Understanding Your Child’s Learning Style

According to research, children have three prominent learning patterns: Visual, Auditory and Kinaesthetic. 

Each one corresponds to the senses that your child uses most when learning, for example seeing, listening or feeling. Children usually start off by exploring all three styles, but gradually one style becomes more dominant – this is called their ‘learning style’

As a parent, it is important to understand your child’s dominant learning style so that you can identify the most suited teaching methods.

Here is some helpful information from a senior school in Enfield on understanding your child’s learning style…

Visual learners

Visual learners like to see what they are learning about. They enjoy art and craft and usually have a vivid imagination. Visual learners do best when presented with pictures and videos and they benefit from looking at diagrams when learning. If your child is a visual learner, you may notice that they are very observant and remember lots of details from their childhood.

When teaching visual learners it is a good idea to draw on a whiteboard or use educational videos, either online or on TV. It is also a good idea to have paper and pencils to hand as your child may wish to draw pictures about what you have been learning.

Auditory learners

Auditory learners, as the name suggests, learn most effectively through sound. They are very good listeners and enjoy learning through songs and rhyming. Music is a great learning tool for auditory learners. If you think your child is an auditory learner it is best to give clear verbal instructions and discuss their school topics. They are more likely to remember key details by repeating what they have learnt out loud.

Auditory learners will often show an interest in other languages and like to read out loud while learning or writing.

Kinaesthetic learners

Kinaesthetic learners require more physical learning methods and have a curious nature. They learn best through touching and feeling exercises and usually have well developed hand-eye coordination. Children with a dominant kinaesthetic learning style will enjoy physical activities like sports and drama at school.

If your child is a kinaesthetic learner they will need a lot of hands-on activities like science experiments or art and crafts. You will also find that kinaesthetic learners enjoy activities like Lego and doing puzzles, which are also great educational tools.

If you need more help to identify your child’s learning style, speak to your child’s nursery or school teachers, as they will be able to observe your child and give you their expert advice.