Editor’s Note:  Today we are thrilled to present this special guest blog by Peggy Ployhar, Founder & CEO of SPED Homeschool,
a 501(c)3 non-profit providing support and resources for families who are homeschooling students with learning challenges.
We hope you’ll be inspired by Peggy’s thoughts on the value and effectiveness of multisensory teaching.

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Knowledge is defined by Merriam-Webster as “the fact or of knowing something with familiarity gained through experience or association.” Unfortunately, the second part of this definition, the “with familiarity gained through experience or association”, is often left out of our instructional process in the rush to push children through levels and streamline teaching. 

Some children can compensate for this instructional deficit and mentally fill in enough of the gaps to keep progressing forward, but for children who struggle and have special educational needs, this overlooked step can make gaining new knowledge a near-impossible feat.

To understand the rationale behind experiential knowledge, let’s start off by talking about the basic way we are wired to interact with the world around us. We touch, taste, feel, hear, see, and smell; we use our senses as the basic building blocks for interpreting new information and navigating unfamiliar territory. And, in using our senses we not only experience life but use these hard-wired inputs to embed information into easy-to-access memories; especially when we encounter something new and our brain wants to figure out where it is best to store this additional data as well as how to effectively recall it.  

Take rollercoaster for instance.  How would you describe a rollercoaster? Have you ever ridden on one?  The answer to that one simple question will tell me exactly how you will go about transmitting the knowledge you have to share about rollercoasters. Plus, your answer will also indicate how quickly you will be able to recall and share that information.  

If you have never ridden on a rollercoaster you more than likely will have facts you can share with me about the physics of rollercoasters, where rollercoasters can be found, and probably people you know who like to ride on them, but facts about rollercoasters will be the limit of what you would be able to share with me and in sharing those facts you would pull the necessary data from various storage places in your memory that are associated with experiences at amusement parks, in science classes, or at other disconnected places.  

On the other hand, if you have ridden a rollercoaster you have created a place in your memory that hinges on your actual rollercoaster rides…your experiences, especially your favorite and most memorable ride experiences. You, of course, will be able to pull up data on rollercoasters as well, but it will be easier because these facts are associated with experiences, experiences you have embedded in your memory with your senses. You recall these various inputs because of the way the centrifugal force felt when you made that sharp turn, the contrast between the color of the rails made with the trees in the amusement park as they flashed before your eyes as you were starting to make a 360 loop, the smell of  the cotton candy as you flew over the stand below at 30mph, and even the sounds of screaming people who were accompanying you on your ride.  

In a nutshell, experience leads to knowledge.  And, if you will forgive my pun, the facts just come along for the ride.

Multisensory teaching does the same thing as getting on the rollercoaster, it takes the confusion away from a struggling student by providing the sensory input needed to associate with new material and embed the material quickly and efficiently in their memory.  

When using multisensory lessons, students are allowed to experience information instead of having to interpret random data and then work even harder to figure out how to store it properly for effective recall and further association with other learned material. A bonus on the teaching side is you will spend less time teaching your child if you incorporate multisensory activities into your lessons because theses activities greatly reduce remediation.

Are you still on the fence about taking time to do activities that may seem like lesson “extras”?  I dare you to get on the rollercoaster of multisensory learning with your child and be deliberate about adding experiences to your homeschooling lessons.  Dive into these sensory places with abandon. Embrace a little messy in your home. In the end, the memories you create both for educational purposes, as well as relationally with your children, will be the ones you all look back on the most fondly in your homeschooling journey. 

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Peggy Ployhar, SPED Homeschool Founder & CEO, is a leader in the special education homeschooling community and a frequent writer and speaker on special education homeschooling issues. Peggy’s journey into homeschooling started 17 years ago, when her oldest child was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. She and her husband Doug live in League City, TX, where they still home school the youngest of their three children (22, 20, and 14).

She is the former THSC (Texas Home School Coalition) Special Needs Team Lead, MACHE (Minnesota Association of Christian Home Educators) Special Needs Coordinator and MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) Area Coordinator for MN, ND and SD. She is certified by the American Association of Christian Counselors and trained as a Precept Bible Study leader.  

Visit SPED Homeschool online at www.SPEDHomeschool.com!

In addition to today’s post on multisensory teaching, you can find more from Peggy here, here, and here.