YOUR PREFERRED LEARNING METHOD REVEALED

I recently read “Understanding Your Individual Learning Styles in Relation to Learning to Code” that explained the various learning methods and how to find your dominant styles.

A person does not identify a single dominant style to use for every situation.  Rather, the learning style can change based on the material being studied.   In fact, to be successful, a person should look into as many learning styles as possible.

The article outlines seven widely recognized learning styles a person can fit into.  Identifying your dominant styles will help you choose the resources needed to be successful.

MOST COMMON LEARNING STYLES AND SUGGESTED RESOURCES

Verbal/Linguistic

Characteristics include:  reading, speaking, and writing. Reading documentation is key to becoming a great programmer.

• Join FreeCodeCamp where you learn by reading snippets of documentation and immediately apply what you learned.

• Join FreeCodeCamp community on FB

• Sign up for newsletters and blogs like JavaScript Weekly and CSS-Tricks

• Look up resources on line like W3Schools and Mozilla Developer Network

Visual/Spatial

Characteristics include:  use of color, graphic organizers, images and pictures, and use of visual media.  People who fit into this style may like taking notes in color or creating wire frames.

• Print off The Ultimate Flexbox Cheat Sheet

• Look at The Daily Programmer YouTube series

Auditory/Musical

Characteristics include:  listening to audio books, podcasts, and lectures, linking sound with meaning, and adding rhythm and rhyme.  People who fit into this style respond to tone, inflection and speed.

• Ose Moreno’s YouTube video that accompanies FreeCodeCamp talks through instructions

• Coding podcasts include https://medium.freecodecamp.org/10-more-podcasts-that-new-coders-should-listen-to-in-2017-3c7db301dfb and http://starthere.fm/ 

Physical/Kinesthetic

Characteristics include movement, manipulation, and hands-on activities. Kinesthetic learners don’t mind broken code because they enjoy fixing it.

• Join FreeCodeCamp to build your own projects rather than just copying the code from an already completed project.

Logical/Mathematical

Characteristics include:  systematically and sequentially working through problems, understanding cause and effect, and running simulation-type games. Logical thinkers tend to like workflow applications, read documentation, and utilize libraries (like Bootstrap) that rely on an understanding of hierarchy

• Join https://www.codewars.com/ , https://codefights.com/ , https://www.hackerrank.com/dashboard , https://www.codingame.com/training to get involved with puzzles, challenges, and gaming

Interpersonal & Intrapersonal

Most people fall into one of these two categories.

Intrapersonal Characteristics include: like the social aspects of learning such as study groups.

• Attend programming meet-ups or join a study group

Interpersonal Characteristics include:  prefer to work alone and focus on self-reflection.

• Particpate in a challenge like http://www.100daysofcode.com/ or http://www.subscribepage.com/30days30sites or https://github.com/ for open source projects in your own time

Take the time to identify your dominant style by finding resources in those styles you are comfortable with and looking into styles you may not have considered.   If you are confused as to which path to take there are formal analysis tools like “Learning Styles Inventory”.  Regardless what you do, do not be afraid to try new things and to have failures along the way.  It’s all part of learning to become the best programmer you can be.