The Best Project Based Learning Ideas for Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic Learners

Last week, we introduced project-based learning and explained why it works for your child.

No matter their learning style, all children can benefit from project-based learning not only by becoming engrossed in a topic, but also by using the crucial skills they will need to complete said project – creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving.

Struggling to get started? Try the following tips, categorized by learning style and area of study, to engage your student in a project-based learning activity:

Learning style: Visual
Subject: History
Project: Historic Photo Albums

Using photos related to your history lesson found on the Internet, have your visual learner create their own historic photo album. For example, if your history lesson involves the Civil Rights Movement, your student can use their creativity to name the activist in photos of peaceful protests. Have them study faces to understand what those individuals might have been thinking and feeling the very moment the photo was being taken. As a second piece to this project, encourage your student to draft poems or other forms of descriptive writing to accompany the photographs. Your visual learner will not only be able use their imagination, but will also be given the chance to incorporate key 0lessons and apply their knowledge throughout the term.

Learning style: Visual
Subject: Math
Project: Math Journals

Math can be quite difficult for visual learners, especially if they aren’t provided with objects to manipulate when visualizing problems and equations. To help overcome this hurdle, have your visual learner create a Math Journal that they must “publish” at the end of the term. By creating a page per lesson, illustrating and explaining the math concept of the day, your visual learner will both see and understand their progression in mathematics. Allow your homeschooler to make edits and adjustments to their journal pages weekly. To reward your student’s dedication at the end of the term, provide your learner with a laminated “published” copy of their finished Math Journal!

Learning style: Visual
Subject: English
Project: Character Diaries

While reading a novel or short story, have your visual learner write and illustrate a diary for one of the primary characters. Engcourage your homeschooler to reflect in the diary after each reading, pretending to be the character of their choosing from the story. This project will allow your student to use their creativity, while implementing key writing and reading skills by summarizing and using context clues to determine how the future of their character will play out.

Learning style: Visual
Subject: Social studies
Project: Exploration Logs

Bringing concepts to life allows visual learners to excel. When learning about social studies and explorers such as Christopher Columbus, assign your visual learner to record Exploration Logs. By providing your student with an old, leather bound journal or cloth paper and assigning them to write down their reflections from the lesson, your homeschooler will not only better understand what they have learned but will also feel like an explorer themselves while doing it!

Learning style: Kinesthetic
Subject: History
Project: Create a Screenplay

Your kinesthetic learner might have difficulties sitting still and understanding a long, detailed history lesson. To ease your student’s troubles, get them moving! Have your kinesthetic learner to write and act out a scene from their favorite history lesson from the term. This project will allow your student to implement the findings from their chosen lesson as well as improve writing skills and enhance creativity within the classroom – all while having fun!

Learning style: Kinesthetic
Subject: Math
Project: Math Investigation

To make sure your kinesthetic learner isn’t losing interest during math, have them embark on a math investigation. Provide your homeschooler with a bag full of tools such as rulers and calculators, and have them go on a hunt throughout the house or backyard to search for evidence of mathematics in the real world. For example, your kinesthetic learner might find geometrical patterns in the bathroom or measurements and conversions in the kitchen! Once returned from their investigation, have your student record their findings and reflect on data that surprised them.

Learning style: Kinesthetic
Subject: English
Project: Create Your Own Board Game

After completing a novel or short story, have your kinesthetic learner create their own board game inspired by the story. Supply paper and ask them to cut out game pieces, illustrate a game board, and create rules and a thorough concept for the game that relates to the story or book that was read. This project allows your mover and shaker to get out of their desk and use their imagination! Once their game is complete, reward your student by playing the game with the entire family. This will show your child you are proud and interested in their creativity!

Learning style: Kinesthetic
Subject: Social studies
Project: City of Stories

How well do your kids know their community? Every single one of us would be amazed if we knew how much we could find out about where we live just by talking to people. Here’s a project that combines Get out of the house with your homeschooler and meet new people, learn about their backgrounds, and translate this research into a collection of booklets and other artwork. Encouraging your student to engage with their community helps develop an understanding of local and global history, journalistic practices, and artistic skills for students who thrive on creation from both their hands and mind. In addition, your student can be constantly challenged to meet extra credit opportunities chosen by you the parent. Afterwards, have your child present what they learned and reflect on their experiences.

Learning style: Auditory
Subject: History
Project: Lost!

Reinforce lessons about global history and ancient civilizations and cultures by having your children imagine they are stranded on an island that is isolated from the rest of the world. Their task is to figure out how to survive, and co-exist together as a unit. By only interacting verbally, they can directly experience the challenges of choosing a suitable environment, establishing government, creating currency, and inventing forms of entertainment. What’s also unique about this project is the kids can choose to carry out their learning experience indoors or outdoors. In addition, this is the perfect opportunity to assign your children to a group project to help build their communication and comprising skills. If you only have one or two kids, consider partnering with another homeschooling family to expand the classroom size.

Learning style: Auditory
Subject: Math
Project: Math Album

Set a one-month deadline for your kids to work together to create an eight to 12 track album covering recent math lessons. Songs can range anywhere from one to five minutes. Push them to write songs geared toward their own personal memorization habits, including mental tips and tricks that work for them. By having them record their own songs about math, they practice verbal and auditory repetition of mathematical concepts like addition and subtraction, shapes and figures, fractions, algebraic equations, and much more. Make this project something they can refer to in the future when studying or trying to retain difficult concepts.

Learning style: Auditory
Subject: English
Project: Become a Storyteller

Auditory learners do best when hearing their studies. Playing off their strongest skill, assign your auditory learner to record themselves reading their favorite short story from the term. Using imaginative, silly voices, have your child record themselves as each character from the story. Once their character voices are recorded, have your student to explain what characteristics of the story characters led them to choose each individual voice. This assignment allows homeschoolers to use their creativity and apply their knowledge of the characters and contexts they have studied throughout the term. Once the recording is complete, listen to the short story as a family for fun and laughs!

Learning style: Auditory
Subject: Social studies
Project: Month-Long Memoir

Give your child an audio recorder – which you can buy at places like Staples, Target, and Walmart – and ask them to keep a daily oral journal. No matter what they do or where they go, have them spend at least ten minutes per day documenting their thoughts. This project is perfect if your family is taking any special trips, attending cool events, or planning a vacation sometime in the near future. And, there’s really no deadline. They could record daily for one month, or even one year. Once the project is wrapped up, have your student edit and produce a highlight reel of their most memorable recordings, perhaps accompanied by any pictures they took from trips and events.

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Engaging your learner in any of the above project and craft ideas is a great way to reinforce important lessons, while ensuring your retains knowledge from each term. Have you and your student found success with a particular project? If so, share your ideas in the comments!