Learning Styles
Learning styles are unique to all of us. The way in which I need to learn more effectively may not be what you need. If I am forced to learn in a way that is not good for me, it makes sense that I may not achieve. This can result in attention and motivation problems.
Understanding the learning style of a student can help solve school problems. For instance, in teaching vocabulary words, some children respond best by using flash cards, while others need verbal drills, and a third group thrives on using body movements to help recall the definition. By recognizing children's learning preference, we can reach them more efficiently and effectively.
Recommended
Books
"Different minds learn
differently," writes Dr. Mel Levine, one of the best-known education
experts and pediatricians in America today. And that's a problem for many
children, because most schools still cling to a one-size-fits-all education
philosophy. As a result, these children struggle because their learning patterns
don't fit the schools they are in.
In A
Mind at a Time, Dr. Levine shows parents and others who care for
children how to identify these individual learning patterns. He explains how
parents and teachers can encourage a child's strengths and bypass the child's
weaknesses. This type of teaching produces satisfaction and achievement, instead
of frustration and failure.
Different brains are differently wired, Dr. Levine explains. There are eight
fundamental systems, or
components, of learning that draw on a variety of neurodevelopmental capacities.
Some students are strong in certain areas and some are strong in others, but no
one is equally capable in all eight. Using examples drawn from his own extensive
experience, Dr. Levine shows how parents and children can identify their
strengths and weaknesses to determine their individual learning styles.
For example, some students are creative and write imaginatively, but do poorly
in history because weak memory skills prevent them from retaining facts. Some
students are weak in sequential ordering and can't follow directions. They may
test poorly, and often don't do well in mathematics. In these cases, Dr. Levine
observes, the problem is not a lack of intelligence, but a learning style that
doesn't fit the assignment. Drawing on his pioneering research and his work with
thousands of students, Dr. Levine shows how parents and teachers can develop
effective strategies to work through or around these weaknesses.
"It's taken for granted in adult society that we cannot all be
'generalists' skilled in every area of learning and mastery. Nevertheless, we
apply tremendous pressure to our children to be good at everything. They
are expected to shine in math, reading, writing, speaking, spelling,
memorization, comprehension, problem solving...and none of us adults can do all
this," observes Dr. Levine. Learning begins in school, but it doesn't end
there. Frustrating a child's desire to learn will have lifelong repercussions.
This frustration can be avoided if we understand that not every child can do
equally well in every type of learning. We must begin to pay more attention to
individual learning styles, to individual minds, urges Dr. Levine, so that we
can maximize children's learning potential. In A
Mind at a Time, he shows us how.
These books give excellent information about learning styles. They are full of practical ideas. Click on the book image to order online.
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