How to identify your child’s learning style

As a teacher, I read all the books, I studied all the research, I did all the training practise, but nothing prepared me for those first few years in the classroom when I truly learnt how children learn. I discovered how unique, how individual, how special each child is and that ‘one size’ truly does not fit all. You can meet one four-year-old and that’s it - you’ve met one four-year-old! You can meet one newborn and that’s it - you’ve met one newborn! From birth to babies, children, childhood and beyond a child’s development is anything but linear, neat and perfect. It’s messy, unpredictable and constantly evolving. What exactly do I mean by this?

Let’s delve into exactly ‘how do children learn’ a little deeper. Learning happens in many ways, at many stages starting from birth. The way children learn is influenced by both their biological factors such as genes, DNA, traits from mum and dad and their environmental factors such as the dynamics in the family home they grow up in, socio-economic status, access to services and network support. The impact of both combined and everyday experiences impacts how our children learn.

Our children aren’t robots either. We can’t programme them. We can’t expect them to do exactly what we want them to do ‘on this day at this time’ because we think that’s when they should do it. For children to truly learn, intrinsically learn, we must meet them where they’re at for them to thrive. The best way to do this is to really follow the lead of your child.

Research shows us that following a child’s interests in the world around them is key to learning. For example, if I want to teach the colour red and I pick up a red toy that my child isn’t particularly interested in and repeatedly say ‘red’ ‘red’ ‘red’, eventually, my child will learn that’s red. But it’s much more effective and much more relevant to them for learning if they are playing with a toy, or show an interest in something already and we then take that opportunity, in the moment, guided by them, to teach ‘that’s red’ and point to the red part on whatever it is they’re playing with, showing an interest in or exploring. It becomes personally meaningful, intrinsically motivating and relevant and therefore strengthens pathways in their brain to previous learning and understanding.

Children are constantly learning. The world around them is the biggest sensory playground they could wish for! Every sound, sight, touch and interaction they have shapes their understanding and development. I like to imagine children’s brains to be ‘like a sponge’ because this is exactly what’s happening as they absorb everything and make sense of the world around them and you are the biggest influence over your child; your actions will influence theirs and their development.

Children like predictability, consistency and routines. Essentially, having these things in place make them feel happy, safe and secure and when they are happy, safe and secure they are in the best position to learn and independently start to make sense of all the exciting new things they experience. We can offer amazing additional learning experiences such as sensory play, 1:1 adult and child interaction such as reading, talking, singing or days out narrating everything around you, which are all crucial to development. But I always say to parents, it is so important to also wallow in the day to day, the routines, the ‘everyday living’.

Your child learns so much from you when they can connect with you and share in tasks you’re doing. This could be things like putting the washing in, doing the shopping, cleaning the dinner plates - it doesn’t have to be something extra! Involving your child in age-appropriate chores and day to day tasks are key for connection and development, as I said before, the world and surroundings truly are already a sensory playground themselves beneficial for learning.

One thing parents sometimes question is ‘Do I need to provide new experiences every day for my child’s early learning and development?’ and the answer, quite simply, is no. It’s actually essential for them to repeat activities as the more opportunities young children have to repeat activities and make predictions, the more they build strong and stable pathways in their brain.

There can sometimes be a misconception that play isn’t learning, but play truly is learning. In the words of Maria Montessori ‘Play is the work of the child.” Play is not an optional extra or enrichment in children’s lives, but one of the most effective and developmentally appropriate ways for them to learn. Research in psychology, education, learning, and neuroscience all consistently support that play develops the very skills children need to thrive from birth and throughout school.

Through their play, children develop skills such as literacy, language, mathematical thinking, problem solving, creativity, resilience, and emotional regulation. They are able to test out, hypothesise, predict, explore cause and effect, express themselves, rehearse real life scenarios and learn! I know that learning through play is so crucial to child development that in July 2025, I launched a government petition and campaign to make learning through play statutory in key stage one.

Many people have the misconception that play is simply unstructured free play, but there are many different types of play and play in the classroom is essential for our young children too. You can encourage a wide range of playful activities for your little one to do, but I know that day to day it can be difficult to think of how to encourage your child to do this, especially growing up in such a digital and busy world.

The best way to discover your child’s learning preferences? Observe them, play with them, engage with them, talk with them. Ask yourself while you’re watching them - what lights them up? What brings them joy? What activities hold their attention for longer periods? How do they naturally approach tasks or challenges? Do they seek visual input such as looking at the pictures to support their understanding or do they try to manipulate and touch something new to make sense of it? This could even be when developing writing or maths skills for example - do they thrive with physical shapes to look at, hold and touch? Do they like a visual support mat to look at when writing a sentence with prompts?

I always say to parents and care givers that you are your child’s biggest role model. Your baby or child is learning everything from you, you set the tone, provide the environment and offer the opportunities for learning. There is power in the repetition of day-to-day life, a few simple things you can do are:
Naming objects: "Look at the red ball!" or "Here's your soft blanket." As I mentioned earlier on, this is particularly effective when naming something your child is showing interest in - it becomes more meaningful and they are more likely to remember and retain that information into their long-term memory.

Describing routines: "First we brush our teeth, then we put on our pyjamas." This helps them to feel safe and secure, and predictability is great for learning!

Responding to your child’s curiosity with openness: If they ask "Why is the sky blue?", engage in a simple explanation or explore a book together about this. Even if you don’t know - use AI, there are so many ways for us to get the answers to our children’s questions these days, and a critical skill is teaching them how they can find out information.