If your child constantly squirms and fidgets when they're doing maths homework or insists on listening to music while vocabulary words, take heart.
While it might seem like they're trying to drive you mad, they're probably just using the strategies that help them learn.
And although all children have different ways of learning, education experts have grouped these into three basic styles - auditory, visual and kinaesthetic.
Once you know which learning style your child generally prefers, you'll be able to make studying that bit easier for them...
Auditory learners
Kids who all into this category prefer listening to explanations to reading them, and may like to study by reciting information aloud.
This type of learner may want to have background music while studying, or they may be distracted by noises and need a quiet space to study.
Tips to help them learn:
Auditory learners are typically good at absorbing information from spoken words. Strategies that work well for auditory learners include:
- Talking to themselves or with others about what they’re learning
- Reciting important information aloud, perhaps recording it and playing it back
- Reading a book and listening to the audio book at the same time
- Using word associations
- Setting information to a tune and singing it to help remember it
- Limiting distracting noises
Kinaesthetic learners
These children learn by doing and touching. They may have trouble sitting still while studying, and they are better able to understand information by writing it down or doing hands-on activities.
Tips to help them learn:
Kinaesthetic learners prefer to be active while studying and may not be able to focus while sitting still.
- Reading aloud and tracking words on a page with a finger
- Writing things down multiple times to commit them to memory
- Highlighting and underlining
- Playing with a stress ball or toy while studying
- Moving around or taking frequent breaks
- Doing hands-on activities, such as building models or playing games
Visual learners
Visual learners process new information by reading, looking at graphics, or watching a demonstration.
Children with this learning style can grasp information presented in a chart or graph, but they may grow impatient listening to an explanation.
Tips to help them learn:
Visual learners benefit from seeing information on a chalkboard or in an illustration and may grow impatient listening for long periods of time.
- Using flash cards
- Studying charts, tables, and maps
- Drawing illustrations
- Writing things down and reviewing notes
- Highlighting and underlining
- Colour-coding information
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