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Understanding and Supporting Different Learning Styles in Young Children

By understanding how each child learns and remembers, parents and caregivers at a preschool in Potomac, MD can ensure every child thrives in a learning environment tailored to their individual needs. Learning styles do more than just teach kids how to read and do math. Every learning style out there teaches kids about confidence. The more your child learns, the better—it helps them discover just how much they’re truly capable of.

What are the Different Types of Learning Styles?

Our senses shape our learning styles and how we connect with information to understand and remember it. Before we go any further, let’s take a minute to go over the four learning styles.

Colorful Pop Tubes and Pop it fidgets

Kinesthetic

People who learn best by doing and moving around are what we call kinesthetic learners. These kids need to actually do things instead of being shown how to do them. They learn by seeing, touching, tasting, smelling, and hearing. You can often find them moving or doing things with their hands because they like to use their whole bodies.

Your child might be a kinesthetic learner if they excel at things requiring gross motor skills like sports or dance. It might be hard for these students to sit still in class. A wobbly chair or a fidget spinner can help kids who need to move around.

Girl listening to music with headphone and enjoying learning outside

Auditory

If your child is what experts call an auditory learner, they do best by hearing and listening to things. These children love listening to what is being said, and they might enjoy having stories read to them. When reading to themselves, these kids often say certain words out loud to help them remember what they are learning.

Most kids who learn best by hearing often have an excellent sense of rhythm and pitch. These kids can easily pick up on the slightest change in a person’s tone of voice. One common trait of auditory learners is they may be interested in music from a very young age.

Happy kids at a preschool in Potomac, MD having fun and drawing with teacher.

Visual

Kids who learn best by seeing and reading information are visual learners. Written instructions and visual images work best to support this kind of learning style. Videos are super helpful for kids who learn best by watching. Most of these kids tend to forget spoken instructions if no visual cues or reminders are used.

Kids who learn through visuals often develop a keen sense of spatial awareness and usually excel at picturing information or ideas. Those who learn best through visuals might find joy in reading and art. They might really love beautifully illustrated picture books or find diagrams and maps quite fascinating.

Little girl playing with blue kinetic sand at a preschool in Potomac, MD

Tactile

If you have a kid who is constantly touching and playing with things, you most likely have a tactile learner. These kids simply need to touch things to actually understand things. Many of these kids will also draw th

ings out or move things around to help them gain a better understanding. Giving these types of learners something to touch or hold onto will drastically improve their listening. For kids who are physical learners, Lego sets or things they always want to touch will likely be important to them.

How to Understand Your Child’s Learning Style

If you want to understand your child’s learning style, first you need to figure out what it is. The only way to determine your child’s learning style is by watching them at home and at a preschool in North Potomac, MD. You want to pay attention to how they interact with other people, but also look at the kinds of toys they choose to play with.

It’s also a good idea to note your child’s weaknesses. Noting where they might be lagging a bit or which tasks they find tricky can really help you figure out their learning style. Take, for instance, a child who finds it hard to follow spoken instructions; they might be more of a visual learner. On the other hand, a child who has difficulty staying seated in class could be a kinesthetic learner.

Why is Understanding Children’s Learning Styles Important?

As parents, it’s important that you understand your child’s learning style. If you don’t understand how your child learns best, you won’t be able to teach them important skills. Once you and your child figure out their favorite way to learn, you might notice they grasp new information more easily and start seeing learning as something fun instead of boring. Understanding how your child learns and getting them excited about learning can significantly enhance their confidence, which makes a huge impact as kids become older.

How to Support Learners with Different Learning Styles

Multimodal or multi-sensory learning is the best approach for supporting kids with different learning styles. This means that you should deliver information using a mix of hearing, seeing, and touching.

A multimodal action would be a flashcard game in which the word is read aloud and acted out repeatedly, using both the auditory and visual systems. If the kids wrote down the word and its meaning, they would use reading and writing skills. Acting out what is being said is another way to engage a child’s senses.

It is normal for kids to have one or two main ways of learning, but it is helpful to use all of them at the same time. Learning in more than one way can help the brain focus more and remember more of what it learns. It also allows children to improve their learning skills, as they are able to practice the different styles.

Final Thoughts

One of the best ways to help your child succeed is by understanding and supporting their unique learning style. As you observe your child, it’s important to remember that no rule states your child can only have one learning style. Chances are your child easily fits into more than one. It’s also likely that their learning style will change as your child grows. Most infants and toddlers are what experts call tactile learners. However, they may become more visual or aural learners as they grow.

Your child’s learning style is one of many ways your child can learn and grow. Knowing their primary learning type is a valuable tool, but they should be exposed to a variety of learning methods. Every child is unique, and learning style is only one aspect of the way your child learns.

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