Learning - How Knowing Your Child's Intelligence Make-Up Can Help

Each child is unique. Even in the same family, theare good at movement and learn through physical
children are often as different as chalk andinteraction with their environment. Children with
cheese. Howard Gardner, a psychologist, claimedthis intelligence enjoy activities such as dancing,
that just as each human being has a distinct andplaying physical games, running and acting.
unique DNA profile, so each human being has a- Musical/Rhythmic intelligence - learners are
unique thinking profile, a way of demonstratingsensitive to rhythmic sounds, pitch and patterns.
intelligence.Children with this intelligence respond positively to
Parents and educationalists would be better ablemusic and poems. They enjoy singing, making up
to provide the best learning environment fortunes and rhymes and playing musical instruments.
children if they first established their multiple- Interpersonal intelligence - these learners have
intelligence profile.the ability to relate to others and are often
Gardner identified seven intelligences which hesensitive to the feelings of others. Children who
called Multiple Intelligences, although he addedhave this intelligence love being around people and
more later.enjoy group work and discussions.
- Visual/Spatial intelligence - learners normally think- Intrapersonal intelligence - these learners are
in pictures. They like visual stimuli such as pictures,reflective and have the ability to analyse their
films, videos and maps. Children with thisown feelings. They often prefer to work out
intelligence demonstrate an appreciation ofproblems and arrive at an understanding of a
reading, drawing, puzzles, maps and charts.subject on their own.
- Verbal/Linguistic intelligence - learners have aGardner believed that people use all these
highly developed ability with words and the rulesintelligences at the same time and that they
of language. Children with this intelligence lovecomplement each other as people develop their
listening to stories, telling stories, learning newskills and learn to solve problems. A child might be
words and describing events.dominantly visual but the other intelligences can
- Logical/Mathematical intelligence - this intelligenceplay a significant part in their learning depending on
has to do with logic and reasoning. These childrenthe task in hand. Knowing a child's intelligence
tend to be analytical and logical. They enjoy tasksmake up and how tasks can be presented to
involving numbers, making patterns and problemcomplement the child's strongest ability, can make
solving.his or her learning more effective and efficient.
- Bodily/Kinaesthetic intelligence - these learners