Why Multisensory Works

Why Multisensory Works

Every person learns in their own unique way. So why do school expect students to learn in the same way?

You might be thinking, what is multisensory?

Multisensory is an approach to teaching that gives students the opportunity to learn from more than ones sense. These senses would be seeing, hearing, moving and touching. And for me as a teacher this equates to hear it, see it, say it, build and/or write it.

The multisensory approach relates to Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligence. Which categorizes “intelligence” into 9 different categories spatial, naturalistic, musical, logical-mathematical, existential, interpersonal, bodily-kinesthetic, linguistic, and intra-personal.  This theory supports the idea that different people learn in different ways, and show their “intelligences” through different avenue of interest and expertise. For example a therapist and a famous musician would both be intelligent but would have different areas of expertise and probably different preference for learning.

How can Multisensory teaching help learning?

Through life experiences you have probably seen that different people are good at different things. Different skills come easier to different people. My brother was always better at reading than I even though I was 3 years older.

Most people would support the idea that all people are capable of learning, just different people learn in different ways. For example when I am listening to a lecture I need to take notes. My mind holds on to the information better if I am writing and listening.

When I have given students experiences to do reading, writing and math activities with a multisensory approach, I have seen growth. Teaching in a multisensory way gives students more than one way to learn a concept. Much of school is listening to the teacher, and doing a worksheet to show what you know.

A multisensory approach has been proven to help support students learn especially with reading problems.

What does multisensory look like?

Multisensory learning looks like a busy classroom. Students are moving, they are saying things, and they are writing/building and hearing the content.

The professional development training GLAD incorporates many multisensory strategies. GLAD incorporates the following:

·      Singing (hearing, moving and saying)

·      Visual posters and charts (seeing)

·      Choral reading/response/echo (hearing and saying)

·      Organizing visuals (touching and seeing)

The Wired for Reading training also offers many great multisensory strategies for teaching reading and writing. The Wired for Reading approach was created to help students with Dyslexia. It is estimated that 1 in 5 students has dyslexia. Some of the multisensory strategies this program promotes is:

·      Visuals (seeing)

·      Stories (hearing and seeing)

·      Moving sound cards (seeing, hearing, saying, touching)

An example of a curriculum I have used that incorporates a multisensory approach is the All About Reading Level 1 curriculum by Marie Rippel. Their website states it uses a “multisensory instruction so kids can decode words instead of guessing.”

This curriculum has students start by building new patterns and words with magnets, they build, see and say the words and patterns. The program also has color coded flash cards for word patterns and words, where students see the word, hear the word and say the word. Sight words are rarely introduced, this program focuses on sounding out as many words as possible and only introducing sight words that truly need to be memorized by sight. The students practice reading words, phrases and sentences before jumping into reading the text.

Before the students are given the book to read they have had opportunities to see, hear, build and say the words. Check out my full review of this curriculum here.

Marie Rippel also has a multi-sensory spelling program All About Spelling that will be reviewed in the future.

Building with the All About Reading/ All About Spelling letter tiles. The student is given a word, they build the word, read the word, and see the word

A curriculum isn’t necessary but is helpful when implementing a multisensory approach. See my suggestions below for what I would use to incorporate multi-sensory learning into reading, writing and math.

Reading	Writing	Math
·        Flash cards ·        Building words with magnets ·        Choral reading ·        Color coding ·        Tapping out sounds	·        Sorting words ·        Graphic organizer – color code ·        Spell words outload ·        Mentor texts ·        Dictation ·        Air writing ·        Writing in shaving cream ·        Word Their Way	·        Manipulatives ·        Choral responses ·        Visual examples of process

*please note that many of the above examples for reading and writing could be used interchangeably.

Integer Block kit, Manipulative example from the Math U See curriculum. With physical blocks students are able to see, move, touch and say/hear.