Teaching Around the 4MAT (R) Cycle

Bernice McCarthy is the creator of the 4MAT (R) method of instruction and the founder of About Learning, a training, publishing, and consulting firm that specializes in instructional design and development. Dr. McCarthy's 4MAT approach identifies the diversity of learners and connects them, no matter their level, to any type of material, emphasizing real-world applications as an essential component of in-depth understanding. This concept-based approach to curriculum and instructional planning promotes high-quality teaching and learning. Most educators consider Bernice McCarthy's work to be a key contribution to the development of the learning styles movement and the differentiated classroom. She has presented numerous workshops and keynote sessions on effective learning at hundreds of renowned organizations worldwide, including the U.S. Pentagon, Chicago Public Schools system, Cornell University, the Education Department of the Government of Venezuela, and the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Foreword by Gordon Cawelti Prologue About the Authors Acknowledgments Chapter 1: Learning Styles A Cycle of Learning How Perceiving Defines Us as Learners How Processing Defines Us as Learners The Processing Dimension and John Dewey Perceiving and Processing Style Type One Learners: Why? Type Two Learners: What? Type Three Learners: How Does This Work? Type Four Learners: What If? Putting It All Together Chapter 2: A Cycle of Learning First We Experience Then We Reflect Then We Conceptualize Then We Act Finally We Integrate The Cycle Begins and Ends with the Individual Any Successfully Completed Cycle Will Flow to Reflection on Itself The Cycle Is a Consummate Design for Curriculum The Cycle Encompasses Important Assessment Benchmarks The Cycle is a Showplace for Different Styles at Different Places Think About Yourself Other Ways to Look at the Quadrants Chapter 3: Teaching Around the Cycle Quadrant One: Answering the "Why?" Question Quadrant Two: Answering the "What?" Question Quadrant Three: Answering the "How?" Question Quadrant Four: Answering the "If?" Question Plot Your Quadrant Teaching Score Chapter 4: The Brain-Mind Learning System Left- and Right-Mode Processing The Brain Research Left and Right: The Two Hemisphere Continuum Knowing Language Emotion Memory Student Learning Strategy Preferences Teaching Strategies That Favor the Right Mode A Bushel Basket of Right Mode Activities Graphic Organizers Chapter 5: Overlaying Right- and Left-Mode to Complete the 4MAT Cycle Connect Attend Imagine Inform Practice Extend Refine Perform All Real Learning Leaves Us Changed Chapter 6: Teaching From Concepts Working With Concepts Different Teachers, Different Concepts Concepts and Standards 4MAT in Action Chapter 7: The 4MAT Design Overlay (Lesson Planning) The Information Delivery The Skills Practice The Intended Outcomes The Connection Sharing the Connection The Learning Used Critiquing the Work The Image That Connects Adding the Assessments Your 4MAT Plan: A Final Look Epilogue Bibliography Index

"As a parent and a teacher, I would truly love to see all teachers teach with the depth and intention that fully understanding the 4MAT Cycle instills...this book is different because it is not a "theory" book. It is more of a "how to" book...A holistic, step-by-step framework for addressing the diversity of learners is presented rather than a few helpful strategies to try." -- Julia Koble "4MAT has transformed my teachers from adequate to outstanding and made them different educators...knowledge of the 4MATmodel keeps my teachers searching for a variety of lesson approaches around a concept that will enable all our students to learn and achieve." -- Robin Kvalo "Principals and teachers have continually requested 4MAT training as the 'basic core' of knowledge for teacher in our 80,000-student district. We have trained literally hundreds of teachers over the past ten years to 'teach around the 4MAT wheel' and meet the learning needs of all their students." -- Patricia Shelton "I have worked with teachers using 4MAT while serving as a high school principal and I have personally utilized the planning tools as a staff developer and superintendent...teachers are energized by the training and find it to be an invaluable tool for planning instruction as well as a powerful way to think about learning." -- Fred Morton "The 4MAT system has had a positive impact in several schools througout Illinois ranging from rural to urban, impoverished to affluent. It is a proven model for improving instruction, and the leadership component has enabled formal and informal leaders to create a culture of success." -- Max McGee "Through 4MAT, teachers are able to meet the needs of individual learners, address hemisphericity, and successfully engage students in the learning process." -- J. Kay Giles