A kindergartner looks at the SUV dashboard clock and announces loudly to his mom that they are exactly 7 minutes late for soccer practice. His older sister keeps tabs on prices on her favorite fashion site and knows exactly how much is in her piggy bank. She has a friend who taught herself to code and runs a web server for tweens.
LML can be a primary and strong identification, or a component of a combination of styles. For example, Logical/ Mathematical learners are often musical as well. After all, you cannot have scales, notes, and rhythm without patterns!
Note that the logical / mathematical learning preference is just that … a preference, an indication of what your child is gifted at. It could be a good way to reach your child’s interest and pique their imagination. Over time, your child’s interests and strengths may develop deeper, or they may shift in a new direction.
As a homeschooler, you have the choice to reason out how to best help your kid!
Is My Child a Logical / Mathematical Learner?
If your child enjoys counting, math games, computers, and logical experiments, he or she could be an LML learner. Ditto if they prefer being extremely organized and precise in their habits. Such students are good at problem solving, abstract thinking, and pattern recognition.
Logical learners excel at both inductive and deductive reasoning. That means they are comfortable with developing theories from facts, and with testing theories with facts. At times, their minds might seem to resemble computers, making numerical patterns out of almost any information. Think of “Charlie Epps” on Numb3rs, a logical thinker who helped the FBI solve cases by using his mathematical skills.
AN LML child might feel an affinity, or be intrigued by Descartes’ famous dictum, “I think therefore I am.” She might understand why young Isaac Newton, homebound for two years due to plague, threw himself into inventing calculus, analytical geometry and more!
How Do I Help my LML Child Learn?
Organization is key, even if that’s not your preferred style. It’s good to have a place for everything, in neat stacks on a desk or in dedicated digital folders. Books, videos, lesson summaries structured in logical categories. One month or one year at a time. An LML needs to have this organization to learn at his or her full potential.
As they get older, they can get the job done on their own if they have the right tools!
Which tools are most helpful?
Start with computers, calculators and visuals such as graphs and charts. This will appeal to their fascination with numbers and logic. Add strategy games such as chess, dominoes, Battleship, Tangrams, Monopoly, or Blokus. Using brainteasers before lessons also helps get the ball rolling.
In terms of the overall approach, think purpose and planning. And prepare to think hard! LML kids enjoy mental challenges. They often learn math with ease and may enjoy opportunities to tackle more advanced problems with little prompting.
A timeline of the history of Ancient Egypt with dates and facts will help more than lots of descriptive paragraphs about pharaohs and pyramids. Look for texts and websites that help conceptualize historical events in graphs and numbers. Engage your child in the big sweeps of history by asking about cause and effect. Ask your teen, for example, to research the origins of the Electoral College and prepare a paper debating its merits for 21st century.
Science is best learned by practical experiments and problem solving, using inductive and deductive skills. Consider using science tool kits and encourage experiments.
To learn about birds, for example, your child could create computer plots to track bird feeder visits every morning over a week. Then ask your child to switch the food or feeder, and to observe for new results. After your child has enough data, he or she will likely enjoy analyzing the information gathered.
While studying English, expect a lot of questions. Logical thinkers often reason out the rules of grammar on their own. For fiction books, ask your child to predict what will, or did, happen next using common sense. Encourage them to create a digital chart that tracks and compares how two character change over the course of a novel or a play.
Venturing Beyond Home
Much home schooling and socializing takes place outside the home. Luckily, there are many ways to engage LDL learners!
For kids who love coding, look for online workshops, hackathons, math competitions and the Lego engineering clubs.
If your student is interested in finance or economics, get them an app that lets them invest tiny amounts in the stock market. Start with $1 or $5. Or they can do the family budget for the next vacation!
Since many LDL’s love math, see if there is a community organization that needs help with math tutoring. Even hands on family activities such as cooking can be useful --- ask your child to help with doubling or halving a recipe. When gardening, ask for help with calculating the area and right seed or fertilizer amounts .
LML Career Interests
Some famous logical/mathematical thinkers are Albert Einstein, Bill Gates, and Sir Isaac Newton.
Since they are numbers-oriented, many LMLs become data scientists, computer programmers, researchers, or accountants. They may gravitate towards mathematics, statistics, economics or another data-driven social science. Career interests that overlap with numerical abilities are also a possibility – tax law, or public health work with focus on research and statistics, or fund-raising for a political campaign.
As methodical and logical thinkers, people with LDL have many options for excelling!
Further reading:
Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century
You're Smarter Than You Think: A Kid's Guide to Multiple Intelligences
In Their Own Way: Discovering and Encouraging Your Child's Multiple Intelligences
Five Minds for the Future
Life of Fred - Fractions
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