A big piece of homeschooling successfully is determining your child’s learning style. Most children favor one of the four main learning styles, which means they learn better when they receive information in a way they process better.
If you are trying to decide on a curriculum or are concerned about which teaching methods will work best with your child’s learning style, here is an overview of the top three teaching methods and individual learning styles.
Creating a Learning Environment for Children
Traditional Textbook/Workbook
This educational method relies on textbooks and often workbooks for each subject, with analysis questions, hands-on activities in areas such as science, and quizzes and tests. A structured ‘scope and sequence’ is used to ensure that all relevant concepts are included at the appropriate level. The scope and sequence for Bob Jones science curriculum, for example, systematically covers a variety of topics in grades 1-6 to give a good foundation for understanding science. In seventh grade covers Life Science, Earth Science in eighth grade, the Physical World in ninth, Biology in tenth, Chemistry in eleventh, and Physics in twelfth grade.
Most topics are introduced at the grade school level and then developed in much more depth at junior high and high school levels. This approach ensures that you adequately cover topics at an appropriate depth of study. A varying amount of teacher preparation is necessary. Curriculums that use this style include Bob Jones, A Beka, Alpha Omega LifePacs (workbook-based), and the Apologia science curriculum.
Advantages: The curriculum that uses this format usually has good scope and sequence, providing foundational knowledge on all topics and then building on that through the high school years.
Disadvantages: This type is not usually as flexible as other methods – the course is built around a textbook and workbooks and often cannot be easily adjusted to include more in-depth studies in specific areas your kids are interested in.
Unit Studies
These are flexible studies of particular topics that have been designed or adapted by the teacher to meet the specific needs and interests of their children. Unit studies usually integrate one area of study (e.g., the Renaissance) with literature, history, vocabulary, etc. This approach requires more preparation and planning time but is highly flexible.
Usually, unit studies work best in the elementary grades. KONOS is the primary unit study guide for all subjects. Home Science Tools has a unit study designed for elementary-level science – Explore science.
Advantages: This method allows you to focus on specific topics that interest you and your children without being limited to textbooks. It also works well for teaching multiple ages.
Disadvantages: Unit studies require more teacher preparation time. It may take more effort to ensure all relevant topics are covered; therefore, the parent must carefully plan a scope and sequence.
- See our Selecting a Science Curriculum Science Lesson for more information on specific science curriculum and unit studies.
Classical Education
This method is based on the ancient model of education used from the time of the Roman empire through the Middle Ages. It divides education into two parts, the trivium, and quadrivium. The trivium consists of three stages – Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric.
Dorothy Sayers describes the three stages in modern terms – poll parrot (memorization and repetition), pert (questioning), and poetic (communicating well). (You can read more in her Lost Tools of Learning article.)
These stages model how most children learn: when they are very young, they have an immense capacity to memorize without complete understanding (Grammar stage, ages 9-11). As they grow older, they begin to question and understand more and more – the Logic stage (ages 12-14) equips them to reason and use the information they learned in the Grammar stage. The final step, Rhetoric (ages 14-16), teaches them to understand the material they have learned and to organize and communicate that material persuasively. During this stage, they study the quadrivium, which consists of particular areas of study. Since the children have learned how to research and reason during their analysis of the trivium, they are ready to study in-depth the subjects God has most gifted them – music, science, humanities, etc.
Advantages: The trivium sequence accurately models how most children learn, and therefore is very effective.
Disadvantages: Classical Education often closely follows the content of ancient education and includes languages such as Latin and the study of the ‘Great Books.’ While this is beneficial for the humanities-oriented students, it may not be the best choice for students who are strong in math and science and weak in the language arts.
Learning Styles of Children
Before choosing a curriculum or teaching style, consider your child’s preferred learning style.
One of the most accepted understandings of learning styles is that student learning styles fall into three categories: Visual Learners, Auditory Learners, and Kinesthetic Learners. These learning styles are found within educational theorist Neil Fleming’s VARK model of Student Learning. VARK is an acronym that refers to the four types of learning styles: Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing Preference, and Kinesthetic. (The VARK model is also referred to as the VAK model, eliminating Reading/Writing as a category of preferential learning.) The VARK model acknowledges that students have different approaches to how they process information, referred to as “preferred learning modes.”
Auditory Learners
Kids (and parents!) have different learning styles. If your child learns primarily through hearing information, keep this in mind as you teach. Videos, audios, or simply reading aloud to them are ways to make learning more effective for auditory learners. Using verbal discussion is a helpful review method.
Visual Learners
If your child is a visual learner, they can remember information best by reading or seeing it. Capitalize on this by offering books related to specific topics and visual aids like charts, maps, and graphs. Writing things down on a whiteboard as you teach or encouraging note-taking can also be helpful for your children who benefit from a visual learning style.
Reading and Writing Learners
Children who learn best by reading and writing tend to prefer to learn by reading notes, handouts, and using textbooks. These children will make use of dictionaries and other reference materials. They can benefit by doing copy work or worksheets.
Kinesthetic Learners
Kinesthetic learners do best when using their hands and tactile senses. Doing hands-on experiments in science or taking field trips are a few ways to enhance school for this learner.
You can be sensitive to your child’s needs while at the same time encouraging them to develop in other learning areas as well. Assigning exciting but not too technical books, or requiring some extra do-it-yourself hands-on activities, can help them achieve a little more balance. Also, any student can benefit from research projects—encourage them to dive into topics they enjoy or are interested in.
Learning styles group common ways that people learn. Everyone has a mix of learning styles. Some people may find that they have a dominant style of learning, with far less use of the other styles. Others may find that they use different styles in different circumstances. There is no right mix. Nor are your styles fixed. Children may develop ability in less dominant styles, as well as further develop styles that you already use well.
By understanding the different learning styles, types of learners and identifying which kind of learner you and/or your students are, you will be able to gain a better perspective on how to implement these learning styles and various instructional methods into your lesson plans.
