Understanding Gregorc Mind Styles: How to Tailor Homeschooling to Your Child's Unique Learning Styles

Nov 22, 20243 min read

Grasping how your child's mind works, how they interpret new information, and how they learn is crucial for establishing an effective homeschooling environment and helping them achieve their full potential. Every child is unique, with their own cognitive processes and learning preferences that shape how they absorb, retain, and apply knowledge.

By understanding these mental frameworks, parents can adapt their educational methods to better fit their child's individual needs. This personalized approach not only deepens comprehension of the material but also boosts the child's overall enthusiasm for learning, making the educational journey more enjoyable and effective.

In a previous article, I discussed the importance of recognizing different learning styles, highlighting the VARK learning styles preference, which categorizes learners into four types: Visual, Auditory, Reading/Writing, and Kinesthetic. Each style represents a different way individuals prefer to engage with and process information, and understanding these preferences can enable parents to create a more dynamic and responsive learning environment.

However, learning styles preferences, are only a portion of the whole picture.

How does your homeschooler think and perceive information?

Gregorc Minds Learning Styles Model

Perceptual ability
Ordering ability

Anthony Gregorc, PhD, published his research-based Mind Styles Model of learning in 1984. His learning styles model focuses predominantly on organizing how children perceive, process, and organize information that they learn.

These are useful to identify, in appreciating the strengths and weaknesses of children.

Dr. Gregorc characterized the way people learn into perceptual ability and ordering ability. While people have both ways of thinking, we are typically more comfortable with using one over the other.

Perceptual ability

Perceptual quality or preference is how children perceive concepts. They perceive new concepts in either concrete or abstract ways.

Concrete perception- this type of thinker uses the senses of sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing to register information. Typically these types of thinkers do not seek for hidden meanings, nor make connections between concepts.

Concrete Thinking Mindset is, “It is what it is.”

They may communicate more direct and literal when getting their point across.

Abstract perception- this type of thinker is able to visualize, conceive, and understand things that are not seen or experienced through their senses. They use their imagination or intuition and look for more subtle implications.

Abstract Thinking Mindset is, “It’s not always what it seems.”

They May use a subtle approach or words to indirectly get their point across.

Ordering Ability

Ordering ability or preference refers to if a person likes to have things taught in a sequential or random order. Sequential thinkers prefer steps and logical order. Random thinkers thinks in chunks or the bigger holistic picture.

Using these, he created an x, y axis graphic to demonstrate how individuals overlap and exhibit these qualities of thinking.

There are four combinations of the strongest perceptual and ordering ability in each individual, which are:

1. Concrete Sequential - Very organized, Prefers real-life application and concrete facts, Thrives with Step-by-Step methods. Love Routines

2. Abstract Random- Very Creative, Imaginatively looks at the picture and is in tune with people's moods and emotions

3. Abstract Sequential- Can be organized, tend to analyze people and events to learn deeply about them. Loves research and once old enough, will be a strong independent learner

4. Concrete Random- Very creative, intuitive, enjoys experimentation, and prefers variety

So what does that mean and where does my kiddo fall into?

Gregorc does not endorse testing young children, because there are too many variables that could give false information. Instead, observe your child for their strengths and limitations.

Understanding that these are a factor of learning styles is important, and identifying it in yourself as the teacher will help you understand how you are coming across while teaching.