What are kinesthetic learning activities?
If you have multiple children, I’m sure you’ve noticed just how different their personalities can be.
Learning styles are the same. Not all children will learn the same way.
I learned this the hard way.
My first two children loved to sit and listen to me read, or look through books, etc.
Then I had my third child, and lo and behold, he could not sit still for ANYTHING!
At first, it really frustrated me. Then I read a book that spoke about different learning styles. This was my first exposure to the term kinesthetic learning and it set me on a mission to find kinesthetic learning activities that would benefit my son.
A kinesthetic-tactile learning style requires that you manipulate or touch material to learn.
Over the years, I’ve chosen many different kinesthetic learning activities which really helped my son to thrive and I will share them with you now.
MATH:
* We used dry beans to practice counting.
I also used empty egg cartons and labeled the cups with the numbers and would have my son count the correct number of beans into each cup.
* Next, we began using dice. I would have him practice rolling a die and counting the numbers on it and matching those beans into the correct numeral written inside the egg carton cups.
We also used dice and beans to practice addition and subtraction.
* Another tool I often used was beach ball math. This was his favorite.
I purchased a beach ball and wrote numbers randomly all over it with a Sharpie. I’d toss him the ball and he’d catch it and name the numerals his hands landed on as he caught it. At first this would be numeral recognition, but it quickly evolved into addition and subtraction, and then multiplication and division.
* Dominoes were also a favorite tool for reinforcing math concepts.
In addition to these, we played board games ALL THE TIME.
I wrote an earlier blog post which listed my family’s favorite board games and you can read it here:
https://learningisawayoflife.com/my-familys-favorite-games/
SCIENCE:
This was the easiest subject for me to include kinesthetic learning activities because I realized it was what came naturally for me in this area.
* We loved nature walks(and still do!)
I often made up scavenger hunts of different items for my children to look for.
*Lots and lots of science experiments!
We’d check out different experiment books from the library almost weekly. I will include most of our favorite experiment books at the end of this post.
* Field trips
I am always on the lookout for hands-on field trips. I was surprised at just how easy it is to incorporate science into almost every field trip.
* Unit studies
Most of these that I prepared, revolved naturally around science themes. For example: flight, kites, bubbles, planes, water cycle, etc.
*Telescope and star charts
We loved late nights, lying together up on the roof, pointing out constellations to each other. We would often make up stories about how they got their names. Some nights we were even blessed to see a shooting star!
*Microscope and magnifying glasses
As my children got older, this was also a staple of most afternoons. We’d look at items we’d found on our nature walks, or any random items they found. I even ordered slides a couple of years.
SOCIAL STUDIES:
This subject, with the exception of field trips, was a little more difficult for me.
*Maps and globes
To this day, this particular son is obsessed with both(he is now 18!)
He loved spinning the globe and learning which countries were located where.
*Board games–these have always been a staple of our homeschool days, and just our family life in general.
*Re-enactments
We loved going to Civil War and Fur Encampment events.
*Dressing up
My children all loved constructing costumes and acting out different battles or historic times. My personal favorite was when we all dressed up in Little House On The Prairie costumes and acted out our own little mystery of who had robbed a bank.
LANGUAGE ARTS:
*Beach ball
We practiced reinforcing letters and their sounds the same way we mastered numeral recognition using a beach ball.
*Sticky notes
I would write simple words on sticky notes and hand them to him and he would run around the house labeling the correct items. This was especially fun with the pets!
*Clapping
This was easy for him when it came to counting syllables or just spelling words.
*Index cards
I would write words down and he would practice placing them in alphabetical order.
*Walks
I would make simple BINGO type cards and we’d walk around downtown looking for the different words on signs and in store windows.
*Magnetic letters
I had magnetic letters on our refrigerator and he would sit for quite some time making up words, and then sentences using the letters.
BIBLE MEMORY:
*Jumping on a mini-trampoline while reciting their verses has been very beneficial for a couple of my children.
*I would also write each word on separate notecards for them and have them practice putting them in the right order. This repetition helped reinforce the verses.
One of the main benefits of homeschooling for me has been teaching my children what they want to learn and in a way that truly benefits each of them.
I love being able to personalize each of their educations so that it is just right for them to reach their full potential.
I hope that some of these kinesthetic learning activities will inspire you to branch out and try something new with any of your little kinesthetic learners.
