Different children approach learning in different ways: some learn best by reading or listening, some by reasoning, some by seeing or creating images, and others by manipulating. By discovering more about your child’s learning profile, you can help your child approach a more difficult topic by building off her areas of strength. For example, if your child does best when she can “see” what is being asked of her, she can leverage mind maps or other visuals to learn. Similarly, you can foster less utilized ways of learning by approaching an area of mastery through a less favored aspect of her learning profile. Thus, you can encourage this same visual child to look for mathematical patterns, or ask her to write a story by way of a graphic novel. Now that you have completed the survey, take a look at your child’s dominant way of approaching learning.
Athlete/Actor/Surgeon
Your Athlete/Actor/Surgeon may seem to always be on the move. She is skilled at controlling her body movements and can utilize objects with skill and precision. She has a strong sense of timing, rhythm, balance, and coordination. She tends to learn best by doing, such as building or constructing projects, and she develops muscle memory to aid recall. For the Athlete/Actor/Surgeon, touching and manipulating objects facilitates understanding, and she tends to express emotions through body movement as well.
Due to your child’s need to move, you may worry about her attention span or ability to listen. You may notice your child’s propensity to run, to fidget, to always be playing with something. While there will certainly be times to reign in your Athlete/Actor/Surgeon’s frequent touching, remind yourself that your child is learning about tools, precise movements, and object attributes as she manipulates objects. Your child likely loves dramatic play, superhero adventures, and using dad’s tools. She is probably a tinkerer and often engages expressive gestures.
For some activities and resources that will benefit your Athlete/Actor/Surgeon, click here.
