1. Running head: MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES AT CENTER GROVE 1
Multiple Intelligences at Center Grove
Andrew J. Wassel
American College of Education

2. MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES AT CENTER GROVE 2
Multiple Intelligences at Center Grove
Gardner’s (1983, 1999) Theory of Multiple Intelligences describes the human capacity
for solving problems and fashioning products in an authentic context (Laughlin & Foley, 2012).
Gardner believes intelligence is really a composition of nine intelligences: verbal-linguistic
(words), logical-mathematical (numbers), visual-spatial (pictures), musical, bodily-kinesthetic
(movement), interpersonal (social), intrapersonal (reflective), naturalistic, and existential
(spiritual) (McFarlane, 2011). These intelligences exist in every person, to varying degrees, and
complement one another. Musicians employ musical and bodily-kinesthetic skills to play
instruments; editors use verbal-linguistic and visual-spatial skills to manipulate the layout of a
newspaper. Teachers can support a broad range of learners by incorporating several intelligences
into every block of instruction and assessment. For instance, reflective journaling supports
students with verbal-linguistic and intrapersonal skills; concept mapping supports students with
logical-mathematical and visual-spatial skills. Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory enables
teachers to increase student engagement and comprehension.
Purpose
My purpose is to describe how teachers have implemented Gardner’s Theory of Multiple
Intelligences at Center Grove Middle School Central in Greenwood, Indiana.
Literature Review
Gardner (1983, 1999) is the founder of MI theory. In his original work: Frames of Mind
(1983), he defines intelligence as the way one carries out a task in pursuit of a goal. Gardner says
all humans have varying degrees of seven intelligences: linguistic, musical, logical-
mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. In his revised work:
Intelligence Reframed (1999), Gardner refines his definition of intelligence and adds naturalistic

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and existential to his original list. Gardner’s work challenged the established idea of intelligence
as a single, fixed, quantifiable trait.
Laughlin and Foley (2012) examine how teachers can use MI to improve student
engagement, enhance learning, and support a variety of student needs. In their article:
‘Intelligences that plants can pass on,’ they describe a 75-minute activity that introduces Science
students to plants and gardening; the activity taps a wide-range of skills in a fun, interactive
lesson. This example demonstrates the applicably of MI across a range of academic disciplines.
McFarlane (2011) argues MI is the most viable and effective platform for 21st century
learning. In his article: Multiple Intelligences, he synthesizes the work of various intellectuals
(Gardner included) and defines each of the nine intelligences. He also presents Armstrong’s
(2011) Teaching-Learning Rectangle (p. 6), a tool educators can use to apply MI theory. For
example, when teachers communicate verbally or in written form, they are tapping their
students’ linguistic intelligence. In a similar manner, pictures correspond to spatial intelligence;
self-reflection to intrapersonal intelligence; and so on. McFarlane’s work is an excellent starting
point for educators who want to explore the application of MI.
Setting
Center Grove Middle School Central (Grades 6-8) is located in Greenwood, Indiana and
consists 859 students. The students are predominantly Caucasian, and 147 (17%) qualify for free
or reduced lunches. I observed four classes on January 29, 2016: Special Education (Grade 6),
Social Studies (Grade 7), Science (Grade 7), and Band (Grade 8). All names in this paper are
pseudonyms.

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Findings
Special Education (Grade 6)
Clara’s students created sympathy cards for the students and staff of Amy Beverland
Elementary (Lawrence County, Indiana); the school principal was killed in a bus accident on
January 26, 2016. This simple activity required a variety of intelligences. The students had to
design, draw, and color (visual-spatial), and write a series of sentences to console the people of
Lawrence County (verbal-linguistic, interpersonal). The activity also helped the Center Grove
students understand and cope with the tragedy (existential). Clara only meant for the activity to
serve as a compassionate gesture; the cards nevertheless integrated elements from four of
Gardner’s (1983) intelligences.
Social Studies (Grade 7)
Jim conducted a “peer-to-peer” activity during his unit on India. One of his students,
Kim, was born in India and had visited on three other occasions. Jim assigned her to prepare and
deliver a PowerPoint presentation on the country. He mandated the class ask at least five
questions and required each student to list 20 facts. The students asked about India’s founding
father: Mohandas Ghandi, the climate, and the food, but they were especially interested in the
fact that Kim’s parents had an arranged marriage; the students were curious to know if Kim
would have one, too. The kids then engaged in a discussion on the cultural differences between
Western and Indian societies.
The peer-to-peer activity required interpersonal intelligence from Kim and all students
who asked questions. Kim was dressed in authentic Indian attire, and her presentation included
pictures of Ghandi, the Indian states, and the cuisine; these elements supported students with
higher visual-spatial intelligence. Writing lists of facts required students to employ their verbal-

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linguistic intelligence. Finally, students used their intrapersonal intelligence as they reflected on
the idea of arranged marriage from an Indian perspective.
Science (Grade 7)
Cindy’s students conducted an array of activities, supporting many of the nine
intelligences. Cindy warmed-up her students with a “Formula Friday” exercise. She projected a
problem on the overhead, and students used the volume formula to solve (logical-mathematical).
Cindy then had several students share their answers and explain their reasoning (interpersonal).
Next, Cindy projected a graphic depicting the earth’s layers: crust, mantle, and core (visual-
spatial, naturalistic). She challenged students to explain why oceanic crust is denser than
continental crust; and why the earth’s core is solid despite being hotter than volcanic lava.
Students had to employ their understanding of density and the relationship between volume,
temperature, and pressure (logical-mathematical).
During the next activity, students danced to the theme song of Men Without Hats to
demonstrate tectonic plate movement (musical, bodily-kinesthetic). Students paired-up; on the
cue, “Converge,” they stepped towards one another; on, “Diverge,” they stepped away; and on,
“Transform,” they stepped past one another while brushing shoulders. The final activity involved
the manipulation of Oreo cookies and vanilla wafers to illustrate the interactions between
oceanic and continental crusts. Cindy explained what each piece represented: Oreo filling
(magma), Oreo cookies (oceanic crust), and vanilla wafers (continental crust). Students predicted
what would happen when these components came into contact in various settings. This fun,
interactive activity enhanced students’ learning by tapping their bodily-kinesthetic, naturalistic,
and visual-spatial intelligences.

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Band (Grade 8)
I was surprised to observe how Jason integrated MI theory. As I entered his class, he was
warming-up the students with some basic drills. His young musicians were distracted by their
friends. He needed them to concentrate, so he instructed them, “Don’t look at your friends to see
if they’re laughing; focus on your performance.” Band inherently supports musical intelligence.
Yet, Jason appealed to students’ powers of concentration, their ability to manage and control
emotion (intrapersonal intelligence). As Jason led the band through the first song, “Cut to the
Chase,” I noticed many students were using their iPads. They were using a tuning app that
displayed a range of colors, depending on the quality of their music. Students were using their
visual-spatial intelligence to improve their performance.
The band appeared to struggle with “Heaven’s Light,” so Jason stopped everyone and
offered guidance. The band was going to play the song at a remembrance ceremony for the
Lawrence County principal. Jason instructed students to channel their emotions and give life to
their music. Coping with tragedy and contemplating the cycle of life and death support the
intrapersonal and existential intelligences. When several sections of the band were “coming in
too early” during their parts in “Great Locomotive Chase,” Jason paused everyone to
demonstrate a lesson. He “tss-ed” with his tongue and snapped his fingers in harmony to several
music notes; then, he “tss-ed” and snapped out of harmony to the same notes. When he asked the
students to do the same, it was obvious that students were snapping faster than they were “tss-
ing.” This drill was a lesson in bodily-kinesthetic intelligence; it illustrated how young musicians
often activate the keys on their instruments faster than they can blow into their mouth pieces.

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Discussion
Clara, Jim, Cindy, and Jason used one of two strategies to implement MI in their
classrooms: (1) they focused their students’ attention on a single, multi-layered activity; or (2)
they used several related activities to support their students’ various learning capacities. Clara
(Special Education) and Jim (Social Studies) opted for the first strategy. Clara’s students created
sympathy cards, a multi-layered activity requiring a combination of visual-spatial, verbal-
linguistic, interpersonal, and existential intelligence. Jim used peer-to-peer learning, a multi-
layered activity supporting his students’ interpersonal, visual-spatial, verbal-linguistic, and
intrapersonal intelligences.
Cindy (Science) and Jason (Band) used the second strategy. Cindy led her students
through four related activities: the Formula Friday problem, the graphical depiction of Earth’s
layers, the Men Without Hats dance, and the Oreo-vanilla wafer exercise. Each activity
supported two or three intelligences. Jason’s students also conducted four related activities: they
drilled on their fundamentals and played three songs. During each activity, Jason’s instruction
and teaching techniques supported two or three intelligences.
Both strategies were effective, but each had its strengths and weaknesses. Clara’s
sympathy card activity and Jim’s peer-to-peer activity enabled students to concentrate on a single
learning objective. The benefit of this strategy is that students have ample time to examine lesson
material. Also, the lesson plan is more fluid; teachers have the flexibility to re-allocate time, as
needed. These lessons, however, focus on just a couple of Gardner’s (1983) intelligences. Clara’s
sympathy cards were largely visual-spatial and verbal-linguistic. Jim’s peer-to-peer activity was
mostly interpersonal and verbal-linguistic. These activities provided fewer ways for students to
demonstrate their comprehension of lesson material.

8. MULTIPLE INTELLIGENCES AT CENTER GROVE 8
Cindy (Science) and Jason (Band), by contrast, employed various activities, appealing to
a diverse range of learners. This strategy promotes broad comprehension. Cindy’s Men Without
Hats dance helped students with strong bodily-kinesthetic intelligence understand the
interactions between Earth’s tectonic plates. Her logical-mathematical learners, however,
benefited more from the Formula Friday problem. Likewise, Jim’s “tss-ing” exercise supported
his bodily-kinesthetic learners; his guidance to channel emotion into music was a more effective
approach for his intrapersonal learners. The drawback of this strategy, however, is the rigidity of
the lesson plan. Cindy and Jason had time allotments planned into their lessons to remain on
schedule. Once they reached a threshold of student comprehension, they had to move on to the
next activity, or risk derailing the lesson.
Recommendations
I observed two MI strategies at Center Grove: (1) teachers either used a single, multi-
layered activity, or (2) they used several related activities to increase student engagement and
comprehension. I recommend the first strategy under the following conditions: (a) the learning
objectives are broad; (b) there is a large volume of subject-matter; and (c) students can easily
activate prior knowledge. Jim (Social Studies) wanted students to understand and appreciate
Indian culture, a broad objective; the Indian unit was comprised of a vast quantity of material;
and students were able to activate their prior knowledge of Western culture to help them
understand and appreciate Indian culture. Therefore, Jim layered the multiple intelligences into a
single, rich activity. This strategy allowed students to employ their specific learning preferences
during the peer-to-peer exercise.
I recommend the second strategy under the following conditions: (a) the learning
objectives are narrow in scope; (b) the quantity of subject-matter is relatively small; and (c)

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students have difficulty activating prior knowledge. Cindy (Science) wanted her students to learn
how density affects the movement of Earth’s tectonic plates. This objective was comparatively
narrow in scope; the amount of subject-matter was relatively small; and students had a difficult
time activating prior knowledge to facilitate their understanding of density. Therefore, Cindy
incorporated multiple intelligences into an array of activities. This strategy enabled her to tap the
individual learning preferences of each student. I recommend teachers consider the scope of their
learning objectives, the volume of subject-matter, and the ability of students to active prior
knowledge as they consider the use of Multiple Intelligences. The skilled application of this
theory can enhance the comprehension and engagement of all students.

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References
Armstrong, T. (2011). Multiple intelligences [Website]. Retrieved from http://goo.gl/hTaIVn
Gardner, H., (1983). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences. Basic Books, New
York: NY.
Gardner, H., (1999). Intelligence reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century. Basic
Books, New York: NY.
Laughlin, K., & Foley, A. (2012). ‘Intelligences that plants can pass on’: Play dough, fun, and
teaching strategies with insights to multiple intelligences. MPAEA Journal of Adult
Education, 41(1), 22-28.
McFarlane, D. A. (2011). Multiple intelligences: The most effective platform for global
21st century educational and instructional methodologies. College Quarterly, 14(2).