MI Inventories

Data Collection

Mi Activities List

Mi in Pre-school

Mi & Technology

Mi in College

MI in Taiwan

Useful Links

Multiple Intelligence Inventories

Multiple Intelligence Inventories are a fun way to introduce students to their strong and weak intelligences. It is important to remember that these surveys are not diagnostic measures or predictors of one's cognitive abilities. Rather, they are a snap-shot--a one day picture--of one's strong or weak intelligences. Teachers who use these surveys with their students should note that there are a variety of factors that could influence a student's responses on any given day. Although the surveys are not diagnostic, they are beneficial for introducing MI theory into the classroom as they stimulate meta cognitive awareness, or knowledge of one's own learning, with even the youngest students.

The following links are to Multiple Intelligence Inventories that are based on age and/or grade. Teachers are encouraged to carefully evaluate each survey in order to select one that is age and level appropriate for their students.

Multiple Intelligence Inventory Early Childhood
Multiple Intelligence Inventory Grades 4-8
Multiple Intelligence Inventory Adolescent-Adult

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Multiple Intelligence Data Collection Forms

The following links are to the forms that were used to collect data and to plan lessons during Phase I and II of Dr. Haley's MI Study. Please give credit to Dr. Marjorie Hall Haley should you use these forms in print.

MIRS Data Collection Forms
MIRS Lesson Planning Form

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Activities That Appeal to Multiple Intelligences

As we gain an understanding of the strong and weak intelligences of the students in our classrooms, we can better direct instruction to appeal to the students' strengths as well as improve upon their weaknesses. Questions arise as to the kinds of activities that best promote multiple intelligences in the foreign language classroom.

Applying Multiple Intelligence Theory in a foreign language classroom is meaningful because it promotes a change in the methodologies of teaching languages through the sole use of drill worksheets, dialogue memorization, and verb conjugation charts. Activities that appeal to multiple intelligences can (and should) also promote the use of the target language as it is used in real life. For example, instead of filling in a verb worksheet, students are asked to perform using the verbs in authentic tasks, that model "real-life" situations. From role-playing to journal writing, students can show what they know by performing in the target language. In the last several years, these activities have become known as performance-based activities.

The following are tips, activity ideas, and additional lists of activities that are from a few of the teachers that participated in Dr. Haley's MI Study.

Helpful tips for Educators

  Adapted from Bruce Torff, Harvard University

• Look through MI-colored glasses and analyze activities in terms of multiple intelligences
• Put your own spin on it and adapt appropriately
• Utilize multiple entry points and approach concepts in a variety of ways
• Incorporate project-based learning
• Personalize education and design activities and assessments that match student strengths

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Ideas for MI Activities in the Classroom

VERBAL-LINGUISTIC
word games, storytelling, speeches, debates, journals, dialogues, reading aloud, poetry writing, oral presentations, blogging

LOGICAL-MATHEMATICAL
problem solving, math games, logic puzzles, creating codes, socratic questioning, computer programming, timelines

BODILY-KINESTHETIC
creative movement, dance, mime, field trips, imagery, manipulatives, hands-on activities, body language, role playing

VISUAL-SPATIAL
diagrams, visualization, maps, visual puzzles, mind mapping, patterns, pictorial metaphors, videotaping, photography

MUSICAL-RHYTHMICAL
singing, humming, raps, chants, rhythms, listening to music, creating melodies for concepts, musical games, compose tunes, pod casting

NATURALIST
exploring outdoors, identifying flora/fauna, gardening, wildlife observation, studying natural phenomena, science projects

INTERPERSONAL-SOCIAL
mediation, peer collaboration, simulations, cross-age tutoring, clubs, community projects, cooperative activities, interviews, blogging

INTRAPERSONAL
individualized projects, journal writing, reflective time, quiet spaces, independent studies, self-evaluation, autobiographies

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Activities from MI Study Participants

Adapted from Marty VanOpdorp

• Prepare a travel plan for a group of visitors and develop a class presentation (work cooperatively in teams)
  • Conduct research (travel brochures, Internet, guide books)
  • Plan 30-day itinerary, with sites to visit and the rationale for including each site
  • Develop a chart to display trip details
  • Schedule meals, lodging, business, recreation, and entertainment
  • Create a map of the visit with appropriate labels
  • Estimate costs for all aspects of the trip
  • Organize oral presentation with effective visuals and technology
  • Present travel plans to the class
  • Use analytical rubric for grading purposes
• Remember to have fun, create, innovate, tolerate ambiguity, and take risks! Tie in multimedia tools, interest hooks, and multi sensory activities to motivate and activate your language learners.

Adapted from Pam Hunt and Leslie Rodriguez

• Charades (in target language) - group acts out a sentence; class tries to decode the sentence
• Photo descriptions - each group transcribes action depicted in photo; class tries to match written sentences with appropriate photographs
• Poster maps - groups create a realistic town and map the details; write directions to go from place to place; other groups try to follow directions accordingly

More Ideas

• Design travel brochures and present them to prospective travelers; calculate and chart travel costs
• Create a resume for a famous historical figure
• Develop puzzles and games for target vocabulary
• Represent numerical data kinesthetically (with human bar graphs)
• Write how-to directions with rhythmic patterns and musical melodies
• Interview school or community leaders
• Work together to create slogan and poster for an important national campaign (such as Students Against Drunk Driving)

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MI Theory in a Pre-School FL Classroom

Susan Boyle, a graduate student at George Mason University, created this Power Point presentation. It illustrates the possibilities for implementing MI Theory in a Pre-school Foreign Language Program.

MI Theory in a Pre-school Foreign Language Program

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MI Theory and Technology

Students learn by doing. Often, this involves some form of technology (such as computer games and video games). To make classroom activities reflect real life experiences, FL teachers should explore how technology can enhance student learning. The link below is to a Power Point presentation that demonstrates how using technology can enhance the implementation of MI Theory in a foreign language classroom.

MI Theory and Technology--Using Power Point in the FL Classroom

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MI Theory in a University FL Classroom

The following link is an unpublished teacher action research paper by Melissa Ferro. In her research, Ferro implemented MI Theory with her university level Spanish 101 students. Her paper reports on her experiences, her findings, and includes her implications for future research.

A Survey of Multiple Intelligences in a College Classroom

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MI Study in Taiwan: EFL Literature Course

The following link is to a full report of a MI study conducted in Taiwan. The information provided is quite interesting. It demonstrates the use of Gardner's MI Theory in an English as a Second Language literature course.

http://www.isst.edu.tw/s44/93/tonyhsu/tonyhsu.htm

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