Customer Reviews

You're Smarter Than You Think: A Kid's Guide to Multiple Intelligences

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This book based on Howard Gardner's Multiple Intelligences is a great resource for teachers and students alike. Its easy to read format, along with many helpful hints draws the reader in. The practicality of this book pertains to everyone because we all reflect our intelligence in different ways. This book helps the reader to understand the various intelligences, as well as how we can build upon our "smarts" and strengthen those areas that we may struggle with. You're Smarter Than You Think: A Kid's Guide to Multiple Intelligences emphasizes that we are all intelligent and that we can grow to be more well rounded individuals by learning to use all of the multiple intelligences together since they are involved in everything that we do. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to find out how smart they really are, and chances are, you are probably smarter than you think.

This book presents a practical guide to the theory of multiple intelligences in a kid friendly way. I really enjoyed it and sent a copy to my granddaughter, a precocious [...], who has been fighting summer boredom by doing some of the activities in the book with her brothers and neighborhood friends. This book helps children be aware of different aspects of intelligence and how to enhance their learning by understanding themselves and the unique way they learn. The part I really liked? Children learn to challenge themselves to enhance their less preferred areas of intelligence. Wow! This book can be used to help children with self understanding and set goals for self improvement. I would especially recommend it to help young people who feel odd or different understand their strengths.

What I love about this book:

1. Identifies the 8 kinds of intelligence discovered thus far, with a check list to help you identify "some of the ways you are smart." I like how he is continually making the point that you have all the smarts, and you might identify with one or two more than the others. I think this helps you not feel like you have a label.

2. Identifies the things you do everyday that show the way you are smart.

3. Gives ideas for enhancing and expanding the way you are smart.

4. Gives clear and fun ideas to help you learn the other ways to be smart.

5. Gives ideas for possible careers you might enjoy as an adult, while using your "smart."

6. Provides additional resources for continuing your learning for each smart, including books, activities, and websites.

This book is very well thought out and complete.

I found this book really helpful not only for kids but for grownups (like me) as well. Read on...

I bought this book for my son several years ago. He is now about to enter high school. I think it is as relevant now as it was then.

The book, based on the work of Dr. Howard Gardner and his Theory of Multiple Intelligences, is an easy read. Dr. Gardner studied children and adults to discover more about how people learn. There are at least eight ways to be intelligent and there may be more that haven't been studied yet.

As a teacher, I've learned that learning happens all the time and sometimes in spurts and slow downs. In my experience, everyone can learn at every age and can improve on what is already learned well.

The brain does function like a muscle in that if not used it can atrophy or waste away.

As the author states-
The key is that all the intelligences - word, music, logic/number, people, picture, body, self and nature are all unique/different and equal in importance with none better or more important than the other. You may know what you're best at but that doesn't mean you're limited to that kind of intelligence. There are many different ways of being smart within each intelligence and the different smarts work together in almost everything you do.
No one is great at everything but you probably have some ability in each area.
Plus no matter how much ability you have, you can usually improve.

I particularly appreciated the practical suggestions in the book on how to improve in each intelligence area by using strengths in other intelligence areas (example: improve people smarts by joining a band, choral group or other musical group or join a sports team or casual pick-me-up basketball game kind of thing). Ideas presented could be used by kids, parents, teachers, therapists or others.

Have fun discovering and expanding your abilities in each area!

This book has special meaning to me as a special education teacher whose work involves teaching those outside the mainstream-but take note: all of us are "special" and "intelligent" in one way or another.

Perhaps the greatest weakness in modern education is the intense focus on math and language arts. Yes, test scores have improved, but independent reading among recent graduates has declined, while science, social studies, music, and art have all fallen by the wayside in the post 'No Child Left Behind' (NCLB) world of education by bureaucracy. In short, a rise in test scores has not resulted in an increase in well rounded citizens.

Part of the reason the NCLB approach is such a failure is that it equates education with intelligence and intelligence with skills in math and language arts. But as psychologist Howard Gardner has suggested, this is a very narrow view of intelligence. In fact, people have at least eight different intelligences in varying degrees and author Thomas Armstrong has worked hard at popularizing Gardner's research for educators. In those schools which actually have the freedom to implement strategies based on multiple intelligences (MI), results have been spectacular (even on the rather narrow measure of state test results). In this book, however, Armstrong goes beyond addressing parents and teachers in favor of addressing kids directly. Far too often, those who do not do as well in language arts or math are labeled (behind, not meeting standards, learning disabled, etc) when in reality they have tremendous intellectual gifts that schools simply do not recognize. The title speaks directly to these kids.

Armstrong breaks down the eight intelligences identified by Gardner (verbal linguistic, musical, logical mathematical, bodily kinesthetic, visual spatial, inter and intra personal, and naturalistic) and explains the characteristics of each in kid friendly language. An introductory quiz to each chapter allows kids to assess their own intelligence in a given domain. Each chapter also offers short biographies of people with high aptitude in one or more of Gardner's MI domains. Finally, Armstrong suggests ways children can use their strengths in one intelligence to develop skills in another.

This book is not perfect, of course. Armstrong, for example, does not have a strong grasp of naturalistic intelligence and some of his suggestions to students with this intelligence are a bit trite. However, the few minor qualms I had with the text are more than outweighed by the positive tone of the book and the audience it is addressed to. I think this book can empower students to take control of their own education. Of course, teachers should also be aware of their student's unique talents. But in today's world teachers are held accountable to tests that narrowly measure achievement. It is easy for them to overlook truly gifted children. The politicans who legislate education policy are if anything even more oblivious. Therefore, it is incumbant on students and their parents to develop their intrinsic talents. The educational establishment will not help them, but this book will.

This guide to different types of intelligences has lots of practical ideas. It's an encouraging motivator for those of us who think we're not so good at some areas by giving lots of ways we can improve and at the same time gives lots of fun ways to extend if that's an area we are good at. It shows that we all have ways we can be 'smart'. The author first gives an explanation of the multiple intelligences theory in easy to understand language, without talking down to the reader, then systematically goes into each in more detail with lots of examples. This is a book that could be used by a teacher or adult with gifted children, or could be read by youths themselves. It is a flexible and practical resource.