When you take a job in education, you have to know that there are going to be many different types of kids. You will have to deal with a broad range of personality types and therefore have to cater to them in certain ways. Your job as an educator is to better their lives and provide them with a good solid education and foundation for the rest of their lives. That being said, there are many different learning styles. No matter what the age of the kids you teach or how many you have in your class, there are bound to be different styles of learning. When you accept this fact and figure out that you must approach these differently, you will excel at your career. Therefore let’s take a look at the various types of learning and learners that there are.
The Observant Learner
There are some kids that learn by observation. This may show through in their socialization and their integration with other kids from an early age. They may be the type that needs to take it all in and inspect their environment before they set foot to the next level. If this sounds like some kids that you work with, then you must let them take everything in before you hammer them with the details. They must learn to embrace their environment first and foremost, and then observe what is happening. Once they do this, they can learn quite comfortably and get the most out of their education.
The Hands On Learner
There are some kids that learn by touching. This may sound silly or trite, but it’s true. The more that they can touch the subject matter and get their hands into the details, the better they will learn. From an early age they may learn through texture and the sense of touch more so than any other senses that they have. This is just the way that they are built and they may have a necessity to touch things to learn them. They may do very well in hands on experiments and integrated learning plans. They have an ability to take everything in by touching and this can be shown by lessons that allow them to touch what you are working with. They can do very well in the arts and in setting up ways of learning on their own terms.
The Visual Learner
There are some learners that may have the ability to take in all of the details on a very visual level. This may come in the way of almost a combination of hands on and observant learning whereby they take everything in and must set up little experiments. They may learn to count by holding items in their hands. They may need to work out math problems on paper extensively before they learn certain concepts. There is nothing wrong with this; it’s really just the way that they learn. So for those that learn in this matter, you need to give them opportunities and tools that allow them to visualize what you are trying to teach them.
Learning is different for everyone, and you must adapt accordingly. If you have different students you are bound to have different personalities and different learning styles to accompany them.
