(Getting Kids to Listen, 2013)
What is Verbal Learning?
Verbal learning is when someone is able to retain information that they hear. This can be considered a more traditional type of method because it involves the teacher, student, and information. Now there are many different ways "hear" besides just listening to directions. You can "hear" by listening to your own voice reiterate information or by reading outloud. There are a number of methods used to learn this way, including but not limited to, memorization, repetition, or recitation.
(Visual/Verbal Learning Styles, 2013)
(Visual/Verbal Learning Styles, 2013)
Methods of Verbal Learning
There is no one right way to learn, whether it's with verbal, aural, visual, tactile, or kinesthetic methods. There is no one who can tell you way is best for you besides yourself. So, if after much experimentation and thought you discover you're a verbal learner, someone who remembers information auditory, then here are some tips:
• Use techniques that involve speaking. For example, talk yourself through directions or form study groups so kids can explain and discuss what they've learned or what they're trying to figure out.
• Use rhyme and rhythm while reading or speaking, maybe reciting important points aloud. You can turn the information into a song, story, or poem.
• Mnemonics devices are useful for remembering lists of information. Acronym mnemonics use words, focusing on the first letter of the word to make up another word or memorable sequence. You can also make up phrases using the items you want to memorize.
Example: Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally (P.E.M.D.A.S.) --- Acronym for the Order of Operations
(Parenthesis, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction.)
• Scripting is also powerful for you. You can write and rewrite lesson notes over and over to engrain the information in your head. Also, you can record lessons or teachings with a tape recorder (or recording app on a phone), and replay the information while doing homework or etc.
• Make reading DRAMATIC! Use lively and energetic speech while reading a book or your notes because it makes the information more exciting and fun! This will make retaining knowledge easier because the material comes alive in your mind.
• Use role-playing to act our scenes or conversations to learn verbal exchanges such as negotiations, sales or radio calls.
(The Verbal (Linguistic) Learning Style, 2013) and (Visual/Verbal Learning Styles, 2013)
• Use techniques that involve speaking. For example, talk yourself through directions or form study groups so kids can explain and discuss what they've learned or what they're trying to figure out.
• Use rhyme and rhythm while reading or speaking, maybe reciting important points aloud. You can turn the information into a song, story, or poem.
• Mnemonics devices are useful for remembering lists of information. Acronym mnemonics use words, focusing on the first letter of the word to make up another word or memorable sequence. You can also make up phrases using the items you want to memorize.
Example: Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally (P.E.M.D.A.S.) --- Acronym for the Order of Operations
(Parenthesis, Exponents, Multiplication, Division, Addition, Subtraction.)
• Scripting is also powerful for you. You can write and rewrite lesson notes over and over to engrain the information in your head. Also, you can record lessons or teachings with a tape recorder (or recording app on a phone), and replay the information while doing homework or etc.
• Make reading DRAMATIC! Use lively and energetic speech while reading a book or your notes because it makes the information more exciting and fun! This will make retaining knowledge easier because the material comes alive in your mind.
• Use role-playing to act our scenes or conversations to learn verbal exchanges such as negotiations, sales or radio calls.
(The Verbal (Linguistic) Learning Style, 2013) and (Visual/Verbal Learning Styles, 2013)
Verbal Learning StageListen as child development expert Stephanie Anderson and discover why it's SUPER IMPORTANT for children to speak and be spoken to!
(The Verbal Learning Stage in Children, 2013) |
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Musical Recollection
A study published in the Australian Journal of Music Education discussed how well 142 participants recalled certain musical material after learning it verbally.
The Children’s Memory Scale was used to test how quickly and accurately
the participants were. The results showed that after a year, students in the
intensive music program learned much better and were able to recall information
faster using verbal learning. The study also tested how effective visual
learning was on the intensive music students using the Benton Visual design
test. The results of this test showed that there was no benefit to the students
from learning visually like there was for verbally.
(Kids Singing| Parenting Advice, 2013)
-WHAT DOES THIS TELL US?-
In schools, students are taught about math, science, history, art, music, etc., but all of these topics involve different senses. In history, you deal with a lot of dates and words while in art, you paint pictures or make sculptures. Because these subjects are so different, it’s hard for a child who learns best using a visual or especially kinesthetic method to be successful in multiple areas. On the other hand, words and listening are something that all of the subjects have in common which is why it is so useful as a method of learning. Some might think that math only has to do with numbers, but word problems are a large part of many unties of study. As shown above, music is a subject that has a lot to do with verbal learning because you have to be able to read the notes off the page and listen to what you are playing, that way you can tell if you are on key or not. With art, someone can read about different artists and new techniques that they could use on their pieces. Basically, it enables a child to be more likely to preserver in multiple subject areas because the written word is everywhere and in everything.
(Rickard, N. S., Vasquez, J. T., Murphy, F., Gill, A., & Toukhsati, S. R, 2010)
(Kids Singing| Parenting Advice, 2013)
-WHAT DOES THIS TELL US?-
In schools, students are taught about math, science, history, art, music, etc., but all of these topics involve different senses. In history, you deal with a lot of dates and words while in art, you paint pictures or make sculptures. Because these subjects are so different, it’s hard for a child who learns best using a visual or especially kinesthetic method to be successful in multiple areas. On the other hand, words and listening are something that all of the subjects have in common which is why it is so useful as a method of learning. Some might think that math only has to do with numbers, but word problems are a large part of many unties of study. As shown above, music is a subject that has a lot to do with verbal learning because you have to be able to read the notes off the page and listen to what you are playing, that way you can tell if you are on key or not. With art, someone can read about different artists and new techniques that they could use on their pieces. Basically, it enables a child to be more likely to preserver in multiple subject areas because the written word is everywhere and in everything.
(Rickard, N. S., Vasquez, J. T., Murphy, F., Gill, A., & Toukhsati, S. R, 2010)
When Methods Collide
A case study was published in the International Journal of Therapy and Rehabilitation in which researchers were trying to figure out whether verbal mediation was helpful to children with non-verbal learning difficulties. They set up two single studies within the main study and followed two kids through their experiment. The kids had to do non-verbal tasks like doing puzzles using verbal mediation and the results showed that, in both cases, verbal mediation was beneficial in completing the tasks.
This shows the advantage of pairing multiple types of methods in order to produce a child’s success. The children were given puzzles to solve, first by experimenting on their own (see tactile). Then, with the help of verbal input, kids were better able to complete their tasks! Pairing verbal learning with visual or kinesthetic learning will further benefit a child’s success because learning a concept with multiple methods will help the child understand the topic more in depth. This is because they can store the information through different senses. For example, lets pretend that someone is studying for a history test and have to memorize a series of dates and their corresponding events. If the person simply reads the words and numbers off the page, they might struggle to store the information. But imagine if the student puts the dates to a rhyme or song like Miley Cyrus did in the "Bones" video on the Kinesthetic page. Turning the information into something fun and catchy made it easier to learn because it was less intimidating than just reading the material off a page. In addition, verbal learning can be helpful for students with certain types of learning difficulties, like with children with autism spectrum disorder.
(Fox, T., & Lincoln, N, 2008)
This shows the advantage of pairing multiple types of methods in order to produce a child’s success. The children were given puzzles to solve, first by experimenting on their own (see tactile). Then, with the help of verbal input, kids were better able to complete their tasks! Pairing verbal learning with visual or kinesthetic learning will further benefit a child’s success because learning a concept with multiple methods will help the child understand the topic more in depth. This is because they can store the information through different senses. For example, lets pretend that someone is studying for a history test and have to memorize a series of dates and their corresponding events. If the person simply reads the words and numbers off the page, they might struggle to store the information. But imagine if the student puts the dates to a rhyme or song like Miley Cyrus did in the "Bones" video on the Kinesthetic page. Turning the information into something fun and catchy made it easier to learn because it was less intimidating than just reading the material off a page. In addition, verbal learning can be helpful for students with certain types of learning difficulties, like with children with autism spectrum disorder.
(Fox, T., & Lincoln, N, 2008)
There is no right answer...
What someone should take away from this page is that you don't have to pick a particular learning method and ONLY use that for the rest of your life. While one particular method might be the most helpful in one subject, it might be completely and utterly useless in another! The point is, everyone has the opportunity to mix and match all different types of learning methods in order to find what is right for them. But if you happen to find that you're a more traditional learner, listening to the teacher and learning the material, then maybe verbal learning is the way to go. Take a look at the tips on great ways to understand and store information above and put them to the test (or use FOR a test)! Just never feel limited to choosing one method because learning only works if you're comfortable with yourself and your method.