‘Sounds good to me’; ‘It’s starting to ring a bell.’
These are a couple of the phrases used by roughly twenty percent of the population that help to identify them as auditory learners.
Of course, your little one may not be using such readily identifiable markers, but you may still be able to see qualities that help to give you an insight as to the type of learners they may be.
An auditory learner enjoys movies and music and probably notices the sound effects in movies more than other people. They will readily put up their hands for discussion, happily participate in discussion groups and be involved in discussions without a group as they use self-talk. These students are not afraid to speak in class and may be accused of speaking in class as they process the information through self-talk.
They will perform their worst at reading passages and writing answers relating to those passages in a timed test but excel in responding to what they have heard and in oral exams.
The auditory learner learns best when reading aloud, receiving verbal instruction, repeating facts with eyes closed and memorising steps and procedures by repeating them. Older auditory learners need some external sounds (T.V. or music) while they are reading their notes or processing their homework. Writing their notes and recording them to listen to later is their best way of obtaining and retaining information.
Remember, looking out of the window while the teacher is talking does not necessarily mean they are not completely aware of what is being said. Auditory learners do not require a visual context in order to learn.
By Peter kenyon: Tutor
It was Christmas Eve long ago, in a warm, little cottage with a yellow door, where a little girl named Emily was wrapping gifts for her friends and family. She was a kind girl with long, brown locks and shiny, blue eyes, just like her mum. When she woke in the morning, she ran downstairs to open her presents but when she ran to the Christmas tree, there were none. She heard a loud snoring noise coming from the other side of the room and there was a guy with a big, white, fluffy beard and, right next to him was a sack full of presents. She shook Santa awake and he gave her a present in the warm, cosy cottage with a yellow door.
One Christmas Eve one thousand years ago, in the workhouse where the elves were making sure all the presents were working, a reindeer named Kyle was humming to himself while watching the elves work. He was unhappy because Santa didn’t choose him to lead the sleigh. As he went looking for Santa, he ran into another reindeer who told him to go away. It all got better for Kyle when Mrs Clause heard him singing and told him how special he was. That Christmas Eve was one that Kyle would never forget.
On Christmas Eve, the McDermids decided to go to the shopping centre to buy presents. They already knew what they wanted to buy from watching television. Mr. and Mrs. McDermid saw Santa at the shopping centre and pointed, but the children thought he was a scary clown. They wanted to go straight home and that night, when they should have been asleep, the children got up to wait for Santa. It was the scary clown who came down the chimney with some presents.
Neither my brother nor I know anything about the mystery of the ghost on the hill. Last night under a big fat moon, Taj and I were climbing up the slope when we heard a quiet, low-pitched, short moan that sounded like me when I see a spider. We both screamed and Taj ran over the hill and I ran down the valley towards the creek where the fish were slipping and sliding as if they were about to die with me. Something white and weirdly-shaped ran straight at me and pushed me into the slimy water of the slippery creek and I screamed, “help me, Taj!”. The light was just the fat moon and Taj was laughing at me.
One day, I fondled the ground and it was hot and dry and so I slithered into a deep, dark hole. I felt uncomfortable with the dirt and the rocks on my face. Soon, I detected vibrations that shook the forest and me hard. I recognised that there was something big out there, something that thought that snakes are yummy. The shadow, as big as a person, chucked a spear at me but I struck out at the shadow and chomped the person on his leg. I slithered out of the deep, dark hole and scrambled into a cool, soft hole.
One night I left the stove on at my stinky house and I was woken by the unfamiliar smell of fire and hoary rubbish that I left on the table. By the time I got to the kitchen, I smelt the fire cooking a stale apple core and a decayed banana peel that smelt gross, and the dog food that smelt nice. The fireman said, ‘’You smell like you haven’t had a bath for 6 months!” and I said, “That’s true”. He sprayed rusty water on me with his big water hose until I smelt as lovely as a rose. While the fire brigade was busy washing me, my house was busy turning into a vessel of lovely ashes.
It was just after lunch and Bang! The puppet knocked over the bookshelf which fell on top of the new television. She had straight yellow wool for hair with black sewn-on buttons for eyes and inside her long pink dress was my hand. Mum stomped into the room as the puppet grinned but it was me that Mum shouted at. When Mum turned her back, the puppet jumped on the counter, ripped the paintings off the wall and tipped over the bowl of fruit. After lunch, I took the puppet off my hand , picked up the mess and mopped the floors.
Is there a good time to seek out tutoring? Does your son or daughter display any of these?
It was a beautiful day on the beach for Samantha because she loved all the people and dogs surrounding her. She loved laughter and barking. She heard some people singing “Happy Birthday” and then she had a great idea. She bought ice-cream for everyone because it was her birthday too. Soon everyone was singing “Happy Birthday” to Samantha as they licked their ice-creams.
XtraMile Tuition Strategies (North Brisbane) - 0451 030188 