What Kind of Learner is Your Child? Tips and Tricks to Help Them Succeed

We always want the best for our children. This ranges from their health to what they will do later in their lives. We want to give them the best advantage possible, and one of the best ways to do that is to look deeper at their personality.

Every child is unique, and they also learn uniquely. Some children out there learn visually, while others learn better by listening. Other children are best taught by simply letting them do whatever the activity may be.

To add a layer of complexity, our children can be a little bit outgoing and social, or they can be much more reserved and independent. This can mean a huge difference in how much support they need, whereas some thrive on it, and some truly like to discover the world themselves. 

Taking the necessary steps to fully understand your child's personality will help them succeed in school much better. Aligning their personalities to the proper teaching method will also lead to maximum informational absorption and retention. This leads to a much more enriched education since they can learn effectively and efficiently.

Let’s First Look at the Personality

While our children can be special and have their own distinct natures, they can typically fall into one of four major personality types. The four main personality types are choleric, sanguine, melancholy, and phlegmatic. Please remember that there is no negative connotation associated with any of these categories. 

You also want to start looking for these traits early to place your child in the right category as soon as you can. Some characteristics may overlap between personalities, such as whether they are outgoing or shy. That's why it's important to look at all the key factors of the personalities so you can make the right assessment. 

Personalities can also change sometimes. So, periodically reviewing your child's personality is important, and maybe moving them into a new personality category. If their personality changes, you'll want to ensure you also change their learning strategy to optimise their learning.

    If Your Child has a Choleric Personality 

This is a personality that is both confident and dominant. They are very active, passionate, outspoken, strong-willed, bold and competitive, to name a few characteristics. These are those who thrive in challenging situations. They love to take charge and can be considered natural leaders. 

They are a great type of student to have in larger groups. This is because they can be assigned to manage some of their fellow students and help teachers with classroom management. 

At the same time, with such a strong personality, they can also tend to be quite demanding and sometimes impatient. They want things done a certain way, so it can be hard for them to socialise or work in a team environment. That is unless it is clear they are in charge of that team. 

While they can come across as stubborn, they are also quite creative and intelligent and focus on a solutions-oriented mentality. They work to solve problems, which can sometimes be off-putting. However, they don't mean to be; they just prefer to always focus on the correct outcome.

    If Your Child has a Sanguine Personality 

A good counterpart to the Choleric personality is the Sanguine Personality. They are extremely outgoing, social, enthusiastic and positive in general. They look at challenges as a way to learn new things. Therefore, they rarely feel beaten down or disheartened if things don't go their way. 

While they are social, they are also quite playful and imaginative. They have a natural sense of adventure in them and are carefree when it comes to taking risks most of the time. Yet this also means that they can get very bored easily. That means strategies need to be in place to keep them entertained. 

Yet if you can channel this freedom and risk-taking, they can easily become attached to certain learning methods and help bring their thoughts to it. However, they do require some constant supervision and maintenance. This is due to their natural inclination to look for ways to go down the path less travelled. The good news is they don't tend to get annoyed or subdued when trying to bring them back on the right track. Their bubbly personality makes it so they adapt to most situations with a skip in their step. 

    If Your Child has a Melancholy Personality 

This type of learner tends to have an analytical mindset when it comes to learning. Emotionally, they are thoughtful, sensitive and are capable of introspection. With the skills of an analyst, they are much more capable of handling complex problems.

One of the key disadvantages of having a Melancholic personality is being quite serious. However, that is simply due to the fact that they are deep thinkers and private in their own way. They like a certain type of organisation and approach things respectfully and carefully. Sometimes, they can come across as loners, but that doesn't mean they won't work in groups. It just means they could use a little more encouragement from time to time. 

They also don't have to be in a group environment to be able to learn. However, it's vital to keep an eye on them because they can appear too mature and be too hard on themselves at times. 

    If Your Child has a Phlegmatic Personality 

Sometimes referred to as being the most loyal type of personality out there. They are going to be thoughtful and attentive. They don't look for confrontation but more consensus and peace around them. They are all about building relationships while they are learning. They have a lot of fun with after-school activities.

Disadvantages to this personality type are that it can be a bit too predictable and get too comfortable in its routines. They also may not be fully focused on learning or taking risks. So, it's finding a way to challenge and inspire them, which is essential.

They are also quite calm, relaxed and easygoing with their learning. This leads them to be both patient and persistent at the same time. At times, they may go off on a tangent and spend more time trying to learn new things in their own way. This can come off as looking like they need to pay more attention or, worse, being lazy. Yet, in reality, it's just their process. 

Matching Personality and Learning Styles

Once you're able to identify the type of personality your child has, you can start to match it to the correct learning styles. You will see improvements in their learning strategies, but remember to be patient.

    Matching to Choleric Children

These children will be at their best when they are doing something. They must always be actively involved with whatever is being taught and the overall learning process. Remember, they are extremely competitive, so set up the appropriate challenges for them when possible. 

You also want to instil discipline into their lives and build out daily routines and clear expectations. They want to feel that they listened properly, followed the directions to the letter, and ultimately won at the task at hand. 

These victories will only help motivate them further in their learning efforts. 

    Matching to Sanguine Children

Sanguine children will best learn through listening and then speaking. They are going to lean towards being social learners and will have a desire to interact with others. They will need constant interaction and engagement. That means that their learning will need to be entertaining to them.

You need to avoid discipline and strict rules with these types of children as it will make them feel constrained. This will negatively hamper their learning and restrict their growth. That's why you want to work on changing up the teaching and learning method from time to time. Mixing it up will help them stay entertained and thus focused. 

You also want to make sure to offer them verbal encouragement and support. This is best delivered by praising them often for their achievements and work. 

   Matching to Melancholy Children

Remember that you can typically leave the learning up to them. They will learn the most effectively through reading and writing. They are deep learners and will dive into a topic to truly understand it. That means they also need the time to process such information. This means having an organised and peaceful environment to learn in. 

They are the children who want to feel like adults the soonest and feel respect is more important than praise. They love to learn and love even more to be right. That's why they want respect as a reward more often than praise. If, at times, they struggle with a concept or are outright wrong, they need to be guided back. If they're not supported through those moments, they will dwell on that point and become frustrated with not fully being right. 

   Matching to Phlegmatic Children

Building a supportive, inclusive environment for these children will make them some of your best learners. They can even support the class with learning as they are always a team player and want to be involved in everyone's success. They learn best by watching and listening. They're core visual learners who must see the process before learning it. 

It's important to remember that they may come across as slower when it comes to learning, but that's far from the truth. They simply have their schedules and learn at their own pace. Therefore, always watch that you aren’t pressurising them when it comes time for them to learn topics. 

Make sure to spot this personality early, as they can have many qualities. They tend to be diplomatic and charismatic and can work in many learning environments under the right conditions. 

For the ‘Choleric’ Child

Here's a great list to consider if you want to have a reference for handling the learning styles of these types of students. Remember to always give them opportunities to prove themselves, as well as to lead. 

• Give them challenging tasks or a unique example that requires them to think outside the box.

• Let them take the lead in group projects to help form a confident mindset.

• Provide them with opportunities to compete and win.

• Be patient with their impatience and demanding nature.

For the ‘Sanguine’ Student

Remember to keep guiding these types onto the more straight path of learning. They will stray and go their own way, when possible, away from the course of the work. But that doesn't always mean they aren't learning, so make sure to assess the situation on a case-by-case basis. 

• Keep them engaged and entertained.

• Provide them with opportunities to socialise and interact with others.

• Use a variety of teaching methods, such as games, activities, and stories.

• Be patient with their distractibility.

For the ‘Melancholy’ Learner

These are your students who want to learn; they just don't outwardly show it. You don't have to have them leave their comfort zone. You just need to monitor the  work on their course appropriately and give them plenty of resources to learn from. You only need to provide the right environment, and they will handle the rest.

• Provide them with a quiet and organised environment.

• Give them plenty of time to process information.

• Encourage them to ask questions. 

• Be patient with their shyness and withdrawal.

For the ‘Phlegmatic’ Pupil

Sometimes, these types seem like they're having more fun than learning in a teaching environment. However, this is deceptive, and they are pretty diligent students. In fact, you may notice they tend to be the most flexible learners out there since they are quite adaptable to all situations. Do understand their shortcomings and adjust accordingly, though.

• Use visual aids and the right example options.

• Break down complex concepts into smaller steps.

• Give them plenty of time to learn at their own pace.

• Be patient with their slow pace.

A Quick Recap 

When you can understand your child's personality type and match it to the right method, success is practically guaranteed. Always ensure that you have patience and understanding. A one-size-fits-all or traditional approach to teaching isn't always going to work. That doesn't mean they aren't willing or capable of learning. Your focus simply needs to shift to support them through their studies. 

From there, you can see them gain the ability to reach their full potential. They can then handle those serious exams later on in their academic careers without any issue. Your child will soon understand their own personality as well and what may work best for them. All you need to do is help guide them and provide the right setting for them to thrive in their own unique way. 

Here are some final tips to help your child regardless of their personality type. 

• Make sure to set realistic expectations. Not every child is going to score high or be perfect. Everyone learns at their own pace.

• Always come with a positive mindset and one that is encouraging. That shows your child that you believe in them and their abilities. In turn, this boosts their morale and motivation at the same time. 

• Be involved with your child’s education. Join after-school events when they come up, and even volunteer your time. If possible, try to help them with their homework and actively participate in their learning. 

• Make sure their home is a safe and supportive environment. Give them the space they need to be able to focus and study their school topics. Alongside this, give them access to resources when needed. 

With this guidance, you can enjoy watching your child develop into the best person they can be!