Learning styles impact education
Knowing how your child learns is key to selecting meaningful after-school activities that reinforce classroom lessons, UGA experts say.

“Most children have some combination of different learning styles,” said Diane Bales, a UGA Cooperative Extension child development specialist. “They can learn in different ways in different situations. But most of us do have a ‘preferred’ style in which we feel most comfortable and learn most easily.”

There are three basic learning styles: visual (seeing, watching, reading), auditory (hearing, listening) and kinesthetic (moving, touching, doing). Quizzes, tests and online self assessments can help reveal and explain a child’s learning style, Bales said.

Once you determine how your child learns best, select activities that cater to his or her preferred style.

Visual learners may prefer reading books about their interests or visiting museums, zoos or historical sites. Auditory learners may benefit from attending plays, watching educational television or taking guided tours. Art, cooking classes or discovery museums are helpful for kinesthetic learners.