by Sarah Major, M.Ed
Some learners can hear a lesson and follow it with study, review, and practice until they seemingly have it forever in long term memory. Other children (and there are many of them) may hear the very same lesson, be just as smart as the others, but remain unable to store the concept in their long term memory despite all the cramming and reviewing.
Is it that the first type of learner is smarter or more capable? Or is it that the method of imparting the lesson must vary in order for both types of learners to not only understand, but retain the concepts you have taught them? I will venture to say that the method of sharing concepts to be learned must be tailored to the learner’s needs in order for learning to occur.
The general category of learner who will not benefit from drill, review, and memorization is the right brained learner. This child will excel if hooks for learning are used as frequently as possible. Rather than following a traditional approach to teaching, branch out and have some fun while teaching and learning!
• Use stories – When I was growing up, we had a book of short tales that explained things like how the bear came to have a short tale and other such amazing facts. The shortcut could have been to just state, “Bears have short tales.” But couching a factoid in a story about how it came to be makes the concept unforgettable. Help your child remember which way J points by telling her that the point of the J is very sharp and if you turn it backwards when you write a word such as JAM would mean the sharp point of the J would puncture the “a” by it.
• Use images – A while ago I read something online about how to make concepts easy to remember. Rather than listing six items and memorizing them, draw them all together in a scene. Your brain will respond to an image by snapping a picture of it and the images in the scene will be captured at the same time to be easily recalled later. Right brained learners are notorious for learning concepts all at once when those concepts are embedded into images that also add meaning.
• Use rhyme – Your child might love to be asked to write a little jingle for concepts he needs to learn and use. An example for remembering the difference between lowercase B and lowercase D is this little saying, “The B’s like to walk (meaning their backs face the same direction) while the D’s like to talk (meaning their backs are opposite each other).” A little jingle for telling the difference between ME and MY is simply, “Me has an E and My has a Y.”
• Use movement – I have heard for years that some children do much better when they are allowed to bounce on a big ball while thinking. And that is correct. However, if we take their need for movement farther and have them actually move their bodies in a reflection of what they are learning, the movement itself will prompt a recall of the material the child learned and paired with a body motion. For example, when learning the alphabet letter A, have your child put both arms up above her head with hands touching to form the top triangle of the A.
Enlist your child’s help. Begin asking your child “How can we remember this?” Once you have given him a few examples of hooks on which to hang concepts, he will become a master of making hooks for learning for himself – a skill that will stand him in good stead throughout life.
Sarah Major, CEO of Child1st Publications, grew up on the mission field with her four siblings, all of whom her mother homeschooled. As an adult, Sarah homeschooled a small group of children in collaboration with their parents, and has taught from preschool age to adult. Sarah has been the Title 1 director and program developer for grades K-7, an ESOL teacher, and a classroom teacher. As an undergraduate student, Sarah attended Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill. and then received her M.Ed. from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, MI. In 2006 Sarah resigned from fulltime teaching in order to devote more time to Child1st, publisher of the best-selling SnapWords™ stylized sight word cards. In her spare time Sarah enjoys gardening, cooking, pottery, quilting, and spending time with her family.
Child1st Publications, LLC
www.child-1st.com
704-879-4047
3302 S New Hope Rd
Suite 300B
Gastonia, NC 28056
Some learners can hear a lesson and follow it with study, review, and practice until they seemingly have it forever in long term memory. Other children (and there are many of them) may hear the very same lesson, be just as smart as the others, but remain unable to store the concept in their long term memory despite all the cramming and reviewing.
Is it that the first type of learner is smarter or more capable? Or is it that the method of imparting the lesson must vary in order for both types of learners to not only understand, but retain the concepts you have taught them? I will venture to say that the method of sharing concepts to be learned must be tailored to the learner’s needs in order for learning to occur.
The general category of learner who will not benefit from drill, review, and memorization is the right brained learner. This child will excel if hooks for learning are used as frequently as possible. Rather than following a traditional approach to teaching, branch out and have some fun while teaching and learning!
• Use stories – When I was growing up, we had a book of short tales that explained things like how the bear came to have a short tale and other such amazing facts. The shortcut could have been to just state, “Bears have short tales.” But couching a factoid in a story about how it came to be makes the concept unforgettable. Help your child remember which way J points by telling her that the point of the J is very sharp and if you turn it backwards when you write a word such as JAM would mean the sharp point of the J would puncture the “a” by it.
• Use images – A while ago I read something online about how to make concepts easy to remember. Rather than listing six items and memorizing them, draw them all together in a scene. Your brain will respond to an image by snapping a picture of it and the images in the scene will be captured at the same time to be easily recalled later. Right brained learners are notorious for learning concepts all at once when those concepts are embedded into images that also add meaning.
• Use rhyme – Your child might love to be asked to write a little jingle for concepts he needs to learn and use. An example for remembering the difference between lowercase B and lowercase D is this little saying, “The B’s like to walk (meaning their backs face the same direction) while the D’s like to talk (meaning their backs are opposite each other).” A little jingle for telling the difference between ME and MY is simply, “Me has an E and My has a Y.”
• Use movement – I have heard for years that some children do much better when they are allowed to bounce on a big ball while thinking. And that is correct. However, if we take their need for movement farther and have them actually move their bodies in a reflection of what they are learning, the movement itself will prompt a recall of the material the child learned and paired with a body motion. For example, when learning the alphabet letter A, have your child put both arms up above her head with hands touching to form the top triangle of the A.
Enlist your child’s help. Begin asking your child “How can we remember this?” Once you have given him a few examples of hooks on which to hang concepts, he will become a master of making hooks for learning for himself – a skill that will stand him in good stead throughout life.
Sarah Major, CEO of Child1st Publications, grew up on the mission field with her four siblings, all of whom her mother homeschooled. As an adult, Sarah homeschooled a small group of children in collaboration with their parents, and has taught from preschool age to adult. Sarah has been the Title 1 director and program developer for grades K-7, an ESOL teacher, and a classroom teacher. As an undergraduate student, Sarah attended Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill. and then received her M.Ed. from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, MI. In 2006 Sarah resigned from fulltime teaching in order to devote more time to Child1st, publisher of the best-selling SnapWords™ stylized sight word cards. In her spare time Sarah enjoys gardening, cooking, pottery, quilting, and spending time with her family.
Child1st Publications, LLC
www.child-1st.com
704-879-4047
3302 S New Hope Rd
Suite 300B
Gastonia, NC 28056
