What is a kinesthetic (sp?) learner?

[MrsTwit]

My ds (5) tends to fidget a lot, which annoys his teacher. He never stands still when he is telling you something, and he is always fiddling with something when reading (which he does fluently). If you are talking he listens well and learns, even though he looks as though he isn't.

A friend commented that he may be a kinesthetic learner. What does this mean?

ooh I am an expert in these as ds1 is one too
our school has identified every kids learning style and each lesson has to have and area in it splanning about how the lesson will adress alld ifferent learnning styles, the staff have analysed themselves too adn use this to their benfit when working in teams

I will post more after bath time
it means that they ise allt hseir senses (incl ds1s mouth - he mouths everything) to learn

In general people whi like to 'do' rather than read or listen. ds is one of these!

They will put together the TV/DVD by 'do-ing' rather than reading the instructions, tend to like physical pastimes.

Have a look at

www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm

for the stuff on multiple intelegences from Gardiner, they guy who started it all.

Thanks - that is all really helpful.

Ds1 does like taking things apart and (sometimes) putting them back together, and as mentioned at first fidgets A LOT. But the general descriptions don't really ring bells: e.g. he doesn't struggle at all to rote count or sequence; he isn't particularly well co-ordinated, and certainly isn't good at sport; has never been considered hyperactive; hasn't 'had difficulty establishing one-to-one relationships in number values'; etc.

So I guess that means he's not a kinesthetic learner, just an annoying fidgetter! But thanks for all your posts: fascinating stuff.

The thing to remember is that very few people are kinethetic only learners. Most of us have a range of learning styles. For example I am a lingistic, mathematical, musical learner.

Poeple who are only kinethtic learners can have a very hard time in secondary school, but they are quite rare