Learning to Learn

Learning the skills to improve learning

How did you learn to learn? Was learning a school process, a home experience, or simply a result of living? It was likely all three. How were your experiences similar to those of others? Are all experiences effective?

Ask any teacher and they will tell you that students enter their classrooms with widely varying skills for knowing how to learn. There is not one right way to learn, to be sure. But there are ineffective ways. As educators and parents it is our task to strengthen every student’s ability to learn effectively.

The International Baccalaureate (IB) identifies five skill categories important to develop in students. These categories and their related skills are listed in the table below. A link to the entire list of Approaches to Learning is accessible by clicking on the Planning Chart icon.

Lakewood’s teachers intentionally include Approaches to Learning skills (ATLs) within their unit and lesson plans. Parents can support those efforts by looking for the skills their children are working on in class and promoting their use at home. These skills are so important to our students that a distinct page on this blog will be devoted to Approaches to Learning (see task bar). Parents may also recognize a specific ATL need in their student and utilize the ATL planning chart to support that area from home as well. By working together we can improve the learning experiences for all of our students now and into their futures.