Understanding your child’s learning style is key to helping them succeed at school. As they grow and learn you may start to see weaknesses and strengths in the way they take in information.
Learning styles offer a way to categorise the ways in which people learn and can be very helpful in progressing your child successfully. Different learning styles are generally categorised as follows:
- Visual learners
- Auditory learners
- Tactile learners
- Kinaesthetic learners
Each learning style offers its own strengths. Understanding your child’s learning style is a great way forward if you want to give your child an advantage. Knowing why they struggle or thrive in some areas can also empower the child. Let’s break down the styles – you will probably see which style your child favours quite easily.
Visual learners
As you might imagine, these children learn a lot through watching. They observe and pick things up by seeing them done. It’s difficult for them to carry out a new activity by instruction alone. They like to see if demonstrated. They also have very strong opinions and thoughts on the world about them. Often they love art, colour and texture.
Auditory learners
These children love to listen. Not only to instructions but also to stories and music. They can pick up rhythms easily and are often good at music. They may be quite talkative too!
These learners like to hear things explained. They do well in lectures and can often summarise an entire lecture in just a few notes. They thrive when working in groups and are good orators and often excellent debaters.
Tactile learners
Often busy-bees, these children like to experience with their bodies. They like to touch, they’re often in motion and will prefer to run around rather than sit still.
Kinaesthetic learners
These children are very energetic and learn with their entire body and senses. They like to undertake practical tasks – good at gardening, building and challenging physical tasks, they’re often sporty.
How to help your child learn more effectively
The best method of using your child’s style to their advantage is to provide a lot of opportunities for learning in the way they find most comfortable. Museums, walks, sporting events and clubs are all there for the taking. Allow your child to experiment with their learning styles and to find where they are most comfortable. Do they enjoy watching informative documentaries or would they prefer to travel? Ask them.
How to help your child grow in a broader sense
Once you have a good grasp of the way your child likes to learn, you can help them to broaden their horizons by challenging them with things they might not automatically choose.
An artistic, visual learner may not like the rough and tumble of the sports field but would they like a calmer sport like golf? Try something different and you may be surprised at the results.
Children who have varied opportunities to grow and learn will always grow up bright and enquiring. Teaching your child to be an independent learner is vital, as the leaders of this independent school in Wales believe.