Verbal Learner: Characteristics, Learning Strategies, & Activities

child writing in notebook with pencil

Whether you’re new to homeschooling, have been homeschooling for a while, or you’re learning how to help your children (or yourself) learn, you’ve likely encountered the verbal learning style. This learning style has to do with how people interact with words in general—spoken, written, or read. It’s also called the read/write learning style or the linguistic learning style. As you learn more about learning styles, remember to keep a broad perspective about how learning works. If you believe you’re a verbal learner or your child is a verbal learner, use the strategies and activities you’ll find here to expand on what you would already do to teach. But try not to make them the only options you use to teach your children. Using multiple learning strategies is helpful regardless of your learning preferences. If you’re looking for the best ways to engage a verbal learner, keep reading.

What is a read/write, linguistic, or verbal learner?

Neil Fleming, who developed the VARK classification system for learning styles, introduced the read/write learning style as the style that preferred the printed word for learning and conveying information. Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences includes linguistic-verbal or verbal-linguistic intelligence, which describes people who can use words well when writing and speaking. Over the years, these two terms have morphed and combined. In general, they refer to the same type of learner: someone who prefers learning through reading, writing, and spoken communication. The emphasis of the verbal learner is the act of communicating through words.

Are verbal learners also auditory learners?

Because verbal learners process and retain information that they’ve read, written, heard spoken, or have spoken themselves well, a verbal learner and an auditory learner may have similar preferences for learning. However, their learning preferences aren’t identical. An auditory learner tends to have high auditory memory that is not confined to the spoken word. Auditory learners may demonstrate strong recall for spoken instructions, musical notes, and other sounds that help them associate information together. Verbal learners deal specifically with language.

Characteristics of Verbal Learners

Some may say that verbal learners don’t do well with visual learning tools or may struggle to understand infographics. While people who prefer verbal learning may be predisposed toward certain learning methods—such as listening to a lecture, reading information, taking notes on information, or discussing information out loud—that does not mean they can’t or won’t succeed at another type of learning method. Different learners may have multiple learning preferences and may do well with both verbal learning methods and visual learning methods.

Advantages for Read/Write Learners

Because the verbal learning style is often the default for teaching methods, verbal learners rarely experience significant disadvantages. The lecture style is the most popular style of teaching, and read/write learners can easily take notes, follow along, and complete any required reading. A couple of potential disadvantages may include not being able to take necessary notes in hands-on or laboratory settings or finding lecture-style teaching to be boring over time.

Engaging Your Linguistic Learner

Just because a verbal learner may prefer learning in a read-and-lecture style doesn’t mean they’re automatically engaged in a lecture. Lecture-style teaching can become boring, especially if the subject matter lacks variety, isn’t engaging, or doesn’t interest your child. You can help your students stay engaged with a few learning strategies just for them.

Read/Write Learner Strategies

Verbal Learning Study Tips

Read/Write Learning Style Activities

  1. Writing projects. Writing assignments take time, but they are one of the most helpful activities for your read/write learner.
  2. Lab reports. Verbal learners may not always benefit from a hands-on activity, but adding a lab report or quick written component to their lab activity gives them a place to summarize and explain what they learned, how they can improve, and what they’d like to try next.
  3. Role play. Role activities give kids a chance to act out information and talk about it in new and different ways. These activities often make them put it into their own words as they pretend to be a soldier giving commands for the next phase of the war or act out being a news reporter going over current events.
  4. Participate in a writing challenge. You may have local opportunities for writing competitions that your student could participate in. Or participate in a national activity, like NaNoWriMo.
  5. Presented reports. Presentations often include all the components of a read/write learner’s characteristics: writing a report, organizing notes, and explaining or reteaching information to another person.

How does your homeschool curriculum choice matter for your verbal learner?

Does your homeschool curriculum choice matter for your verbal learner? It may depend on your child. Because verbal learners may excel at reading and writing and have strong reading comprehension skills, a homeschool curriculum that uses simple sentences might not work well. The writing may not be challenging enough for them. Alternatively, even a strong reader may feel overwhelmed by a curriculum that is heavily reading intensive and doesn’t have many pictures to break up the text. Choosing a curriculum that is on your student’s reading level and includes an appropriate amount of visual appeal will help your student learn better and more consistently. Check out BJU Press textbooks to see how a multisensory learning experience can benefit your verbal learner!

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About Jenna

Jenna, lead copywriter at BJU Press, holds a BA in creative writing and an MA in English. Though her homeschooling experience was somewhat unstructured, she appreciates the flexibility of homeschooling since it allowed her to spend most of her time reading. Now Jenna enjoys reading and writing fiction in her spare time. Read more posts by Jenna.