Tips for Teaching a Visual Learner

Your students’ learning styles can impact how they process and retain information. Whether you use Five in a Row or another curriculum, when you find ways to teach to their preferred learning style, it will make your job and theirs easier. A Visual Learner learns best by seeing information. Here are some tips for teaching a visual learner—learn to utilize:

Teaching Videos 

Find “illustrated” guides for different subjects (Barron’s Visual Learning
Science guides are a great example of this resource, there are others too!) 

Visualize what you hear (use your imagination to “see” what you’re hearing)

Draw what you hear (like visualizing, drawing what you hear is a tool to
maintain interest and recall information that is spoken—a lecture or a discussion-based lesson)

Take Notes or Write down key information that is spoken

Use Color—color code information, use highlighters for important concepts
and or underline words. 

Use closed captioning with video lessons (this provides both the visual of the video and the visual opportunity to read the words being spoken). Making closed captioning available can significantly reduce* the time spent watching a video lesson.

Provide a written or visual schedule for your student (it might be a struggle
for them to hear directions or a list of lessons for the day).

Five in a Row can be a great fit for visual learners because your student looks at the picturebook illustrations daily as you read the story out loud to them. Many Five in a Row lessons recommend writing down information or drawing pictures and activity sheets (visual reference pages) are provided for many of the lessons. You can always add a visual resource to a lesson by finding a go-along book from the library or search online for a short video on the lesson subject. Download a FREE Five in a Row sample unit and try it today! Click here to download a sample unit.

*Sarasin, L. C. (1999) Learning style perspectives: Impact in the classroom. Madison, WI: Atwood Publishing. This study done using video classes in a community college in two groups, one with closed captioning on and another without showed a significant reduction in the time spent watching the video lesson in the group using closed captions.