boys and girls in K12 grades classrooms behave that have implications for teaching and learning. Girls are more likely to 1. be good listeners —a trait that serves them well in today's languagerich classrooms. 2. print neatly and follow directions carefully. 3. sit calmly in their seats. 4. gather facts before they draw conclusions. 5. need concrete examples when learning abstract principles. 6. need to talk about their subject before beginning a writing project. 7. work well in cooperative groups. 8. entertain themselves during boring parts of the school day. 9. pay attention to more than one activity at a time. 10. discuss problems with a teacher. Boys are more likely to 1. do well when using mathematicallogical thinking. 2. settle for messy handwriting and disorganized work. 3. need space to spread out their materials; move around in that space. 4. deduce conclusions from general statements. 5. be comfortable with mathematical symbols and general ideas in math. 6. lose focus on a writing task and spend little time talking about what they plan to write. 7. Prefer to work alone; argue over who will lead when working in a group 8. act out and disrupt the class when bored. 9. find it hard to concentrate on learning when they are upset. 10. act as if they don't care about learning when they are confused or frustrated.
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Types of Learning Styles
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entrepreneurship develops money management, time management, and goal setting skills, among many others.
Boys and Girls Have Different Learning Styles
EduGuide Staff
How do boys and girls experience school? Somewhat differently it seems, because their learning styles tend to differ somewhat. Although individual differences always trump genderrelated differences, here are some differences between the ways boys and girls in K12 grades classrooms behave that have implications for teaching and learning. Girls are more likely to 1. be good listeners —a trait that serves them well in today's languagerich classrooms. 2. print neatly and follow directions carefully. 3. sit calmly in their seats. 4. gather facts before they draw conclusions. 5. need concrete examples when learning abstract principles. 6. need to talk about their subject before beginning a writing project. 7. work well in cooperative groups. 8. entertain themselves during boring parts of the school day. 9. pay attention to more than one activity at a time. 10. discuss problems with a teacher. Boys are more likely to 1. do well when using mathematicallogical thinking. 2. settle for messy handwriting and disorganized work. 3. need space to spread out their materials; move around in that space. 4. deduce conclusions from general statements. 5. be comfortable with mathematical symbols and general ideas in math. 6. lose focus on a writing task and spend little time talking about what they plan to write. 7. Prefer to work alone; argue over who will lead when working in a group 8. act out and disrupt the class when bored. 9. find it hard to concentrate on learning when they are upset. 10. act as if they don't care about learning when they are confused or frustrated.
Types of Learning Styles
What Is Your Child's Learning Style? EduGuide Staff
What Are Learning Styles?
Everyone gathers information about the world through three sensory receivers: visual (sight), auditory (sound), and kinesthetic (movement). Some people rely most on visual cues, others prefer auditory input, and still others learn best through movement. www.EduGuide.org 13 ONLINE EDUGUIDE Educators refer to these differences as learning styles. According to Cheri Fuller, author of Unlocking Your Child’s Learning Potential, “Learning style entails how a person best takes in, understands, and remembers information.” She adds, “…in most children, one
Types of Learning Styles
What Is Your Child's Learning Style? EduGuide Staff
What Are Learning Styles?
Everyone gathers information about the world through three sensory receivers: visual (sight), auditory (sound), and kinesthetic (movement). Some people rely most on visual cues, others prefer auditory input, and still others learn best through movement. Educators refer to these differences as learning styles. According to Cheri Fuller, author of Unlocking Your Child’s Learning Potential, “Learning style entails how a person best takes in, understands, and remembers information.” She adds, “…in most children, one sense is usually more finely tuned and influential for learning than the others.”
Assessing Learning Styles
So how do teachers identify students’ learning types? According to Dr. James Keefe, former director of research for the National Association of Secondary School Principals, only ten to fifteen percent of schools use formal tests to determine learning styles. He would like to see these percentages increase and the information added to students’ permanent records. Most teachers, however, especially in elementary school, observe their students closely to determine learning styles. Then they use learning styles strategies that individualize instruction to take advantage of each student’s learning type.
Find Your Child’s Learning Style
It’s not hard to figure out a child’s dominant learning style. Does your child have a primarily visual learning style? Visual learners are watchers. As babies, they are often drawn to lights, colors, and movement. They revel in colorful toys and piles of picture books. Visual learners enjoy and learn easily from pictures, handouts, videos, and films. In school, they can learn science principles by watching a science experiment rather than having to conduct the experiment themselves. Auditory learners are listeners. They learn to talk early and, as toddlers, enjoy listening to tapes and playing musical instruments. Auditory learners are talkative. They like to read aloud, recall commercials word for word, and do tongue twisters. In school, they memorize math facts much more easily in a song or poem than from flash cards. Kinesthetic learners are handson types. Kids who love taking things apart to see how they work are kinesthetic learners. As babies, kinesthetic learners are in constant motion, their movements are well coordinated, and they are anxious to crawl and walk as quickly as possible. In a classroom, kinesthetic learners can be fidgety. They’ll often be the first to volunteer to do something —anything— active. They want to do an experiment not watch it or read about it. Schooling at the middle and upper grades favors auditory learning. But students whose dominant learning style is visual or kinesthetic can improve their auditory learning skills. They can also incorporate many study techniques that draw on their learningstyle strengths. The first step to taking best advantage of any child’s learning style is to identify and learn about it.
This article was a combined effort, using Annette Kingsbury’s article “News in Education: Learning Styles Vary in Students” and Kathryn Lay’s article “Learning Types: Recognizing Your Child’s Style.”
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“Learning Types: Recognizing Your Child’s Style.”
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