Learning Styles

People usually have a primary learning style (though some prefer a mixture): visual learners (like to see things), auditory learners (like to listen to explanations) or kinaesthetic learners (doing things). For example, in learning languages, some just need to hear a word to remember it, others want to see it written down. Each type of learning enables the brain to store and retrieve information on a number of different levels.

2016 You can find online tests to work out your preferred learning style. Here are a few.

• http://www.brainboxx.co.uk/a3_aspects/pages/vak_quest.htm
• http://www.whatismylearningstyle.com/learning-style-test-1.html
• http://acceleratedlearning.com/method/test_flash.html 
• http://www.edutopia.org/multiple-intelligences-assessment

Music seems to affect learning. (1) Hearing Mozart before an intelligence test seems to increase the score. (2) Baroque music (e.g. Bach, Albinoni, Handel) can produce a relaxed but alert mental state that helps learning by encouraging left-right brain connectivity. (3) Rock music is counter productive in relation to learning.

Age and ability are not interdependent. Children can be at one level in one subject and a different level in another, and within a class there will be a range of abilities. In a documentary a few years ago, adult literacy learners were helped by identifying and then using their preferred learning style.

Whatever your age, the following can help your learning.
Be active, not passive, in your learning. Don't simply accept the information presented in textbooks, handouts or slides. Write down notes by hand as the physical action helps learning (don't type text into a tablet). Then change the information around - use drawings, connection maps, make mobiles, create your own mnemonics, make a rhyme about it. With maths, work things out by writing in Chinagraph pencil (can be wiped off with a damp cloth) on a window or mirror (bear safety in mind - use only strong and secure windows). Experiment with different techniques to find our what works best for you.

Main source: Make Your Child Brilliant by Bernadette Tynon. Quadrille, 2008 (ISBN 978-184400-579-6)