Children have different ways of learning which the education experts have roughly grouped these into three basic styles – auditory, visual and kinaesthetic.

It is estimated that 80 percent of what we learn is through our vision. Students of this style are drawn to paintings, crafts, and other arts. They also have a wonderful sense of imagination and are known to be very creative. Children who are primarily visual learners tend to get information through reading books. They can also learn more from pictures and other visual materials. If you notice that your child is tidy and organised in their learning habits, then he might be a visual learner.

Visual learners

As their name suggests, these people learn through watching. It’s believed to be the most dominant learning style and many traditional classrooms are geared towards the visual learner. For their learning to make sense they need to be able to see, visualise and illustrate their knowledge skills and concepts. Visual learning characteristics include:

• remembering visual details
• preferring to see what they are learning
• needing to have paper and pens handy
• doodling while listening
• liking to write down instructions or see them demonstrated

Telling these learners how to do something may not make sense to them at all – they need to see it.

It’s important to watch your child’s learning behaviors to determine whether he is a visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learner. When parents know their child’s best way to learn, they can help their child learn more effectively. And part of this process is for parents to understand their own learning style because we tend to teach in that style.