Teaching Around the 4MAT® Cycle
Designing Instruction for Diverse Learners with Diverse Learning Styles
- Bernice McCarthy - About Learning, Inc., Wauconda, IL
- Dennis McCarthy - About Learning, Inc., Wauconda, IL
Foreword by Gordon Cawelti
'Principals and teachers have continually requested 4MAT training as the 'basic core' of knowledge for teachers 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, Director of Certification and Professional Development, Brevard County Schools, FL
'All children have intelligence. We have asked the wrong question. We ask 'How much?' We must ask 'What kind?' - Mary Meeker, Former Member, Board of Directors, National Association for Gifted Children
Learning styles are linked to preferences in the ways people perceive and process experience. Bernice McCarthy's unique 4MAT® cycle is a brain-based teaching method that emphasizes diverse learning styles, honors learner individuality, teaches concepts as well as facts, and improves student thinking and performance on traditional as well as high-stakes assessments.
With 25+ years of field testing and field use supporting its effectiveness, the 4MAT® method uses a 4-quadrant cycle of learning that begins by engaging learners through direct experience, moving them toward:
• Reflective observation
• Abstract conceptualizing
• Active experimentation and problem-solving
• Integration of new knowledge and skills
"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."
"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."
"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."
"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."
"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."
"Through 4MAT, teachers are able to meet the needs of individual learners, address hemisphericity, and successfully engage students in the learning process."