As your kids head back to school this fall, one of your top priorities as a parent is to help them with their homework. But how do you best do that? To ensure they truly understand the material, knowing how they learn is useful. Researchers have discovered four major learning styles: visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinesthetic. Below are brief descriptions of each learning style and how you can tailor your homework help.
Auditory Learners
HOW THEY LEARN: Auditory learners process new information by explaining it out loud or by vocalizing it themselves. A sign that your kids might be auditory learners is that they “read” books out loud to themselves, even before they learned to read properly. Another sign is that they love listening to music and singing. At school, auditory learners often hum when they do their work.
HOW TO HELP WITH HOMEWORK: Have your kids vocalize their study material. Making up rhymes and songs will help them better remember them. Have them record themselves explaining the material so they can listen to it whenever needed. If they have a difficult time understanding something, explain it to them orally. Since auditory learners are highly sensitive to auditory stimuli, they play classical or instrumental music in the background when studying.
Visual Learners
HOW THEY LEARN: Visual learners process new information by seeing it. A sign that your kids might be visual learners is that they lingered over illustrations in books and other visual stimuli from a young age. Another sign is that they love to draw or paint. At school, visual learners often doodle when they listen to the teacher. It helps them better understand and remember the material.
HOW TO HELP WITH HOMEWORK: Have your kids create visual representations of the material they’re supposed to learn. This can be charts, diagrams, figures, maps, and timelines. Other useful tools include color-coded flashcards, sticky notes, and folders. If they have a hard time understanding something, show them how it’s done instead of telling them how to do it. Since visual learners often get distracted by too many visual stimuli, keeping their study space neat and clutter-free is important.
Reading/Writing Learners
HOW THEY LEARN: Some kids process new information by reading or writing about it. A sign that your kids might be reading/writing learners is that they enjoy keeping a journal or writing creative stories. At school, reading/writing learners are especially good at taking notes from their textbooks and what the teachers write down on the blackboard.
HOW TO HELP WITH HOMEWORK: Have your kids write down what they’re supposed to learn in an organized way. Have them create detailed study notes, organized nicely into sections with proper headings. Get them to look up information online and in reference material as they work. Since reading and writing require focus, make sure their study space is nice and quiet.
Kinesthetic Learners
HOW THEY LEARN: Kinesthetic learners process new information through hands-on activities that allow them to touch and manipulate objects. Your kids might be kinesthetic learners because they love creating new things with building blocks or taking things apart to see how they work. At school, kinesthetic learners especially enjoy tactile scientific experiments.
HOW TO HELP WITH HOMEWORK: Have your kids study with physical objects. This can be using coins to learn math or cutting letters to practice spelling. Since touch and movement help kinesthetic learners process new information, encourage them to stretch regularly or move when they study.
Tanni Haas, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Department of Communication Arts, Sciences, and Disorders at the City University of New York – Brooklyn College.