I find giving computers to work on give a student in a computer class helpful. People who are hands on, need that hands on approach.
HI Kristine- Thanks for your post to the forum. What a great idea to get your students participating! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
Accounting can benefit from this concept of kinesthetic learners. Last night during my chat sessions, I demonstrated how to prepare a capital budget. While I was demonstrating these calculations, I asked my students to "drive along" on excel, so they could experience first hand how to set up the problem. I presented my demonstration step by step, reviewed the lesson, and used color to emphasize the points.
Regards,
Kris
See one, do one. For clinical skills classes, learning and practicing technical skills is essential, which benefits the kinesthetic learner most of all.
I teach a foreign language class and pastries. i have found when you have student get involved in the pastry classes not only producing your demonstrated prodcuts but thinking out side the box they get very excited and amazed at what they can come up with on their own, in language classes i need to some how in a round about way show the students how to intertwine the new language to their passion for cooking, then I get a student who will not only pay more attention but grasps the concept and assignments better.
Hi Judith - Thanks for your post to the forum! I think that using your tactile students in your demos is great idea - they will be quite happy in that role. Best wishes - Susan
I have found asking for volunteers to help assist with demos is a good teaching style for the tactile learners in the class. Almost as if a "Sous Chef", they will be the first to volunteer while the visual and audible learners, who may not feel as comfortable in front a group yet, are left seated so they can pay attention and ask questions learning in their own specific styles.
Some strategies I can think of is actually hands on strategies where they get to actually feel and touch what they are learning. For more active people, perhaps a field trip where they get to move around. For inclass, I can see doing a scavenger hunt or a field exercise.
I teach Culinary Arts as well. It is important in demos to not only show the correct way to do, but also show what could be the pitfalls or common mistakes that can be made. This way when students encounter this mistake or pitfall they don't feel scared or different, they feel successful in knowing that they realized the mistake that was happening and then knew how to fix it themselves or at least not feel scared to ask for help.
I like to assign projects in my classes - even essays can be converted into "projects" that can reach kinesthetic learners by requiring students to develop presentations (with visual aids, etc)
HI Anthony- Welcome to ED 103! As you obviously know -asking a student to "teach back" by detailing how a procedure should be done will ensure that they really have learned the technique. Great work! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
HI Linnie - Welcome to ED 103! Wow-cell phones on! But then, it seems that you have adult students so probably much less use of the phones - LOL! Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career. Susan
be sure that they can touch and feel objects they are learning
As an instructor at Le Cordon Bleu I have found that most of the students in the culinary program learn the material much better when they can actually see it demonstrated, then actually emulate it during lab. They tend to retain the information much better. Then in a written quiz, I usually ask them to list or describe the procedure for the item or task they completed and a majority of them get it correct.
When working with kinesthetic learners as the teacher you need to step back from being an instructor and be a facilitator.
Be flexible, provide breaks at designated intervals, communicate with the adult learners ask them if they need a break to move around. Provide materials for doodling; let the students have coffee or snacks during class time.
I allow my students to have their cell-phones on and the stress is alleviated the first day for those students who need to feel “connected” to the outside world.
Hi Phyliss - I LOVE that idea! How creative you are! Best wishes - Susan
In teaching a literature class on 19th century writers, kinesthetic learning would be better suited to lean the classic authors by designing a game board using materials to construct panel divisions of each decade of the 19th century. They could also participate in a group in which the visual learners could design the graphics for the board game and the kinesthetic learners could design how they could construct the board to display a timeline usining small panels.
Chef, thank you for explaining the proscess at our schools. I also teach at a Le Cordon Bleu school and this is the method we employee throughout our campuses. It is extremely important in the type of industry we are preparing the students for that they can accurately reproduce the items they are shown. If they have questions they have an easy point of reference based on what they just saw in class.
Hi Maureen- Welcome to Ed 103. What a terrific instructor you are! You are using a creative technique that is amzingly effective. Best wishes for continued success in your teaching career! Susan
I am a Chef Instructor at Le Cordon Bleu too! My students are always both kinesthethic and visual yet in International and Garde Manger there is much to commit to memory. For these items I have created mnenomic aids in which we all stand and physically act out signals for each of the components to be memorized in a module. I lead off and overexaggerate the motions. The student's get to laugh at me first then join in. I have them repeat the process 3 times per mnenomic which takes it to their active memory for more than 21 seconds.
This process breaks up the monotony of the lecture, creates an easy memory tool, gives the visual learner something to see instead of just words and lets the kinesthetic learner feel they have created a virtual product or procedure.
Students and other instructors have related to me this has led to tremendous recall in future testing situations within the program.
