How Children Learn

Nov 9, 2015

As we settle into the school year, many of us are looking for effective ways for our children to be successful in their schoolwork.  For our kids to have the best learning experience, we might want to first understand how children learn.

Children are not blank slates, nor are their brains sponges that can simply absorb information. On the contrary, kids enter the learning environment with a wealth of prior knowledge and personal experiences. They learn by using what they already know to support the construction of new knowledge.  Neurologically-speaking, a child learns when his or her brain cells make connections with each other. These connections are called “neural pathways.” One way to understand this is to imagine that the growth of these brain networks acts in the same way as the growth of a young tree. The sapling’s branches expand outwards and diverge into smaller twigs. A twig cannot just appear out of nowhere – it needs a larger branch from which to grow. Similarly, children most effectively learn and retain information by making connections between a prior knowledge and a new experience. A child in 2nd grade who has not yet formally learned about fractions can develop an understanding of this topic based on her familiarity with physically dividing things (like a pizza or chocolate bar) into equal parts. She would use this foundation in an activity in order to extend her knowledge about naming equal parts. If we were to write a math equation that describes this process of learning, it might look something like this: 

Prior knowledge  +  activity  +  reflection  =  new knowledge

Since children learn best when they use what they already know, this also means that they learn better when topics are situated in real-world contexts. This not only helps them make connections and improve their understanding, but also gives them relevance for why they are learning something. Many of us have heard kids complain, “Why do I have to learn this? When will I ever use it?” By working with real-world examples and problems, they can immediately attribute practical value to what they are learning. At Mathnasium, we emphasize everyday contexts in our focus on problem-solving, because we know that these situations help make math make sense to kids.

For example, in my experience, whenever primary-grade students come across this kind of problem: ___ - 9 = 8, they usually either stare at it blankly or confusedly, or they fill in 1 as the answer. However, as soon as I give them a real-world context for the problem (i.e. Let’s say you go to the store and you have some money but you don’t know exactly how much you have. You spend 9 dollars in the store and when you walk out, you have 8 dollars left. How much money did you start out with?) and they think for a minute, they know that the answer is 17! They walk away with not only an everyday situation where they would actually have to solve a problem like ___ - 9 = 8, but also an understanding for how math symbols can easily represent a practical problem. 

Each child typically also has a preferred learning style, which generally falls into one or more of these categories: visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and reading/writing (also known as tactile). Having a preferred learning style means that this is the mode in which your child’s brain best processes and retains information. A predominant learning style can more quickly create new neural pathways in the brain and also make existing neural pathways stronger. Some kids are stronger at processing new knowledge through the visual sense (seeing a picture, reading a book), while other kids respond better to auditory stimuli (having a discussion, hearing a story). Kids who learn best through physical movement are kinesthetic learners (manipulating materials, performing), while children who prefer to use their hands to learn tend to be tactile learners (reading, writing, drawing). Parents and teachers can support each child’s learning style by first identifying the style and then providing access to compatible activities.

At Mathnasium, we focus on building knowledge according to each child’s learning style and strengths. We first identify what your child knows, and then we use this to teach them new concepts and fill in any knowledge gaps. To help your child learn most effectively, Mathnasium utilizes an approach to teaching that supports multiple learning styles. By incorporating written exercises, oral questioning and discussions, manipulatives, and desk tools into each session, Mathnasium delivers instruction and experiences in order to successfully meet your child’s needs in math. 

To learn more about Mathnasium and how we can help your child improve his or her math abilities, click here.

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