Offer a Learning Buffet

We all have unique learning styles.  Recognizing that everyone has strengths and weaknesses, it is important, especially when homeschooling your children, that you tailor-make your child’s learning experience.  

Homeschool mom, please ditch the bland, boring, uniform “school lunch plate” teaching style and look for ways to lay out a tempting, tantalizing learning buffet — offer your children a delightful range of choices so that they can express their learning with delight and motivation!

 

As you plan, think ~

“What different ways can  my child approach this? ”  OR

“How can I present different options for my child to best express their learning?”

There are 3 basic learning styles ~

• Visual (Looking) ~ prefers images, pictures, colors, and maps to organize information,  uses illustrations, maps, graphs, diagrams, graphics, uses colored highlighters to mark notes, enjoys reading posters and charts, infographics, flow charts, mind maps, watches educational videos
• Auditory (Hearing) ~ learns through listening, needs to hear or speak, listen or create recordings, listens to audio books, listens to explanations, needs quiet surroundings, use headphones or earphones to block out noise, may prefer music in background, talks about the work as he is learning
• Kinesthetic (Doing) ~  learns best when physically active, uses his body and sense of touch to learn, like sports and exercise, likes to move while thinking, uses hand gestures and body language to communicate, fidgets, should sit on an exercise ball instead of a chair,  acts out explanations, enjoys physical construction, handcrafts, origami, Lego,and handcrafts

But there are several other unique learning preferences such as Intrapersonal (Solitary), Interpersonal (Social), Linguistic (Language), Musical (Song & Music), Mathematical (Logical), Naturalistic (Nature), which I will share in detail in another post.

 

Essentially, you need to know your child’s learning style in order to present options that they will enjoy.  

I recently looked at some of the online quizzes to help you find your and your child’s learning identity ~

• https://www.learning-styles-online.com/inventory/ moms may need to help the child complete the really long quiz, but they provide lovely, clear descriptions of each learning style
• Homeschooling Determining Each Childs Learning Style
• http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-assessments/learning-styles-quiz.shtml  – simple child friendly questions
• http://www.howtolearn.com/learning-styles-quiz/
• https://www.edutopia.org/multiple-intelligences-assessment  – quick, easy and fast quiz with simple questions and clear results
• http://www.whatismylearningstyle.com/learning-style-test-1.html   quick child-friendly quiz and excellent information on each learning style
• http://www.brainboxx.co.uk/a3_aspects/pages/vak_quest.htm  – simple visual quiz with colored boxes once answered showing one of the 3 basic learning styles
• https://www.how-to-study.com/learning-style-assessment/   – the basic 3 learning styles with lots of learning ideas for each style
• https://www.thoughtco.com/learning-style-quiz-4076781  – lovely ideas shared in the results

Instead of insisting on exactly how you think a child should present their work, rather offer a variety of options, and allow the child to makes their own choices, so that their attitude and approach to their work is creative, motivated and unique.  

Think of preparing a buffet meal instead of a set menu!

Recently I created a Narration Ideas Booklet with over 100 narration ideas and templates.  Most of these options are birthed out of the understanding of different learning styles.  This booklet is available on my Packages Page and will help you offer a vast range of learning opportunities.

I hope that this post inspires you to explore your child’s learning identity so that you can facilitate and present them with options that best suit their learning style.

Blessings, Nadene

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