1. Use noisemakers such as a chime, maracas, or a bell to get students’ attention instead of using a teacher voice.

2. Play calming music (without words), 60 beats per minute or less as students enter the classroom from recess, specials, the hall or cafeteria to create an environment that enhances learning. Turn off the music when you begin to teach.

3. Use natural lighting whenever possible (Windows, “natural light” bulbs in table or floor lamps) because natural lighting calms and increases productivity.

4. Have students who doodle, create doodles that illustrate their notes to enhance visual recall.

5. If students are getting chatty, rather than tell them to be quiet, assign a Think/Pair/Share as a reinforcement of the lesson just taught.

6. If students are getting wiggly, have them stand and stretch.

a. A variation on this is to have them answer a review question or paraphrase something they just learned as a “ticket” to sit down.

b. Another variation is to have them stand up to answer questions in a “whole class chant”.

7. To enhance long term memory, associate concepts with visual images. Include diagrams, tables, outlines, etc. when presenting and practicing concepts.

8. To move information from short term memory to working memory, teach students to habitually convert difficult material into pictures or diagrams when note taking, or to convert words into mental images in their mind.

9. Teach note-taking strategies like clustering, webbing, and mind mapping to enhance the brain’s ability to process what to keep, delete, or alter.

10. To improve memorization of facts, create silly ditties out of connected information such as historical events, literary sequence of events, science system parts and their function or sports rules.

11. Have students read with a blank piece of paper on the desk and instruct them to mind map the story line, characters, and detail as they read to improve comprehension and recall.

12. Have students create mnemonics to remember lists. At the beginning of each class session, quickly review the unit’s mnemonics as a whole group, reciting them aloud. If possible, give the recitation a ‘rap’ beat.

For more information about study strategies for your student, see Susan Fitzell’s book, Please Help Me With My Homework. Available in both print and electronic versions!

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Just this weekend I was talking with a parent of a kinesthetic learner who, despite being very bright, was completely turned off to high school during his teen years. Because his son could not grasp concepts presented in the auditory mode , he could not relate to the content. Everyday was an exercise in frustration for this young man.

Psychologist Howard Gardner identified the following distinct types of intelligence in his book, Frames of Mind. According to his theory, all people possess eight distinct sets of capabilities. Gardner emphasizes that these capabilities / intelligences work together, not in isolation.

In order to motivate students like my colleague’s son, it is important that we acknowledge and understand the different types of intelligence that students in our classrooms may possess.  By better understanding multiple intelligence, we can more effectively differentiate instruction to meet the needs of as many students as possible.

The Different Types of Multiple Intelligence

Linguistic: Young people with this kind of intelligence use words effectively, either orally or in writing. They enjoy writing, reading, telling stories, or doing crossword puzzles.

Logical-Mathematical: Children have the capacity to use numbers effectively and to reason well. They are interested in patterns, categories, and relationships. They are drawn to arithmetic problems, strategy games, and experiments.

Bodily Kinesthetic: Children with this capability are experts in using their whole body to express ideas and feelings. They are good with their hands. These kids process knowledge through bodily sensations. They are often athletic, dancers, or good at crafts such as sewing or woodworking.

Spatial: These young people think in images and pictures. They may be fascinated with mazes or jigsaw puzzles, or spend free time drawing, building with construction sets, or inventing.

Musical: Musical students have the capacity to perceive, discriminate, transform, and express musical forms. They often spend time singing or drumming to themselves. They are usually quite aware of sounds others may miss. These kids are often discriminating listeners.

Interpersonal: These students have the ability to perceive and make distinctions in the moods, intentions, motivations, and feelings of other people. They are often leaders among their peers, who are good at communicating and responding to others’ feelings.

Intrapersonal: These students are insightful and self-aware. They can adapt to their environment based on their understanding of themselves. These students may be shy. They are very aware of their own emotions, strengths, and limitations, and have the capacity for self-discipline.

Naturalist: The core of the naturalist intelligence is the human ability to recognize plants, animals, and other parts of the natural environment, like clouds or rocks. These students have the ability to identify and classify patterns in nature. These students are sensitive to changes in the weather or are adept at distinguishing nuances between large quantities of similar objects.

Existentialist: Students who learn in the context of where human-kind stands in the “big picture” of existence. They ask “Why are we here?” and “What is our role in the world?” This intelligence is seen in the discipline of philosophy.

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Here are a few simple ways to incorporate technology in your classroom, and get today’s tech-savvy students more excited about learning:

• Create an online homework bulletin board.  Most students who have internet access at home will be online after school to check their e-mail, Facebook, or other favorite websites, and if a list of their homework assignments were only a click away, chances are they would check that too.  This resource is great for students who forget what the assignment is and also for students who missed school because of illness.
• Invest in portable text editors.  While there are many text editors on the market, most are compatible with any computer or printer and enable the user to type, edit, and electronically store text (for essays, book reports, notes, etc.) and practice typing without needing a computer.  The portable size is great because students can use these at their desks, at home, or even while on field trips.
• Use video clips to supplement teaching material.  Interweave your lessons with video clips that provide meaning and background for the topic being taught.  Be sure to limit the video clips to 3-6 minutes.  A few good online resources for educational video clips are:
  • www.teachertube.com
  • www.unitedstreaming.com
  • www.brainpop.com

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