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Kinaesthetic learning - or ‘learning by doing’ - involves physical and hands-on activities. Learners may prefer to touch, feel, and experience things first hand, and thrive on movement, exploration, and interaction with the world around them. For many learners, including those with certain SEND needs such as autism and ADHD, this approach is engaging, motivating, and effective in supporting learning retention and understanding.
Tip or Idea: Consider different ways to engage kinaesthetic learners when planning your lessons. Build in short movement breaks; provide real-life objects that learners can see, touch, and manipulate; use technology tools that offer interactive learning experiences; or include simple games such as throw and catch during quick-fire question and answer sessions.
Learning Village resource: Our Kinaesthetic Learning: Tips and ideas for the classroom printable resource provides a quick reference guide with a range of activities to try.
It is widely recognised that young people and their families should be at the heart of their educational journey. The phrase “nothing about us without us” simply and powerfully reflects the need to include young people and their families in decisions that affect them. Pupil voice can provide crucial insights into the needs of young people with SEND. Parents can also provide a valuable overview of a child’s needs, strengths, and challenges. Using these insights to guide learning opportunities can enhance engagement, enjoyment and, ultimately, progress.
We all learn in different ways. Helping your students to identify what works best for them is really important. Do they prefer visual aids, make links with existing learning or use movement and actions to help them remember things? Identifying their own personal preferences and effective practices will benefit lifelong learning and help your students to succeed.
Graphic organisers can be a powerful tool for learners with dyslexia. They enable learners to plan and structure their ideas in a visual and accessible way. Focusing on getting ideas organised before navigating challenges with grammar and spelling can be a positive approach. The visual scaffold reduces working memory strain by keeping ideas clearly organised and structured. This allows more cognitive space for sentence construction and spelling, which might be challenging.