Everyone should learn about the "9 Intelligences".

For the past two months we have been sharing a breakdown of Gardener’s “Theory of Multiple Intelligences”, it is one of my favourite theories because I have always found intelligence such a restrictive term.

I don’t know about you but every time they praised students in school assemblies it would always seem that only those that had got the highest-flying academic grades would get acknowledged. This is not me saying that those individuals weren’t incredibly smart but surely maths and science is not the only way this should be defined?

If that was the case there would be nowhere near the same level of admiration for Pablo Picasso, Frida Kahlo or Maya Angelou. (to name a few)

Gardner’s theory brings a refreshing take onto how we define what intellect is, and how if it is applied everyone can learn better.

Here’s a quick breakdown of 9 types of intelligence:

Linguistic:

• You find it generally easy to grasp other languages or dialects, even if you’re not fluent

• You enjoy reading and writing a lot

• You have a way with words

Naturalistic:

• You love nature/spending time outdoors

• You can easily connect with animals and raise them

• You’ve got a “Green Thumb”

Logical-Mathematical:

• You’re good with numbers

• You like playing strategy games

• You ask cosmic or deep questions

Interpersonal:

• You find it easy to see from another perspective

• You are highly empathetic

• You are good at co-operating and teamwork

Spatial:

• You have a reliable sense of direction/navigational skills

• You enjoy jigsaw puzzles and mazes

• You are skilled at visualising scenarios

Musical:

• You can break down sounds

• You work well when music/sound is playing will you work

• You’re highly sensitive to even small sounds

Bodily-kinesthetic:

• You communicate well-using body language

• You tend to have a good sense of timing when performing physical tasks

• You like creating and making physical objects

Intrapersonal:

• You enjoy doing things by yourself

• You are very self-motivated

• You find it easy to identify your strengths and weaknesses

Existential:

• You have a genuine curiosity for philosophical questions

• You have a high sensitivity to matters related to human existence

I had always thought that I was a plain old kinesthetic learner, what I’ve realised through Gardner is that although I do have that element of “learning by doing”, I have features of intrapersonal intelligence and logical-mathematical too!

Through my better understanding of my natural learning style, it makes it easier to identify activities I would have an affinity to, whilst helping to recognise how the skillset can help me when working in a team.

Which of Gardner's 9 intelligences do you identify with the most?