
Though there is no strong science supporting the idea of various learning styles (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learners) I do think there are preferred modes of learning for every person. I believe this is why the idea of learning styles continues to exist despite the lack of sound science to back it up. So how do you homeschool a child who seems to learn more by listening versus any other mode of learning? Why might someone be an auditory learner? What are some good methods to provide home instruction, or homeschooling, to an auditory learner? In this blog post we will go over these questions and more.
Why does the learning styles model continue to persist?
VARK Learning Model
The VARK learning model was initially developed in 1987 by Neil Fleming, Christchurch, New Zealand, and became widely taught to many school officials. Though there is no real science behind learning models we have known for centuries about the different modes of learning. People often have a preferred mode of learning and these preferred modes often align to one of the modes of learning under the VARK system.
The VARK acronym stands for Visual, Aural, Reading, and Kinesthetic to represent the various types of learners. This post is going to focus on children who have audio (aural) as their preferred mode of learning. It is interesting to have an auditory learner. Only about 30% of learners learn best by listening to information. An auditory learner can retain up to 75% of the information they hear.
What are the Characteristics of an Auditory Learner?
Even if there is not a lot of information to back up the concept of VARK there are definitely are people who prefer auditory information. My son Joseph is one of these people. He has a lot of learning disabilities including visual impairment, poor working memory, and low processing speed. As I have been homeschooling Joseph over the years I have noticed he is always drawn to lights and music. He learns a lot of information from apps and videos that he can watch and play over and over again. So we commonly use apps and videos in our homeschooling. He also has an ear for music, melody, and things put to music. So I strive to find homeschool resources that speak to his learning style…..noise, sounds, lights, and more noise! LOL So what are the characteristics of someone who prefers auditory information?
Characteristics of an auditory learner:
- Enjoys talking.
- Enjoys music.
- Remembers names.
- Talks to self out loud.
- Hums or sings often.
- Likes and is good at explaining things to others.
- Recognizes variations in a person’s tone of voice.
- Notices sound effects in movies.
- Likes being read to or reading to self out loud.
- Remembers things by repeating them aloud.
- Follows spoken directions well.
- Likes being around other people and is not afraid to speak out.
- Understands concepts better by talking about them.
- Has difficulty handling distracting noises and are distressed by background noise.
- Has difficulty following written directions, but is good in study groups.
- Reads slowly.
- Unable to keep quiet for long periods.
- Enjoys the performing arts and have no problems being on stage.
Learning tips for Auditory Learners:
- Repetition – Since speaking is a key component of the auditory learning style, having your student repeat an idea in their own words will greatly enhance their learning experience.
- Q&A sessions – These types of sessions are great for keeping aural learners engaged and help them easily absorb important information about specific topics.
- Debates – Auditory learners are often social butterflies, and because they need to listen, speak and interact to learn best, debates are usually a fun way to transform and elevate conversations on a specific subject.
- Music – Songs are an excellent way to engage your child and a great way to start learning concepts. For younger students, starting out with the alphabet song helps them learn and remember the order of the alphabet, which is key when learning to read. Older children can learn about science from songs that teach about the digestive, skeletal, and respiratory systems, just to name a few. In addition, students can learn about sound waves through music as well as other concepts.
- Read alouds – Reading out loud to your student also helps them learn, especially if you have your child repeat after you. As they advance in their reading skills, auditory learners should sound out words and break down the syllables of each word. Repetition is key!
- Book clubs/Out-Loud Readings of Books – Having your child explain concepts to others verbally gives them the opportunity to talk through situations and information, not to mention fully absorb it.
- Podcasts – These are incredibly useful for auditory learners, and can take the place of music on long car rides or even while exercising!
- Show & Tell – Pick a day of the week to have a show & tell. Your student can pick an object and tell a story about it. To make it a little more challenging, have them use some adjectives or vocabulary words they are learning!
- Verbal Games – It’s no secret that learning through play is effective. For aural learners games like “Just a Minute” and “Fact or Fiction” are a perfect way to test or increase knowledge on certain topics. “This or That” is another great game that benefits auditory learners. If the topic is “sharks”, warm or hot water? Bones or cartilage? Five or Six senses? Scales or no scales? And so on.
- Reciting – Reciting information out loud helps auditory learners retain what is being taught to them.
- Remove Auditory Distractions – This helps your homeschooler to focus on their learning style.
- Match Learning Task With Learning Style – Know when is the best time to utilize your homeschoolers auditory learning preference and ask yourself, “What’s the best style (visual, auditory, kinesthetic, reading/writing) for this particular learning task?”
- Think of Different Ways to Add an Audio Element to Your Homeschooling – Sing it. Yell it. Turn it into a poem. Be creative!
- Practice Your Homeschoolers Listening Skills – Just because your homeschooler has an auditory learning preference that doesn’t mean they have great listening skills! Take the time to help your homeschooler practice their learning preference! Teach your homeschooler how to asking clarifying questions and repeating back the information they just heard as it can help them assess how accurate their listening is. Also, it is good for your homeschooler to try and transfer what they’ve heard to other learning styles. Write it down or draw it as pictures, charts, and graphs.
- Reflect on What Works and What Doesn’t – Just because your homeschooler has an auditory learning preference that does not mean they will retain all auditory information well in all circumstances. Teach your homeschooler to be reflective and self-aware in their learning. After they try a learning strategy, assess and reflect on how it went. Did they retain as much information as they had hoped? Have your homeschooler build off their successes and change strategies when a learning style isn’t working.
Resources for Educating the Auditory Learner
When I homeschool Joseph I used many of the teaching tips above. Joseph needs repetition and actually enjoys repetition. He will often watch or listen to many videos or songs over and over again. We often verbally discuss his work and his answers. Joseph enjoys a good podcast. There are over 50+ great podcasts that you can try out for your auditory learner and see what interests them! One of Joseph’s biggest interests is anything put to music! Here is a list of various music-based resources I tried, or have used, to educate my little melomaniac!
Musical Resources

English
- Alphabet Song | ABC Song
- English Language Arts Songs!
- Schoolhouse Rock – Nouns
- Schoolhouse Rock – Verbs
- Schoolhouse Rock – Interjections
- Schoolhouse Rock Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla (Pronouns)
- Schoolhouse Rock: Grammar – Unpack Your Adjectives
- Schoolhouse Rock – Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here
- Schoolhouse Rock – Conjunction Conjunction Junction
- The Sentence Song
- Sentence Song (US Version)
- The Spelling the Numbers Song
- The Five W’s Song | English Songs
- Grammar by Kids Learning Tube
- Language Arts by Flocabulary
- I Don’t Care (redone) – Determining Theme
Geography
- The Geography Song | Globe vs Map Song
- The Map Features Song
- Geography Songs
- Seven Continents Song
- Continents and Oceans
- Countries of the World Geography/Countries of the World Song
- Africa Geography/African Countries Song
- Antarctica Continent
- Asia/Continent of Asia/Asia Geography
- Australia Geography/Australia Country Song
- Europe Geography/ Europe Continent
- South America Song Geography
- North America Geography/North American Countries
- The 50 States Song/50 States and Capitals Song for Kids (video shows state flags)
- 50 States Song
- 50 States That Rhyme
- Kids Learning Tube Geography Song Playlist
- Nations of the World – With Lyrics – Animaniacs
History
- Schoolhouse Rock – The Great American Melting Pot
- School House Rock Shot Heard Round the World America Rock
- Schoolhouse Rock America Rock Sufferin’ Till Suffrage
- SchoolHouse Rock – Mother Necessity
- No More King! (Schoolhouse Rock!)
- Constitution Preamble – Schoolhouse Rock
- Schoolhouse Rock Fireworks (4th of July)
- Schoolhouse Rock – Elbow Room
- History according to Schoolhouse Rock
- Schoolhouse Rock – I’m Just a Bill
- SchoolHouse Rock Three Ring Government
- Civil War Songs
- The Singing History Teachers
- Social Studies Song by Jam Campus
Life Skills
- Party in my Tummy (eating your food)
- Too Much Candy
- Trick or Treat Song
- Tiny Ugly Germs
- Brush Your Teeth
- Doctor Doctor
- Brush Along With Budd!
- Time To Go
- Wake Up
- How To Get Kids Into A Routine (several songs)
- Stick Together
- Get the Sillies Out
- Hold Still (great way to practice stopping on command)
- Listen
- Following Directions Songs
- SAY NO TO STRANGERS – STRANGER DANGER
- Barney – The Clean Up Song
- Barney – Clean Up Song 2
- It’s Time to Clean Up!
- Clean Up Song for Children
- Clean Up Time by StoryBots
- 2 Minute Kids Cleanup Countdown with Song!
- What is it?
- I’m Scared
- I’m Not So Scared
- When I Feel Down
- I’m So Sorry
- Think Happy Thoughts
- Dreams
- It’s OK, Try Again
- We Are All Winners
- Cover Your Mouth When You Cough!
- My Wallaby Won’t Use His Words!
- Feelings and Emotions Song
- Emotions Song for Kids
- Emotions
- One Quiet Moment
- Everything is More Fun When You Include Everyone
- Come and Play
- Help Your Friends
- Wait Your Turn
- Don’t Bite Your Friends
- Do Our Own Thing
- Ask Before You Pick It Up
- Colors
- What Color Is It?
- The Colors Song
- Colors, Colors Everywhere
- Social& Emotional Learning by Flocabulary
- Character Education Songs by Harry Kindergarten Music
- Brain Break by Jack Hartmann
Math

- The Shapes Song
- Shapes
- Circle, Triangle, Square, Rectangle
- Rhombus (Song)
- 3D Shapes Song For Kids
- Hopping on the Number Line (integers)
- Integers Rap
- Even and Odd Numbers Song for KidsCount to 100
- Adding and Subtracting
- Thank You Minus Sign (Peg + Cat)
- Take It Away (subtraction)
- Skipping Song (skip counting)
- The Number Line March (count on 1, 2, 3 and back 1, 2, 3)
- How Easy Is That? (add and subtract fractions)
- How Many Is Too Many? (reasonable estimates)
- Telling Time to the Half Hour and Hour Song
- Elapsed Time Song
- Telling Time Song for Kids | Telling Time to 5 Minutes
- Make Change! (money)
- Coins!
- Counting Coins Song for Kids
- Getcha Money Right
- Learning Money for Kids/Coin Song for Children
- Schoolhouse Rock- Dollars and Sense
- Pennies, Nickels, Dimes, and Quarters (money)
- Ordering Decimals Song
- THE INCOME STATEMENT & BALANCE SHEET SONG
- Adding & Subtracting Decimals Song
- Adding and Subtracting Decimals Song
- Place Value Song For Kids
- Place Value Song (Rude by MAGIC! Parody)
- Greater Than Less Than Song for Kids
- Ten and Something More (numbers 11-20)
- Ten Tens (tens)
- Two and Two (doubles)
- We Hang Together (fact families)
- My Best Guess – Sid The Science Kid
- Rounding Song (younger audience)
- Rounding Numbers Song (older audience)
- Rounding Decimals Song
- Multiplication Mash Up (I love this one!)
- Multiplication Song (Multiplication Strategies)
- Schoolhouse Rock! – Multiplication Rock
- Long Multiplication Song
- Division Song
- Long Division Song
- Long Division Song
- LONG DIVISION – (Never Give Up) – Math Rap
- Long Division with Remainders Song
- Long Division With 2 Digit Divisors Song
- Exponents Song (All About the Base)
- I Repeat! (patterns)
- Converting Fractions to Decimals
- Fractions on a Number Line Song
- The Ratio and Fraction song
- Simplest Form Song: Simplifying Fractions
- Keeping It True (algebra)
- Order of Operations Song
- Please Excuse my Dear Aunt Sally (The Order of Operations) PEMDAS
- The Mystery Number (value of variables)
- No Equal Sign (expressions)
- Get to the Point (coordinate plane)
- Measure and Measure (measurement)
- A Minute Seems Like a Minute (time relationships)
- Same Shape, Same Size (similar and congruent figures)
- What Am I? (solid figures)
- The Pi Song (Easy as Pi) | Pi to 244 Digits
- In a Nutshell (mean, median, mode)
- Mean, Median, Mode, & Range (Lazy Song Parody)
- The Red Ones Go with the Red Ones (sorting)
- Sally Had a Birthday Cake (equal shares)
- Days In The Month Rap
- Months of the Year Song (also covers time)
- Months of the Year and Days of the Week (lyrics with suggested tunes)
- The Seasons & Months of the Year
- Calendar Songs by Harry Kindergarten Music
- Multiplying Dividing Integers Song
- Integer Addition & Subtraction
- Scientific / Standard Notation “Decode It”
- Super Base (WSHS Math Rap Song)
- Graph! (WSHS Math Rap Song)
- Do The Quad Solve (WSHS Math Rap Song)
- Math Songs by NUMBEROCK
- Math by Silly School Songs
- McCarthy Math Academy
- Math for Kids by Rock ‘N Learn
- InstructaBeats Math Playlist
- Math Song by Harry Kindergarten Music
- Math Songs by jam Campus
Physical Education
- Physical Education Songs by Jack Hartmann
- Stretching Song
- Koo Koo Kanga Roo – Dinosaur Stomp (Dance-A-Long)
- Action Songs for Kids – Body Boogie Dance
- Exercise Song for Kids ♫ Fitness Songs Kids
Reading

reveling in the noise
with his sister behind him.
- Old MacDonald Had Some Vowels
- The Double Letter Vowel Song
- The Letter A Song
- The Letter B Song
- The Letter C Song
- The Letter D Song
- The Letter E Song
- The Letter F Song
- The Letter G Song
- The Letter H Song
- The Letter I Song
- The Letter J Song
- The Letter K Song
- The Letter L Song
- The Letter M Song
- The Letter N Song
- The Letter O Song
- The Letter P Song
- The Letter Q Song
- The Letter R Song
- The Letter S Song
- The Letter T Song
- The Letter U Song
- The Letter V Song
- The Letter W Song
- The Letter X Song
- The Letter Y Song
- The Letter Z Song
- The Backwards Alphabet Song
- Digraphs and Trigraphs | Phonics for Reading
- The Magic E Song
- E Eats Everything by They Might Be Giants
- Sight Words Level 1
- First Grade Sight Words Dance Song
- The Sight Word Song High frequency word song rap for kids
- Sight Words | FortNite Song | Sight Word Rap
- Big Words
- The 5 Types of Text Structure
- Letter Sounds by PhonicsMan
- Sight Words by PhonicsMan
- Dolch Sight Word Review by Jack Hartmann
- Fry Sight Word Review by Jack Hartmann
- Hillsborough Sight Words
- Jan Richardson Sight Word Review
- Phonics Songs – Individual Sounds by KidsTV123
- Reading & Writing Songs
- Reading & Writing Songs by Harry Kindergarten Music
Science
- SCIENCE WARS – Acapella Parody (branches of science)
- Small Potatoes – Science Song
- The Journey of a Germ
- What is a Virus?
- The Delicious Nutritious Band
- Body Parts Game
- THE HUMAN BONES SONG
- My Body
- Brain, Brain, Brain
- PARTS OF THE BRAIN SONG
- When You Breathe (Lungs)
- Mix – The DNA Songs Playlist
- The Bloodmobile (blood flow) by They Might Be Giants
- Cells
- Move That Body
- Charts – Sid the Science Kid
- Magnify – Sid The Science Kid
- LAB SAFETY Video – I Think School.com
- Cooking is Chemistry – Sid The Science Kid
- Meet the Elements by They Might Be Giants
- Dinosaurs
- I Am a Paleontologist by They Might Be Giants
- 3 Kinds of Rocks
- Ignatz’s Inertia – Sid the Science Kid
- Speed and Velocity by They Might Be Giants
- Planets, Sun, Moon, Earth and Stars
- What Is a Shooting Star?
- Why Does the Sun Shine? by They Might Be Giants
- Stellar Evolution for Kids
- Seasons Song
- The Water Cycle Song
- Water Cycle Song
- Photosynthesis
- Roy G Biv – They Might Be Giants
- Schoolhouse Rock- Electricity, Electricity
- Electric Car by They Might Be Giants
- Telegraph Line – Schoolhouse Rock (nervous system)
- The Simple Machines SONG
- Science Songs by Harry Kindergarten Music
- Science Song for Kids with Lyrics
- Learning Science | Scientific Method Song
- Think Like A Scientist – Blazer Fresh | The Scientific Method
- Scientific Method Song
- Put It to the Test
- Science Songs by AcapellaScience (older children)
- The Science SONG | Science for Kids | Grades K-2
- Science Songs | 64 Mins of Educational Kids Songs | Nursery Rhymes
- Science Songs! | Learning Songs Collection | Scratch Garden
- Science SONGS by asapScience
- Science Songs by Jam Campus (song for grades 3-8)
YouTube Channels Worth Reviewing
- Have Fun Teaching
- Jack Hartmann Kids Music Channel
- Jam Campus
- Cool Science with Sid the Science Kid | The Jim Henson Company
- asapScience
- TheLearningStation – Kids Songs and Nursery Rhymes
- Hopscotch
- Scratch Garden
- TMBGkids
- Small Potatoes
- BrainySongs
- GenerationGenius
- TwoFish
- Science Songs
- Lyrics2Learn – Reading & Music For Kids
- The Singing History Teachers
- These last few are not music-based but are quite educational!
- Homeschool Pop
- Liberty’s Kids – WildBrain
- Yo Gabba Gabba! – WildBrain
Conclusion
As you can see there are a TON of resources out there! I barely scratched the surface of all the resources out there for your audio learner! There is a TON of music available teaching a wide variety of educational information! Some of my favorite resources available for purchase:
- Multiplication Rap DVD by Rock ‘N Learn
- Count, Add, Subtract! Fun With Math, Music, And Movement
- States and Capitals Songs
- Learning With Hip Hop (Today’s Music Paired With Educational Lessons for Classrooms and Homes, Ages Pre-K – 5th)
- Multiplication “Rock”
- Here Comes Science by They Might Be Giants
- Ditty Bugs – 50 Powerful Memory Rhymes
And this website is an amazing resource! This site has a song for every educational topic, but you will need to purchase the songs or CDs.
Songs for Teaching
I hope this post has been helpful. Homeschooling a child who is an audio learner can be challenging if that is not your learning preference too! I hope I supplied you with enough useful information to help you home education, or homeschool, your audio leaner! Please take the time to click on the links in the post as it contains the reference material used to write this post or product affiliate links. As always, you are welcome to join us for more discussion on audio learners and learning preferences in our FB group, Homeschooling Special (Needs) Kids.
AESA runs a special education advocacy group, IEP/504 Assistance for parents who are lost and overwhelmed by the special education/504 process. We also run a Facebook group for all parents and caregivers of special needs children called, Special Needs Parenting Advice and Support, where we discuss ALL things related to special needs care. Finally, we you are welcome to join our Facebook group, Educating Gifted Children if your child is considered gifted or twice exceptional (2e). I hope to see you there!
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Thank you for all the information, you did a great job gathering the resources and putting them together.
I hope you found the post helpful!