Understanding learning styles is important when working with children and with adult learners. We all learn differently, and we all have preferred learning styles. Understanding and teaching to a person's learning style can facilitate successful learning. There are many schools of thoughtsexplaining "learning styles;" the two most common are the Preferred Learning Style approaches and McCarthy’s, 4MAT Models.
The Preferred Learning Style Approach
The three learning styles are visual, auditory, and tactile/kinesthetic (Pues and Associates, 2003).
Visual learners remember what they see and read and are good at retrieving information by visualization techniques. Visual learners typically enjoy working with pictures, maps, diagrams, graphics, charts. They are often independent learners, who prefer to read the information, rather than listening to it. Visual learners can be sub-divided into two categories.
1. The observer who remembers through observations, pictures, places, objects, and can usually recall in great visual detail.
2. The reader who enjoys reading and is good at jobs requiring a lot of reading and writing.
Auditory learners tend to learn best with information in the oral mode by listening. Auditory learners recall spoken information by concentrating on previous conversations, discussions, lectures, or audio tracks and do well with oral instructions. The auditory learners can be subdivided into two categories.
1. The listener who prefers listening to information through lectures, spoken reports, or audio recordings.
2. The talker, or interactive learner, needs to ask questions, to discuss the information, and/or to restate information, in order to retain information.
Tactile/kinesthetic learners are touchers and movers/doers and can be sub-divided into two categories.
1. The tactile learners prefer touching, handling, or manipulating objects during the inputting of new information. They might do this as they are reading, listening, or carrying on a conversation. They tend to remember better when they underline, write, hi-light, doodle, draw designs or pictures (Kazoun, 2024).
2. The kinesthetic learners need to move large muscles and often enjoy getting their whole body into the learning activity. They tend to fidget, wiggle, shift their weight, and/or get up and move around.
Here are some practical suggestions pertaining to each learning style.
Auditory Learners
• Encourage discussions
• Encourage oral presentations and speeches
• Encourage tape recording spoken words
• Encourage them to read the text aloud or get written material on audio recordings
• Encourage the use of songs or mnemonics to aid in memorization
• Make time for them to discuss their ideas verbally
• Encourage them to dictate their ideas before writing
• Use verbal analogies and storytelling to demonstrate concepts and ideas
Visual Learners
• Use visual materials (pictures, maps, graphs, handouts, etc.)
• Make sure they have a clear view of the speaker so they can see body language and facial expressions
• Use color to highlight important parts of the written material and encourage them to do so also
• Encourage them to take notes and look at handouts
• Use multi-media to impart information (PowerPoint, Internet, DVDs, etc.)
• Encourage the use of mnemonic “Memory pegs” for memorization (visualizing information as a picture)
• Use illustrated materials
• Encourage time in a quiet space to avoid verbal disturbances
• Encourage illustrating ideas and use of webs for conceptual frameworks
Tactile/Kinesthetic Learners
• Allow for frequent study breaks
• Allow for physical movement
• Use hands-on experiences
• Have an area where they can work standing up
• Allow gum chewing (Make sure disposal is in garbage can)
• Encourage the use of highlighters
• Encourage them to keep their hands busy during meetings with doodling, crocheting, squeeze balls, rubber bands, or clay
• Use background music during meetings
• Have a walking while talking meeting
4MAT- 4 Types of Learners Model
Developed by McCarthy, the 4MAT Model looks at how adults learn, perceive new information, and process it to make it our own (About Learning, 2025). There are four types of learners: imaginative, analytic, common sense, and dynamic (Bloom, 2005).
Type 1- Imaginative Learners:
• Seeks meaning, involvement, and clarity
• Learn by listening, watching, sharing ideas and personalizing information
• Work for harmony, need to be personally involved, and seek commitment
• Seek personal associations and connections
• Tackle problems by reflecting alone and then brainstorming with others.
Type 2- Analytic Learners:
• Seeks facts
• Listens to and thinks about information
• Thinks through ideas in a thorough and industrious fashion
• Forms ideas, theories, and concepts by integrating their observations into what is known by experts
• Eager learners
• Excel in traditional learning environments
• Attentive to details
• Thinks sequentially
• Thrives on assimilating disparate facts into coherent theories
• Tackles problems with rationality and logic and are uncomfortable with subjective judgments.
Type 3- Common Sense Learners:
• Seeks utility and results
• Learns by thinking and doing
• Experiments
• Applies ideas
• Learns by testing theories and experimenting
• They are pragmatists: they believe "if it works, use it."
• Needs to know how things work
• Cuts to important information and often acts without consulting others
• Thrives on plans and timelines.
Type 4- Dynamic Learners:
• Seeks to influence others
• Learns by doing and feeling
• Learns by trial and error (self-discovery)
• Seeks hidden possibilities
• Explores new ideas
• Excels at managing change by being flexible and adaptable
• Comfortable taking risks
• Comfortable working with all types of people
• May reach conclusions in the absence of logical justification and tackle problems by intuiting possibilities
• Open to new ideas
• Thrives on challenge and crisis.
Most of us learn through a combination of styles and it can change depending on what we are learning. It is always good to remember that the way we learn tends to be the way we teach, so teaching to another’s preferred learning style also requires some self-reflection.
Conflicting Data
There are conflicting or contradictory theories to learning styles; and according to the Association of Psychological Science (APS) (2009), learners have preferences for how they learn, but these preferences make very little difference in what is actually learned. So, some argue that the widespread use of learning style tests and teaching tools is a wasteful use of limited educational resources. Further research is needed.
Semiotic Mediation
The social constructivist theorist, Lev Vygotsky, believed that language and culture is an important part of learning for everyone, irrespective of learning styles. His theory of semiotic mediation, also known as quadrant theory or theory of space, discussed how during the learning process, we naturally move in and out of a combination of externalized (public experience or interactions) and internalized (private thought) processes (Raphael, Brock & Wallace, 1997). In other words, we have an experience with the external social environment (we get ideas from people, books, media, computers, etc.), then we think about what we have absorbed privately (we have internal private thinking.), next we publicly express our thinking and talk to someone or write about what we have been thinking about), and then we receive feedback from the public (we listen to feedback or watch the responses from people about our thoughts, and privately and internally, we revise our thoughts.). Vygotsky (1978) thought that this cycle was constantly occurring as we learn, and that it is through talk and interaction with others that we make sense of the world and construct meaning. Thus, we must make a space for social interactions and internal thought to occur for meaningful learning. We must make room for learners to be social and talk about what they are learning, as well as solitary time to contemplate.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs
Maslow’s motivational theory in psychology, the hierarchy of needs, is completely applicable to adult learning. The theory is typically depicted as five-tier and up to an eight-tier pyramid, with hierarchical levels of human basic needs. The original five-tier hierarchy included: Physiologicalneeds (breathing, food, water, shelter, clothing, sleep, bathroom, etc.); Safety and security needs (secure, safe, danger free environment, health, provision, housing, family, and social ability); Love/belonging needs (friendship, family, intimacy, sense of connection, to affiliate with others, to be accepted and belong); Self-esteem needs (confidence, achievement, freedom, respect of others, to gain approval, to be competent, and to be a unique individual); and Self-actualization(morality, creativity, spontaneity, acceptance, valued, experience purpose, meaning, and inner potential).
Later the theory expanded, it added: Cognitive needs (to know, to understand, and to explore); Aesthetic needs (symmetry, order, beauty, and balance); and Transcendence spiritual needs (find self-fulfillment, to realize one’s potential, and to help others to self-actualize). Each level builds on the other and the needs lower down in the hierarchy must be satisfied before individuals can attend to needs higher up on the pyramid (See Figure 6.1). For example, if the environment is uncomfortably cold and we are hungry, we can predict that we may not be at our peak cognitive performance, which is higher up in the hierarchy.
Figure 6.1
Figure 6.1 The image of Maslow’s Hierarchy was generated from AI through ChatGPT
Code Prep 1.2- Provide sound educational experiences for adult learners that enable them to understand and nurture the optimal development of children, communicate with and provide support for families, and attend to their own health and well-being.
Bloom’s Taxonomy
While Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs addresses essential needs that can motivate learners, Bloom’s Taxonomy helps us understand how learners think, grow, and build knowledge. Bloom’s pyramid depicts how learning unfolds cognitively. By pairing these two frameworks, mentor/coaches can design learning environments that not only motivate, but also intellectually challenge and engage adult learners at every level of development.
Bloom’s Taxonomy, first developed by Benjamin Bloom in 1956 and later revised by Anderson & Krathwohl (2001), organizes learning into six hierarchical levels of cognitive complexity. It provides educators with a framework for supporting critical thinking, problem solving, and reflection. Each level builds on the one before, encouraging learners to move from basic recall toward higher-order thinking, innovation, and professional insight (See Figure 6.2).
The six levels of Bloom’s (2001) revised taxonomy include:
1. Remember (Knowledge): Recalling facts, terms, and basic concepts
2. Understand: Explaining ideas or interpreting meaning
3. Apply: Using knowledge in new but familiar situations
4. Analyze: Breaking information into parts to explore relationships
5. Evaluate: Making judgments based on criteria and evidence
6. Create: Putting ideas together to form a new whole or propose alternatives
Figure 6.2
Figure 6.2 image is from Wikimedia Commons, “Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy”
When mentoring or supervising adult learners in early childhood education settings, we often ask: How do we help this person grow? What types of questions can deepen their understanding?Bloom’s Taxonomy helps us answer these questions.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi created a theory (1990) called, “flow.” In order to have “flow” or an optimal experience, where we perform at our best, there needs to be a balance between the challenge of an activity presented and the skill level of the participant. Authentic flow creates deep emersion in an activity and enjoyment, which allows for peak performance. If the challenge is far greater than the skill level, we become anxious or stressed and do not perform at optimal levels. To the contrary, if the skill level is far greater than the challenge of an activity, we become bored and lose interest in the activity (See figure 6.3).
Csikszentmihalyi (1990) described eight characteristics of flow:
1. Complete concentration on the task
2. Clarity of goals and reward in mind and immediate feedback
3. Transformation of time (speeding up/slowing down)
4. The experience is intrinsically rewarding
5. Effortlessness and ease
6. There is a balance between challenge and skills
7. Actions and awareness are merged, losing self-conscious rumination
8. There is a feeling of control over the task
Achieving flow for adult learners is ideal; thus, we must modify activities so that they are challenging, yet achievable within that person’s skill level.
Figure 6.3
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s Flow and Optimal Experience
Figure 6.3 image is from Wikimedia Commons, “Challenge vs skill” or “Flow psychology.”
Code Prep 1.3- Inform learners of conduct and work expectations, including institutional standards for writing, performance, and academic integrity, including the responsible use and integration of artificial intelligence.
Educators need to be given clear written expectations for their efforts, responsibilities, and engagement. Supervisors also are responsible for regularly reviewing and being up to date on school policies, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and potential plagiarism issues. AI can be useful in automating lesson plans and assessments by freeing up teachers to focus more on direct interaction with children but it must be used responsibly by: ensuring privacy and data security of children; avoiding over-reliance on AI tools in place of human interaction; and being transparent with parents and educators about how AI is used.
Code Prep 1.4- Honor confidentiality, sharing only necessary information about an adult learner, only to those who need to know, and only through appropriate professional channels.
See Code Admin 1.8. We must develop and follow written policies on confidentiality.
Code Prep 1.5- Build into all required training minimum required levels of demonstration of understanding and competence, and give all learners equitable pathways to succeed, demonstrate competence, and perform at high levels.
We must attempt to help all others succeed and perform at their best, and examining the process of executive functioning skills can facilitate this. Executive function skills help people manage everyday tasks and refers to “self-regulatory processes, such as the ability to inhibit a behavior or cognitive flexibility, that enable adaptive responses to new situations or to reach a specific goal. It is the mental processes that help us set and carry out goals” (Paris, Ricardo, & Rymond, 2019, p. 205). We use these skills to solve problems, make plans, adapt to new situations, and manage emotions. Poor executive functioning skills can hinder our ability to perform, complete tasks, or have strong social connections. These skills develop over one’s lifetime, but there are ways to improve and support executive functioning:
• Break down tasks, jobs, or learning material into smaller steps or chunks
• Use organizational tools (e.g., checklists, planners, sticky notes, text reminders, or apps) to track tasks and stay on schedule
• Set clear, prioritized goals daily (e.g., identify top 3 tasks or focus on one key task).
• Establish and document daily schedules and routines.
• Set time estimates for tasks
• Do tasks immediately if they only take 5-minutes or less
• Exercise regularly (good for overall physical and mental health
• Reward and/or acknowledge accomplishments
• Don’t overdo the list
Code Prep 1.6- As applicable, ensure adult learners have in-person and, where necessary, virtual access to practicum settings, including centers, schools, and family child care homes, where staff are qualified to work with young children, where mentors can successfully support adult learners, and which to the greatest extent possible reflect the diverse communities in which adult learners will be working.
Successfully supporting adult ECE learners requires access to quality practicum sites. Following the NAEYC’s (2024) Code of Ethics will facilitate this. In addition, supervisors or mentors must remember that everyone “has their own unique configuration of intelligences” (MI Oasis, n.d., para. 6) and educators should take this into account, as much as possible, and teach individuals in ways that they can best learn (MI Oasis).
Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences 
Howard Gardner expands on the visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning styles and has identified eight different types of intelligences that can be helpful to educators when determining the best method of presenting learning materials (MI Oasis, n.d.).
1. Spatial
2. Bodily-Kinesthetic
3. Musical
4. Linguistic
5. Logical-Mathematical
6. Interpersonal (knowledge of others)
7. Intrapersonal (self-knowledge)
8. Naturalist
1. Spatial: The ability to conceptualize and manipulate large-scale spatial arrays (e.g. airplane pilot, sailor), or more local forms of space (e.g. classroom arrangement, architect, chess player).
2. Bodily-Kinesthetic: The ability to use one’s whole body, or parts of the body (like the hands or the mouth), to solve problems or create products (e.g. dance, skater).
3. Musical: Sensitivity to rhythm, pitch, meter, tone, melody and timbre. May entail the ability to sing, play musical instruments, and/or compose music (e.g. musical conductor or musician)
4. Linguistic: Sensitivity to the meaning of words, the order among words, and the sound, rhythms, inflections, and meter of words (e.g. poet or writer). (Sometimes called language intelligence.)
5. Logical-Mathematical: The capacity to conceptualize the logical relations among actions or symbols (e.g. mathematicians, scientists).
6. Interpersonal: The ability to interact effectively with others. Sensitivity to others’ moods, feelings, temperaments and motivations (e.g. negotiator or empath). (Sometimes called social intelligence.)
7. Intrapersonal: Sensitivity to one’s own feelings, goals, and anxieties, and the capacity to plan and act in light of one’s own traits. Intrapersonal intelligence is not particular to specific careers; rather, it is a goal for every individual. (Sometimes called self-intelligence.)
8. Naturalist: The ability to make consequential distinctions in the world of nature as, for example, between one plant and another, or one cloud formation and another (e.g. taxonomist or farmer). (Sometimes called nature intelligence.)
Code Prep 1.7- Provide and recommend the use of institutional and additional support for adult learners, including but not limited to dual language learners and multilingual adult learners, who have the potential to work effectively with young. children but have difficulty meeting academic standards, as well as those who demonstrate academic excellence but experience difficulty working with young children in practice.
Whenever possible, we should make every attempt to communicate and make written materials available in a person’s home language. Use of AI for translating is becoming a reliable method.
Code Prep 1.8- Help adult learners identify alternative educational paths and goals when after we have made concerted efforts to work with the adult learners, it becomes apparent that they are not able to benefit from our training, class, or program.
Helping an educator learn to work together as a team, is often more productive than terminating someone and bringing in a new person (Sciarra et al.). Another alternative is to suggest that the adult learner stay in a lower-level job position, perhaps even temporarily. This is a good way to encourage an educator, who is not ready for promotion, to stay in the field of ECE and strive for betterment. For example, being a teacher’s aide is a perfectly respectable job, and the teacher’s aide is not left alone with children, but they still can positively interact with children and complete classroom tasks, under direct supervision.
Sometimes the role of a good leader is to help someone find their niche, even when it is not in education. If it is at all possible to counsel someone and help them identify their strengths, we might be able to them identify potential alternative career paths and goals.
Sometimes termination is necessary. “Not meeting stated criteria could mean no recommendation for a raise, no opportunity for advancing to a higher-level position, or termination. When there are other actions that could cause dismissal, such as use of corporal punishment, these should be in writing” (Sciarra, Lynch, Adams & Dorsey, 2016, p. 167). The decision to terminate should only be made when the employers are convinced that termination is in the best interest of the children and staff.
Code Prep 1.9- Support adult learners who come to us with concerns about a colleague’s competence, fairness, ethics, or accuracy by helping them clarify their concerns, and deciding and following through on a course of action to address the problem.
Please see Code 3A.4- Under the section “When We Have Concerns.” Concerns should be addressed through the proper chain of command, never ignored, and we must make sure that concerns are brought to the proper person in a timely manner. When uncertain, ask the direct supervisor for the correct chain of command.
Code Prep 1.10- Not sell products and/or services from which we stand to gain financially in professional development unless they are relevant, serve educational goals, and we have explicitly stated this connection at the outset of the training.
Selling products or endorsing products must be done with thoughtfulness and caution. It can be problematic. Endorsements are discussed under Code 4.4. Many schools need to supplement income and do fundraisers, such as raffles, bake sales, silent auctions, spaghetti feeds, carnivals, etc. However, these are typically only held for brief periods of time and tend to only bring in small amounts of money. If there are products regularly being sold at the center, they should be relevant to education and have explicitly stated and directly connected, educational goals. It is worth noting that maintaining a balanced budget for an early childhood education program can be very difficult and centers not connected with large institutions or programs, usually need additional sources of income beyond tuition.
Code Prep 1.11- Not allow adult learners to pass a course or move to the next level of professional credentialing if they have not demonstrated expected levels of knowledge and competence in course or training content or if they do not demonstrate the ability to relate positively and effectively with children and families.
We must be honest about adult learners observed abilities. If an educator has not successfully demonstrated expected levels of knowledge and competence, they must not be given a passing grade or promoted beyond their demonstrated abilities and competencies.
Code Prep 1.12- Not allow adult learners to complete a program if we have direct evidence that they may cause harm by endangering children’s physical, emotional, or psychological well-being.
Unfortunately, sometimes when an educator has not successfully demonstrated expected levels of knowledge and competence and we have evidence that they may cause harm, termination must be immediate.
