Lesson 7: Problem Solving for Success
Learning Styles
One of the special benefits of homeschooling is that our school can be tailored to our children. We can figure out how they learn, and teach that way as often as possible. It is good for children to have to learn in ways that are less comfortable, but most of the time, we should simply do whatever works. Much has been written about learning styles and multiple intelligences, and homeschool teachers can benefit from studying these materials. We don’t need to become experts on them however. We aren’t teaching thirty children with thirty learning styles. We are teaching our own children and there is a good possibility that we already know a great deal about how our own children learn.
For instance, I cannot learn from what I hear. I have auditory processing difficulties and words tend to flow through me without meaning. I can’t learn by watching someone else do something either. I have to see the material, or experience it. So, when I teach myself, I read and then I do. I have to repeat the activity again and again to overcome my memory challenges. I have to break everything down into small pieces. On the positive side, I read well and can handle most books placed before me, and I can analyze well.
This becomes my learning style. There may be a name for it, but I don’t know what it is and I don’t really care. I just know what I have to do in order to learn. When I am placed in situations where I cannot learn the way I learn, I think about how to fix the problem. As homeschooling parents, we initially do this for our children, but we later teach them to do this for themselves. After all, we can’t be there when they go to college or to work. They will have to master this themselves.
You can adapt almost any material to suit the learning style of your child. Following are some learning styles and suggestions for adaptations.
Visual learners
Visual learners need to see things. Like me, words just confuse them. Instead of lecturing on history, sit down and show your child pictures. Visit museums. If he reads well, give him books. Show him what you want him to know.
Auditory learners
These children learn with their ears. They are the ones who want to be told a story about the history you are learning. You can talk together about the science. If reading is difficult, tape the books and let him listen to them. If he reads well, he may want to record his chapters himself and listen to them to master the material.
Hands-on Learners: (kinesthetic)
These children are the doers. Fill your time with science experiments, meaningful crafts, plays, puppet shows, cooking experiences and so on. Bring everything to life. Most children learn well this way, but some children only learn this way.
To learn more about learning styles and to find out what type of learner your child is, visit LDPride.
