All children start out motivated, but all students get frustrated at school. All first grade children know they are going to go to school to learn to read and write and do 'rithmetic and grow up to become a fireman, astronaut, or surfer. Parents, teachers and students need to know why students get "stuck" and how to work around it all.
Everyone has areas of intellectual strengths and personal learning styles. Most people get the majority of their information by seeing. Others are able to learn better by hearing, and still others by doing. The most efficient way for the average person to learn is to combine as many types of input as possible, including looking, listening, touching, feeling and doing.
Some people, on the other hand, may be weak in one or more areas, so they do not learn easily in school. Different learning styles are a normal variation, and it does not relate to intelligence. Confusion also occurs when the student's learning style is different from the teacher's learning and teaching style. This causes much frustration in a classroom situation. The teacher in a classroom, of course, needs to present instructions and lessons in all three major learning styles so that all students can follow the lesson. If you are the parent, be sure to use your child's major learning style (which may not be your own), to present new information and give directions. Also, encourage him to practice the other learning styles so he is strengthened overall as a learner.
Schools teach primarily through seeing and listening. That is, the teacher talks and shows things on the chalkboard or projected on a screen, then gives the students work sheets and books to look at. If the student's visual or auditory perception is weak, the student will struggle in school. Students with weaknesses in the reading readiness skills such as visual and auditory perception, speech, and muscle coordination will have a further problem in school if the teacher does not accommodate for their learning styles.
Students with visual perception weaknesses will have difficulty following the teacher's written directions. The teachers will tend to complain that the student does not focus on a task with it is given without an explanation and sample problems. The student won't follow the directions printed on the work sheets. They may say the student doesn't read the directions or follow them, and talks with his friends about what to do. This student may also have difficulty building up a visual image or remembering a picture. They may not be able to copy from the chalk board accurately. Nearsightedness just makes this ask more formidable. Students with visual perception weaknesses need the assignment printed out of them, then listen to their lessons explained out loud. They will need to discuss this activity, and perform it before learning it effectively and well. Tell the student what he is to do, ask him to repeat the directions back to you, and then let him do a sample problem or two. This student may also read aloud to himself to get the auditory input he needs. Later, when his visual perception is built up, he will need to outgrow the crutch of reading aloud to himself.
Students with auditory perception weaknesses will have difficulty following the teachers' spoken directions. The students will appear not to pay attention in class. The teacher may exhaust himself discussing the directions out loud, and after several repetitions, may find the student is even more confused. Students with auditory perception confusions will need the assignment printed out for them, to see, read and manipulate or perform an activity before they can learn effectively. This student will benefit from learning to read, and needs written instructions, pictures, diagrams and charts of how to do his assignment. He needs to see it and do some sample problems to successfully complete an activity. This student may have difficulty building up an auditory memory or image, and remembering spoken directions. This student may well read poorly aloud, yet read silently at a high level.
Still other students have trouble with motor coordination, and can't write down their information easily although they can read adequately and answer out loud. They need help with typing and computers so they can compensate for their weak areas. These students also need written instructions.
Some students struggle with integration. This means they have trouble putting it all together. The student may even be strong in the various learning styles, and still have difficulty integrating or blending these skills together to learn the alphabet, word recognition and build reading comprehension. These students are often helped by moving rhythmically and use music and body movements to integrate the sight and sounds of words.
Students with both Visual and Auditory perception difficulties do not learn well by looking at or listening to instructions. They can't build an image in their mind, or recall what they were supposed to do. They can learn kinesthetically, by touch and feel. These students can learn very thoroughly by manipulating, experiencing, performing, practicing and exercising their muscles to learn. Most of these students not only use the large and small muscle memory, but also tactile input including the sensations of touch, feeling of texture, pressure, heat and cold, edges, motions and so on.
One student who was quite sure that he could never learn because he couldn't build a mental picture or remember anything used this method to learn. In a moment of desperation, the teacher asked "What did you eat for lunch?" "A chili corn dog" was the answer. He had a great memory for taste and smell. In 10 minutes of excited discussion he was able to use the vivid image of the tastes to build in his mind what the chili dog looked like and what it sounded like as he ate it with the taco chips. A student like him will benefit from a very understanding teacher, or even from special education placement. He remembered well what was connected to his excellent memory for tastes.
Use what works for your student. Forget about theory, how you learn, or how another student learned. Resolve your student's skill difficulties so he will have success. Be grateful for what works, and use your students' strong skill areas to build success
