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Outfit Your Child For School Success

Understand His Or Her Unique "Learning Style"

Back-to-school season is just around the corner, which means it's time to pick out new clothes, shoes, backpacks and school supplies. As you outfit your child with the latest fashion styles, be sure that you prepare for a successful school year by understanding your child's "learning style."

People learn in at least eight different ways, according to the Multiple Intelligences Theory: visually, verbally, physically, mathematically, musically, naturalistically, through group activity or through quiet thinking time. Parents can talk with their children about components, such as numbers, music, people, self, body, language, images and nature, but it is up the child to develop study habits that mesh with his or her personal learning style.

To help students understand their individual strengths, try these activities.

Elementary School:

Using old magazines, children can cut out pictures that demonstrate the way they have fun learning. Do they show musical intelligence by playing an instrument? Are they word smart, always with their noses in a book? Do they love sports and show strength in being "body smart?" Paste the pictures in a notebook and make notes about the types of intelligence they feel are their strongest so they can try to pursue them in the classroom.

Junior High School:

Students can make their family trees. Have them identify and discuss each member of the family's occupation and how he or she demonstrated the various intelligences. Were they musicians, accountants, sports enthusiasts or artists? Do any intelligences seem to "run in the family?"

Label eight boxes with the various forms of intelligence. The children should place their names in the box (or boxes) that they feel are their strongest forms of intelligence. Have them do the same for each immediate family member. Share the results with the family or anyone who assists the children in learning so they understand how the child learns too.

High School:

Explain the multiple intelligences. Have students pick one of the eight categories to explore during the year. For instance:

Visual/Spatial learners enjoy photography, visual metaphors, puzzles, illustrations and story maps. Seeing a bar graph on the cost of different cars, for instance, would be a better learning tool than hearing a list of prices read aloud.

Verbal/Linguistic learners shine in activities such as storytelling, public speaking, drama and journal writing. Give children journals to keep for one month. Encourage them to write detailed descriptions of what they see, taste, feel and hear.

Bodily/Kinesthetic learners thrive on hands-on experiments, field trips, body language, crafts and sports. Take a field trip to a local factory, then make a visual display of what was learned.

Logical/Mathematical learners tend to be better at problem-solving, coding, data collecting, money management and scientific models. Help your child create a budget sheet that itemizes every cent spent during a one-month period. Determine what category drew the biggest expenses.

Musical/Rhythmic students may play an instrument, sing, hum or tap during work or require background music while they study. Turn memorization exercises into rhythmic word play and set it to any musical style.

Intrapersonal learners work better alone, doing individual study, personal goal-setting and self-esteem activities. This type of student can write down one objective and record the steps to achieving it.

Interpersonal learners work better in group activities, such as clubs, peer teaching, conflict mediation and active discussions. They would enjoy volunteering at a nursing home, women's shelter or charity and documenting the experience in a journal.

Naturalist learners tend to better understand ideas when it is related to a natural occurrence. These learners prefer outdoor activities (e.g., camping, gardening, hiking, bird-watching, etc).