Multiple Intelligences: How Does Your Child Think?

[***June 2010 Update: Visit Dr. Kathy Koch’s Blog on Multiple Intelligences…click here.

Check out her book on Authentic Hope and her DVD titled Authentic Answers.

Check out her DVD  “HOW AM I SMART? A Guide to Multiple Intelligences” (DVD/2006)–click here

See the companion article on The Education Cafe titled:Authentic Hope: Life Changing Answers.***]

The Gardner Multiple Intelligences Model

(Excerpts from notes  taken by Delana S at a conference by Dr. Kathy Koch of CELEBRATE KIDS, INC, taken from the Gardner Multiple Intelligences Model) [ http://www.celebratekids.com]

“Daddy, am I smart?  How am I smart?”  Children (and adults for that matter) are smart in a variety of ways.  There are many kinds of “smart” and most people operate from one or two main areas of smart-ness.  Knowing this about your child will help you understand decisions he makes, what makes him tick, how to motivate him in his strengths, problems that will be difficult for him to overcome, and what approaches to use when teaching him.  How am I smart?  Am I word smart, logic smart, picture smart, music smart, body smart, nature smart, people smart, or self smart?  How is your child smart?

Word Smart: These children can “argue, persuade, entertain, and /or instruct effectively through the spoken word.” They love to read and write, listen and/or speak well, and may be trivia experts.  They think with words!

Logic Smart: Children who are logic smart often have the ability to “reason, sequence, categorize, and think in terms or cause and effect” and compare/contrast.  They think with questions!

Picture Smart: These children are “very sensitive to visual details….have the ability to observe, transform, and re-create.”  They think with real or imaginary pictures.  They see God when they pray!

Music Smart: These children are “able to hear, appreciate, and/or produce rhythms and melodies.”  They have an ear for music, the ability to keep time, sing in tune, and listen with discernment.  They think with a song!

Body Smart: These children can control their body movements and/or handle objects skillfully.  “They may enjoy physical pursuits like walking, sports, dancing, acting, or camping.”  They may develop tactile skills such as sewing or model building, and use their gut instincts.  They think by touch and feel or with muscles.

Nature Smart: These children love the great outdoors!  They love animals and are quite knowledgeable about them.  They recognize and classify plants, minerals, and animals.  They have a remarkable ability to recognize cultural artifacts.  They think with patterns, plants, and animals.

People Smart: These children can discern and respond to “moods, intentions, and desires of others.  They tend to be leaders.  They have the ability to get inside another person and view the world from the individual’s perspective.”  They think with other people….thrive on an audience.

Self-Smart: These children “use their self-understanding to enrich and guide their lives.  They tend to enjoy quiet times of deep soul-searching.  They are fiercely independent, highly goal-directed, and intensely self-disciplined.”  They think deeply; they need privacy, space, quiet, and peace. They can become unteachable.

Children should be encouraged to use their “smarts” for good, not evil; to motivate, not manipulate.  When we discipline our children, we should focus not on stopping the negative so much as redirecting their behavior toward the good, the right.