Do you have an active learner?
Kinesthetic learning is a learning style in which learning takes place by the student carrying out a physical activity, rather than listening to a lecture or watching a demonstration. People with a preference for kinesthetic learning are also commonly known as “do-ers.”
In my experience, all young children are active learners – learning so much more when the learning involves hands-on ‘doing,’ moving and exploring rather than solely observing or listening. So when looking for learning activities that provide Immy with an opportunity to revise the sight words she is learning, I have been prioritising activities that do just that.
Which is exactly why I was crawling around on a hot trampoline (think 36C), chalk in hand while AJ was napping and Immy at school one afternoon this week. I used the chalk to write six sight words around the edge of the tramp and in the early evening (when it had cooled substantially!) we headed out to jump into learning – literally!
First up, I would call out a word and Immy would take a giant leap across the trampoline to land on the correct word. We started out slowly and later she tried to find and jump on each word called as quickly as she could. Then she took a turn choosing which word she wanted to jump on, calling out the word as she landed. For a kid who loves jumping on the tramp, this was a fabulous way to have fun while revising what is predominately considered book based or flash card drill learning.
Involving physically jumping is not only useful for practising sight words, it can be applied to all sorts of factual based learning – phonics, mathematics, problem solving, knowledge of scientific concepts or those related to the society and environment. Here are some other fabulous examples of incorporating jumping into learning from some of my favourite bloggers…
Colour Hop for Toddlers :: Learn Play Imagine
Moo, Quack, Baa! Animal Sounds Obstacle Course :: Lalymom
Hop, Stick and Jump Into Animal Classification :: Wildlife Fun for Kids
Weekday Hopscotch :: Kitchen Counter Chronicles
Gross Motor Number Recognition :: Danya Banya
Fun with Numbers & Leaves :: Peakie Pie
Number Line Smash (Addition & Subtraction) :: School Time Snippets
Race to 100 :: Afterschool for Smarty Pants
Driveway ABC Game :: Creative Family Fun
Hop! Skip! Jump! With Paper Plates :: Hands On As We Grow
Noisy Letter Jump Phonics :: The Imagination Tree
Learning sight words and CVC words with Hopscotch :: 3 Dinosaurs
Valentine Hearts Early Reading Activity :: Carrots are Orange
How could you jump into learning with your kids this week?
Christie Burnett is an early childhood teacher, presenter, writer and the editor of Childhood 101. More importantly, she is a Mum who believes wholeheartedly in the value of children learning through play, the importance of quality early education, and the togetherness of family.
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