The Eight Types of Intelligence

Psychologist Howard Gardner identified the following distinct types of intelligences (Gardner, Howard (1983; 1993) Frames of Mind: The theory of multiple intelligences, New York: Basic Books):

Linguistic

 Children with this kind of intelligence enjoy writing, reading, telling stories or doing crossword puzzles.

Logical-Mathematical

 Children with a sharp logical intelligence are interested in patterns, categories and relationships. They are drawn to arithmetic problems, strategy games and experiments.

Bodily-kinesthetic

These children process knowledge through bodily sensations. They are often athletic, dancers or good at crafts such as sewing or woodworking.

Spatial

 These children think in images and pictures and may be fascinated with mazes or jigsaw puzzles, or spend free time drawing, building with Lego or daydreaming.

Musical

 Musical children are always singing or humming to themselves. They are usually quite aware of sounds others may miss and are discriminating listeners.

Interpersonal

 These children are leaders among their peers, good communicators and have a knack for understanding others' feelings and motives.

Intrapersonal

 These children may be shy or introverted. They are very aware of their own feelings and are self-motivated learners.

Naturalistic

These children recognize, categorize and draw upon certain features of the environment. They feel very comfortable with, and seem to have a deep understanding of natural elements, insects and/or animals.