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Spatial Intelligence in Children - Practical Activities
By Andrew Loh
For children who are very strong in spatial intelligence, here are some ideas and suggestions to make them more efficient in numerous skills.
Before training your child to learn spatial intelligence, here are some basic points on what spatial intelligence is and how it will affect your children's classroom performance.
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They can easily visualize things within their minds.
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They can easily manipulate things within their minds and check and analyze the scope of impacts of any changes.
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They can imagine in an active manner.
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They can create their own world in their mind. Many of them appear lost and look day dreaming!
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Equipped with a high form of motor kills, these children can manipulate and transform physical objects like building blocks.
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These children can easily express themselves by drawing amazing figures, drawings and paintings.
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These children are very dynamic and they move around a lot to enhance their learning process.
Those children who excel in spatial intelligence will always enjoy:
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Using and handling shapes, patterns, forms and objects. Create unusual figures and blocks by using these things. The forms they make are always unusual and creative, when compared to those formed by average children.
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Using drawing and sketching tools like pencils, pens and paint boxes to paint figures and drawings on papers. Children who are rich in spatial thinking are always busy in drawing and painting.
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Children who are rich in spatial intelligence skills can play with colors and make patterns with them. The way and manner in which they mix colors are just out of this world!
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These children can easily feel and sense things, their forms and shapes. Their have an exceptional gift to touch and feel things around them.
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These children are exploratory in nature and they always like to break down things just to see what is inside! Just watch some children taking apart their toy cars and examining the interiors!
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Create model and shapes just to check how things act and work. These children can use modeling clay (colored) to form some of the prettiest models and figurines.
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These children can use natural clay with maximum effectiveness! They can create different objects, forms and patterns with their own hands. Some of the best sculptors possess visual-spatial intelligence in a heightened manner.
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Most children who possess spatial thinking always like to visit museums, zoos and parks. They also like to watch various museum objects and figurines.
Helping children with spatial intelligence is quite a task! You can train those children who are poor in this ability and make them better in developing some basic skills.
Here are some activities and tips on training children spatial thinking:
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Buy your children plenty of books that contain images, pictures and drawings. These little tools will help your children to develop a liking for pictures and images.
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Before going to bed, read stories to your children by showing them pictures and images. Bring them books that contain only picture stories. Ask them to weave the story by looking at the pictures and images.
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While decorating their rooms, make sure the room looks vibrant with build and rich colors. Keep different objects, patterns and forms by their bedside. Your children may start playing with these objects in their own way.
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Bring home mechanical building toys and automotive models. Children who are rich in spatial thinking are always busy in building their own mechanical model like cranes, dumpers and trucks. Some children can explore their minds by building automotive models like tractors and cars.
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To help them visualize things, you can provide them toys that mimic different visuals; colorful puzzles and board games can enhance their visual process.
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Teach your children the art of playing chess; this game is very helpful in teaching predictive powers as well as visualization.
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Ask them to paint a picture by looking at their surroundings. Take them to a garden or a park and ask them paint whatever they see in their mind.
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As far as possible, explain things to them by drawing figures instead of writing down words.
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Play mimicking games; use plenty of gestures and expressions. Let your children decipher the meaning of these gestures.
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When traveling out in your car, show them different scenes and landscapes and explain the meanings in detail. This simple exercise will help them retain the images in their mind.
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Teach them the art of origami; this wonderful art will help your children learn how to make things by visualizing them in their mind
Useful toys and related materials are:
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Building blocks
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Drawing sets like pencils, crayons, pens, brushes etc
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Painting sets like colors, brushes, pastels, sketch pens
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Geometry sets and writing instruments
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Globes and models
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Origami papers and books
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Plenty of picture books
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Drawing books
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Digital camera for older children, aged 12 years
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Puzzle sets, board games etc
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Modeling clay in different colors
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Natural clay for building and making models
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Graphical and painting books for older children
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Computer graphics training for older children, aged 15 years.
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Children laptop that plays music and spells words and numbers.
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