Did you know there are a number of different learning styles? Common ones include visual, auditory, verbal, tactile, and logical. Some of us learn best by incorporating visuals while some of us learn simply by listening. Knowing what kind of a learner our child is can have huge benefits if they are struggling inside the classroom to grasp concepts. Did you know that over 65% of the population are visual learners? The way we teach our children has become an important topic of conversation. Some examples of different types of learners:

If your child is a Visual Spatial Learner: they may enjoy puzzles, colouring, and drawing. Your child may excel in building, mentally manipulating objects, and reading maps.

If your child is a Verbal/Linguistic Learner: they may have a large vocabulary and as a parent, you may feel they are talking nonstop! They have an innate understanding for language, word meanings, sentence structure, and enjoy the basics of learning such as reading and writing.

If your child is a Tactile Learner: they may learn best through hands on activities. They learn best by moving, doing, and building rather than by listening or reading.

If your child is struggling with their academics a cognitive assessment may provide valuable insight into their specific strengths and weaknesses. It can identify how your child learns best and together we can implement a plan to focus on your child’s individual strengths to help them be successful. So, next time you are helping your child with their homework, try something different. Talk through the math problem in a different way. Incorporate visuals to help them process the information. Have them build a 3D model! After all, we are all unique, why would our learning styles all be the same?

WRITTEN BY ASHLEY CARLSON, PROVISIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST WITH WILDFLOWERS