What's Your Kid's Learning Style?

Every child learns differently. Here’s how to leverage on their innate learning styles for academic success.

- Eveline Gan

Is it better to write down notes, make flashcards, watch educational videos or read out loud when revising school work?

The truth is, every child learns differently. There is no “good” or “bad” way to do it, shares Lee Sue Lynn, academic director for the Early Years and lower primary programmes at The Learning Lab.

Part of it has to do with your kid’s personality and lifestyle. “If we consider the range of personalities among children, surely it is logical to look at each child’s learning profile as unique, too,” she explains.

Figuring out how your kid learns best and playing up his strengths can make a huge difference. Researchers say that children acquire and retain knowledge better when they learn in their preferred learning style, she says.

A word of caution: Avoid pigeonholing your kid’s learning style and demand that he learns only in one way, she warns.

“Just as you would not eat your favourite hamburger for every meal, a child will not study in the same way every day, too. The point is to identify your child’s preferred learning style to enable him to customise his learning environment or tools, so that he gets the most out of it,” she says.

With that in mind, Sue Lynn rounds up four main learning styles and shares smart study tips for each one.

1 THE VISUAL LEARNER

Does your kid like making notes, drawing or doodling? Does he zoom in on illustrations in his textbook? Visual learners are motivated by what they see.

“They may show a tendency to recall what they see rather than what they hear,” Sue Lynn says. In fact, they may find it tough to remember what they have heard unless there is a visual element to it.