My blog has moved!

You should be automatically redirected in 6 seconds. If not, visit
www.successful-homeschooling-blog.com
and update your bookmarks.

Friday, September 5, 2008

Learning Styles

She. won't. stop. talking. period.

Okay, I'm exaggerating. She does stop talking. But when she isn't talking, she's singing or humming or moving her lips.

One night I went to check on her after bed, and I heard sounds coming from her room. "Jazzy, what are you doing?" She joyfully replied, "I'm singing lullabies to Sydney and Teddy."

Imagine my surprise to research learning styles and find that she's an auditory learner who uses speech and sound to receive and process information. She needs to talk, sing, hum and whisper in order to learn.

On the other hand, my oldest son, who I once suspected was hard of hearing, is a visual learner who receives and processes information thorough images and print. When I inevitably ask him, "Did you just hear me say...?" He'd do well to respond, "Yes, I heard you, but could you make me a list?"

One of the best things we can do in our home schools is understand our children's learning styles. We can reduce frustration and make our lessons more efficient by instructing our children in ways they understand.

If you can, choose a homeschool method that suits your child's learning style. If you have multiple children to teach, make small adaptations to your homeschool curriculum to make it fit each child's needs. Also teach your children how to make adaptations that will make it easier for them to learn when they're out on their own, and find fun ways to strengthen their areas of weakness.

My youngest son is still a toddler, but the fact that we often chase him around screaming, "NO, Isaiah!" is a good clue that he's a kinesthetic learner who learns through touch and movement.

Here are some tips for discovering your children's learning styles, along with ideas for tailoring your curriculum to suit different types of learners.

post signature

12 comments:

Henry Cate said...

I have three daughters that like to talk. At times I'll come home from work and all three will talk at me. It can be exhausting. :-)

I have found that as my daughters get older they talk a little less and think a bit more. I remember this happened to Anne, of Anne of Green Gables.

Erika said...

Great tips! I'll be looking more into this! Thanks for the help! Anything to make homeschooling a positive experience... and I LOVE your baby's name... that's my baby's name too! :-)

Tracy said...

YEP! Got one of those NEVER stops talking too! Thanks for sharing!

Brenda said...

My niece is the same way! CONSTANT noises coming from her mouth. Sound effects for whatever she is doing. Hilarious--but I hope it won't cause her trouble in school next year!

And Henry, girls just talk a lot. :)

Anonymous said...

I have a talker, a mover and a reader/writer, too:) I feel so blessed to be homeschooling, so that I can tailor our school to their individual needs.

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness, I laughed so hard when I read your opening lines. My blessing is the exact same way-even down to the when she's not talking, she's humming, singing, even in service she whispers.

I appreciate the tip about learning style. I have been wondering how to figure out which one is hers.

Thanks again!

Cathy Adamkiewicz said...

Your daughter sounds just like my six year old son! He is constantly making sounds - and in constant motion!
I've been homeschooling for sixteen years (two kids "down", four to go) and I think I could learn a thing or two from that learning styles link. Thanks for sharing it!
I'm glad I found your blog! Thanks for visiting mine!:)

jugglingpaynes said...

I have a daughter like that! BTW, Jazzy is adorable!

My oldest is a visual-auditory learner while the younger two are combination visual and kinesthetic learners. It makes life interesting. I had a hard time learning how to teach my son because I was so spoiled by his big sister. I wish I had known about the different learning styles seven years ago, when I first started teaching him. It would have helped avoid a lot of tears. (mine, not his)

Peace and Laughter!

Anonymous said...

I have two girls who wear me out sometimes with their constant chatter. They're only 4 and 2 (almost 3), but I am really interested in figuring out what their learning styles are.

Carletta said...

Hi Amy! It's usually best to work with children that young in all three modalities (learning styles). You will eventually notice that one is more dominant.

Anonymous said...

Love that picture, Carletta! She is adorable. Yesterday I had two phone calls from my talker. She's 3 and 1/2 hours away now finishing up college. Other than my ear and arm being sore, I am glad she's still talking. We don't lack in too many details about her life still.

Unknown said...

Wow, our kids would get on great. My daughter does the same thing. LOL. She's always making up little songs to sing to herself as she makes her way around the house. Always busy, too, that one ;D My son, OTOH, is totally visual. He really has to see it to learn it.