Identifying Learning Styles
To help identify students’ learning styles “How are You Smart?” contains a number of questionnaires. These will help students recognize their strengths. The article below gives several strategies for each learning style. Teaching students about how they remember best will enable them to be more successful in school. The article below summarizes homework strategies from a book by Vicki Lyon.
Homework Help and Study Strategies
by Vicki Lyon
Visual Strategies:
- Use color codes for notes, study sheets and flashcards
- Visualize information - get the big picture
- Take notes: on flashcards, graphic organizers, study sheets, notebook paper
- Use pictures from magazines or on-line and put on flashcards or notes
- Watch a movie on the topic being studied (a good website: historychannel.com or Schoolhouse Rock, Standard Deviants have many topics on DVD)
- Read a map or a timeline and make one to help visual information being studied
- Read or create a chart or graph on material studied
- Put together or create a puzzle
- Make a drawing
- Use mnemonics:
- Acronyms for what is being studied (HOMES for the Great Lakes)
- Acrostics - first letter goes with information or a word
- Rhymes
- Poem
- Song/rap
- Use graph paper or turn lined paper sideways to make columns for numbers to stay in the correct order
Auditory Strategies:
- Listen to a book on tape while reading it
- Listen to a song on the subject (Schoolhouse Rock has many topics)
- Read aloud
- Repeat information out loud
- Have discussion with someone on the topic
- Use mnemonics
- Tape record information while playing it back, repeat it with the tape
Kinesthetic/Hands-On Strategies:
- Play cards or board games on math topics
- Make up cards to play Jeopardy style game, Bingo, Matching
- Use dice or Dominos to practice skills
- Jump rope, dribble a ball, play hopscotch while repeating information aloud
- Dance while repeating information aloud
- Role play
- Write with your finger on a surface to practice a skill; sand, shaving cream, dish soap
- Write in the air and practice spelling
- Use Play dough or cookie dough and form words