Some people call children who fall into one of these three kinds of learning runners, walkers and jumpers:
Runner
When a runner is given a new task, he understands it immediately. He learns quickly, but to stay interested and involved, he needs to be challenged.
Walker
A walker takes longer to learn but responds well to instruction. This child seems to learn a little, gets better and then lets you know he is learning. Encouragement does wonders for a walker.
Jumper
A jumper is usually a challenge for parents. He takes a long time to learn, and you may wonder if he is ever going to get it. Yes, this child takes instruction, but he doesn't seem to show any signs of learning. You wonder if your jumper is listening. You teach him again and again, but he doesn't seem to get it. Again and again you go over his homework, how to feed the dog or greet people, but he keeps forgetting. You wonder, where is my child's head right now? You wonder if anything is getting through, but then one day it clicks. You had no idea. Unfortunately what hinders a jumper from learning is the parent or teacher who gives up on the child.
Some children are runners in one area and jumpers in another area. And in the area where the child is a jumper, he may be uncooperative and resistant, but that doesn't mean the child is low in this area of intelligence. It could be the area in which the child has his greatest strength.
In addition, just because he is runner in one area, doesn't mean he will excel in that area. The easiest path does not always correlate with the area of the greatest strength.
Take note, different children have different strengths. Don't compare, instead try to discover each child's uniqueness, and encourage him to grow and reinforce the growth. Be patience.
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