What is Your Home-schooled Child’s Learning Style?

(Last Updated On: 06/05/2021)

Your home-schooled child’s learning style is vital to how successful your homeschooling programme will be. Working out your child’s personality and how they take in and enjoy information is crucial in determining how well you teach them in their homeschooling programme.

This post will discuss the different learning styles to help you decipher how they learn best with tips on how to maximise their learning when homeschooling.

Auditory Learners

Auditory learners are stimulated by sound. They are naturally melodic and demonstrate a talent for singing or playing instruments. They are strong communicators and good listeners. They follow verbal instructions well.

Signs your child is an Auditory Learner:

•Aptitude in music, instruments, or vocal ability.

•Inclination to sing along to songs or to create their own songs.

•Strong verbal ability through repetition of words or phrases.

•Listen well and following verbal instructions.

•Loves to talk and discuss things.

•Ability to notice sounds that others don’t recognise

•Becomes cheerful when he or she hears music or dialogue

Study Tips For Auditory Learners:

• Background Noise: Avoid background noise that can distract your child.
• Create Catchy Sounds: This can help your child to retain and remember information better.
• Discuss Content:  This allows your child to recognise and work through complex problems. 
• Encourage Questions: Asking questions helps your auditory learner make sense of information by listening and talking. 
• Read Essays/Work Out Loud: This helps your child analyse their writing and identify mistakes in their writing. 
• Record Lessons: This will help your child to recall information better when replayed.
• Repeat Content: Your child will understand instructions and verbalise their thoughts better when you do this.

Visual Learners

Visual learners are observant of the world around them and show a keen interest in art. This type of learner enjoys looking at paintings, lingering over illustrations in books and showing keen interest in photographs. 

Visual learners tend to enjoy screens, i.e. movies, computers, or television and retain information through this medium.

Visual Learners have vivid memories. Your child may display abilities in remembering places, people and names. 

Signs your child is a Visual Learner:

•A vivid imagination.

•An interest in art: painting, drawing, or crafts.

•Strong memory that communicates visually observed information.

•A good sense of direction and an understanding of maps.

•An aptitude for reading and a love of books.

•Recognition of people, faces, and places.

•A keen interest in observing the world around him/her.

Study Tips For Visual Learners:

• Enhance Study Space: Your child will have better concentration when their study space is visually pleasing. 
• Teach Visual Notes: Incorporating visual aids in your child’s notes helps her to retain information.
• Use Representations: Use books or study materials with a wide range of illustrations and diagrams to aid learning. Visit museums to solidify knowledge.
• Use Visualization: Use positive visualisation to enforce learning, i.e. imagine achieving a goal or winning a competition. 
• Visual Study Material: Shop for visually stimulating materials. to enhance learning. E.g. Stickers, coloured sticky notes and posters.
• Watch Videos:  Learning comes alive when your child sees the content. Educational videos enhance his or her learning. 

Kinesthetic Learners

Kinesthetic learners are physical – They are great at sports-related activities. They have a strong sense of balance – they learn best by participating in practical activities relating to touching or doing things themselves.

Signs your child is a Kinesthetic Learner:

•Aptitude in physical activities such as sports or dance. 

•Tendency to fidget while sitting – means he or she may need to move while taking in information.

•Uses gestures a lot when explaining things or speaking. 

•Enjoys drawing, writing or handwriting exercises.

•Great hand-eye coordination.

•Enjoys pro-active activities and role-play.  

•Early physical development such as sitting, crawling or walking.

Study Tips For Kinesthetic Learners:

• Allow Fidgeting: Don’t attempt to control their fidgeting. Your child concentrates better and for longer if they are standing and stretch frequently.
• Build Or Make Models:   Your child will enjoy creating and designing physical examples of the things they learn.
• Physical Learning: Your child will learn best from using their hands to learn, e.g. counting on hands.
• Whole Body Movement:  Walking while studying works well, followed by reciting content or listening to music.
• Work On Whiteboards Or Chalkboards: Your child will benefit from working through learning materials on a chalkboard or a whiteboard. Doing physical work will be more stimulating than working at a desk with a pen/pencil and paper.

Summary: 

Your child may display aptitude in each of the three learning styles. Upon close observation, you will notice that one learning style is more dominant. 

Identifying this can help you customise your child’s learning process and build on his or her distinctive strengths when home schooling. 

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Useful Link:

How to Instil Good Study Habits at Home

https://www.noodle.com/articles/how-to-instill-good-study-habits-at-home