Learning is a personal process. Each of us has a unique way of taking in new information, understanding concepts, and retaining knowledge. For people of all ages, knowing how you best learn is an important tool to have.
Traditional methods of teaching can be difficult for some people. You may have thought, “I’m not good at math,” or “I can’t memorize historical events,” and convince yourself that you are just not smart or not capable, but that is not the case! Different people learn best in different ways. It isn’t about the material, but how it is presented to you. By identifying what channels are the best for your learning process, you can be more efficient in picking up new knowledge and even enjoy learning new things.
Let’s explore some of the different learning styles, each with its own approach to communicating information.
Visual
Monkey see, monkey do. Visual learning is a key method we use to learn, especially as little kids. When visual learners see information expressed in a graph or diagram, everything just clicks in their brains. These people need to see it to believe it, or at least to remember it. A verbal explanation can easily go in one ear and out the other. Instead, people strong in visual learning prefer visual aids such as diagrams, charts, graphs, and videos to bring to life different concepts.
Try: Drawing and labeling diagrams, creating illustrations, watching simulations or 3-D renderings, watching someone else do a task and copying it, mind mapping, color coding
Auditory
Auditory learners use another one of our five senses, hearing, to take in information and retain it. These types of learners prefer spoken explanations, lectures, and discussions. They have a knack for remembering information that is presented verbally and benefit from repeating information aloud or discussing concepts with others.
Try: Reading out loud, listening to someone explain, talking it over with someone, explaining a concept aloud, making songs to memorize a list, listening to audiobooks.
Kinesthetic or Tactile
Kinesthetic learners learn best through hands-on experiences and physical activities. Do it with your hands. Movement such as pacing can help with concentration and focus. The brain is a muscle too, and when the blood is flowing, kinesthetic learners thrive in environments where they can engage in activities such as experiments, simulations, role-playing, and interactive projects.
Try: Making a model, drawing, hands-on workshops, experiments, making it into a physical game, visiting an interactive museum, role-playing.
A logical learner needs to understand what they are learning on a deep level. Memorizing facts will not satisfy without putting information into a larger context. Logical learners thrive with orderly and sequential processes illustrating things like cause and effect or understanding relationships.
Try: Flow charts, logic quizzes or puzzles, problem-solving tasks, Venn diagrams, drawing timelines.
Linguistic
For linguistic learners, it is all about the written and spoken word. They excel at reading books and prefer written instructions. They are also skilled at synthesizing and summarizing information through writing.
Try: flashcards, rewriting notes, written summaries, reading, mnemonics, rhymes, writing outlines.
Solitary
These people like to learn independently on their own. They prefer being self-taught, self-motivated and are best when they work at their own pace. Being self-directed allows these types of learners to find connections and memory aids that work for them. They are guided by their own learning interests. Quite environments like libraries work well for these solitary learners.
Try: Quiet places, study schedules, setting clear objectives.
On the other end of the spectrum from solitary learners are social learners, who thrive in group settings and collaborative environments. They enjoy interacting with others, sharing ideas, and working together to solve problems. Gamify learning and harness the drive to beat a competitor to your advantage.
Try: Quizzing each other, a game of Jeopardy, study groups, group discussions, peer feedback.
Understanding the diversity of learning styles is helpful for educators, parents, and students.
We all have capabilities in many of the learning categories. Whatever method is your strength, you can try mixing it up to see how different learning methods approach the same topic in new ways. You might just see things from a whole new perspective. The takeaway is to see that there are many ways to communicate information, and if one method doesn’t work, you can always try a different route.
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