An auditory learner tends to think in words, not pictures. He will be adept at retaining information and may have well-developed speaking skills. An auditory learner is able to express his ideas clearly and can often convince others of his point of view. Develop these skills through the use of group work and discussion. Try activities that involve reading or speaking aloud, retelling stories and discussing poetry and plays. Use word problems in math, relating topics to real-life situations. Encourage independent research skills in science and in history and geography lessons. An auditory learner will also respond well to music; consider using music as a prompt for writing.
A kinesthetic leaner will enjoy practical activities; he will learn best from being hands-on and moving around. A kinesthetic learner will often have good hand-eye coordination and may be talented in areas such as sport, dance and drama. Incorporate these preferences by using drama activities in language arts and history lessons; try hot-seating or role-playing scenes from a story. Use practical activities in science and allow your students access to concrete materials such as counters and coins in math activities. A kinesthetic learner may be very creative; utilize this by having him draw storyboards and allow expression through the use of music and dance.
A visual learner thinks in pictures and creates mental images in order to learn. He will be good at solving puzzles and reading graphs and charts. Allow him to use or make mind maps and storyboards when planning and use pictures as prompts for writing. In math and science, a visual learner will be skilled at recording and analyzing information and, like kinesthetic learners, will appreciate the provision of concrete materials in math such as bead strings. Encourage his construction and building skills by giving him lots of opportunities to create through art activities and junk modeling.
When planning, incorporate activities that will develop all these different learning styles. Try beginning a lesson with a verbal input, show some visual examples, then have some time for students to discuss an idea in pairs or groups. You could then have a practical activity or some role-play and then give students a written task. Finish by allowing some verbal feedback from students. Looking at a learning objective from a visual, auditory and kinesthetic point of view will help all your students to meet that objective and will ensure that your lessons are not biased towards your own preferred learning style.