Posted on January 19, 2016
By Megan McCarthy
My son plays hockey, and when he was little, he held his stick wrong. No matter how many times his coach told him to put his right hand further down the stick, he would slide it back up to the top with his left. This gave him much less power and control. So, in his first year as a forward, he only scored one goal, much to the dismay of his coach and adoring parents. Then came year two, and a new coach. After one practice, coach stopped my son and said, “Give me your stick.” So my son silently handed over his stick, a little nervous that he may not get it back. The coach put a piece of tape right where he wanted my son to keep his hand. Then he drew a button in black marker on the tape. He said, “See that button? That’s the goal button. You want a goal, you press that button”. My son never slid his hand up that stick again, and he started scoring. That’s when I realized he must be a visual learner. It was clear, as soon as he saw the button, he got the concept.
Students learning in the classroom are no different. There are three generally recognized styles of learning. Visual learners process by reading and watching, like my son. Auditory learners prefer listening and reciting, and tactile learners gain knowledge by doing or touching. CLiC (Classroom in Context) helps teachers better address the learning styles of their students.
CLiC‘s curriculum is all digital and endlessly adaptable by educators. Drawing on the wide range of resources found in Gale’s In Context databases, CLiC can be customized and expanded to meet the needs of students and their various learning styles in each classroom. CLiC and its curriculum-aligned lesson plans also support various state and national standards, including Common Core. This ensures students flourish. And giving teachers access to continuously updated content for their classrooms also makes the educational process engaging, no matter what learning style best reaches their students and their individual uniqueness. For educators, that is the ultimate goal.
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About the Author
Megan is a graduate of the University of Missouri, School of Journalism. She is a fan of both lasagna and pizza, but not cooking.
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I like the idea of CliC curriculum to provide solutions to customize the learning experience for each student’s style. Making the classroom a more engaging experience is attractive to everyone – students and teachers!