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There are many ways to learn, at any age. How do you learn? Are you a "hands on" person or one who has to read something, or do you have to hear something? Do you have no problem learning things you are interested in and can't for the life of you learn anything you find boring?
Welcome to the human race.
If you have a child in your home, how does he or she learn? You may have already done the "Stove is HOT!" and the slap to the hand bit. That's a classic. It's also a great example of hands on learning.
Ask the adults in your life how they learn. You may be surprised at the results and how they came about. The person you think is so smart and learns so easily may have to read new material three times and write it out longhand.
Another adult may have to learn something with a strong audio aspect, like books on tape. People don't usually think much about how they learn but they do have their own method that works for them and they learned their technique early in life.
Your child is learning right now, from everything he comes into contact with. Unless you expose him to reading at an early age, he won't use that method in later life. You can use what your child likes and turn that into a fun learning experience.
Since each person's brain works differently, it is not possible for a classroom of 25 students to each have their individual needs met. At home, you can take the time to develop learning programs that not only suit your child, but work very quickly!
Learning Styles: Being different is O.K.
VISUAL/SPATIAL - people who learn best visually and organize things spatially. They understand best when they can see what you are talking about. They enjoy charts, maps, art, and illustrations.
VERBAL/LINGUISTIC - people who demonstrate strength in the language arts: speaking, writing, reading, and listening.
MATHEMATICAL/LOGICAL - people who are good with numbers, reasoning and problem solving.
BODILY/KINESTHETIC - people who learn best through activities and movement.
MUSICAL/RHYTHMIC - people who learn well through songs, patterns, instruments and with musical expression.
INTRAPERSONAL - people who are especially in touch with their own feelings, values and ideas.
INTERPERSONAL - people who are very people oriented and outgoing and like to learn in a group.
NATURALIST - people who love the outdoors, animals, and learning about nature.
EXISTENTIALIST - people who learn in the "big picture" of existence and like to ask questions about humankind.
Marie was adopted at the age of 9, a beautiful Traumatic Brain Injured child who could not read, hold a pencil or spoon, wash her hair, talk, put on shoes, etc... The State was happy to let her stay rocking in a corner for the rest of her life, banging her head into the wall, and trying to rip her face off.
The one thing Marie loved was "zoning out" from the world in front of the TV. Her new Mom told her that she couldn't watch anything that they couldn't read in the TV guide, surfing wasn't allowed here. Mom held out the TV guide and sounded out each word while moving her finger along and Marie sounded out with her. In six months she was reading out loud from an Asimov book in the kitchen while Mom was making dinner. Reading to Mom became a way to not only socialize but get the attention she wanted in a healthy and productive manner.
While Marie will always be TBI with a Math Disorder, she will be a lifetime reader. She is now 21, married, and reads everything she can get her hands on.
Peter was a wild child that some experts today would call Bi-polar or ADHD. When he was in the second grade they called him "stupid" and demanded he be put on drugs so he would sit still. After being moved to another school, a teacher took the time to listen.
His favorite game at home was to answer verbal math problems you would see on a high school student's homework paper. When Sis got into the second and third powers in the verbal equation... it was time for someone to listen. While Peter hated holding a book and reading anything, he was a verbal learner and a math genius.
Peter was so bored out of his mind in school that he moved around, looked out the window, his eye went to every movement in the room, he learned to become the class clown and a pool shark. "It's just math, Sis."
He is retired from the NAVY now with a good job selling jewelry.
Working with parents of Special Needs kids has taught me that the human mind learns all the time, in every way, to make us the sum total of our experiences.
Teachers are very busy people, so it is up to the parents to find that magic combination of items that lead to quick and fun learning experiences. Don't push traditional methods that don't work for your child. It not only won't work, it'll just frustrate the child and make you so miserable that you'll both give up on what could be a fun experience for you both.
Samantha Phillipe
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