Different Types of Intelligence

Intelligence is defined as the ability to acquire and apply knowledge and skills. According to Howard Gardner are nine types of intelligence: visual, verbal, logical, bodily, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, and naturalist. Visual intelligence involves visual perception of the environment, the ability to create and manipulate mental images, and the orientation of the body in space. Verbal intelligence involves reading, writing, speaking, and conversing in one’s own language or a different language. Logical intelligence involves number and computing skills, recognizing patterns and relationships, timeliness and order, and the ability to solve different kinds of problems through logic. Bodily intelligence involves physical coordination and dexterity, using fine and gross motor skills, and expressing oneself or learning through physical activities. Musical intelligence involves understanding and expressing oneself through music or rhythmic movements or dance, or composing, playing, or conducting music. Interpersonal intelligence involves understanding how to communicate with and understand other people and how to work collaboratively. Intrapersonal intelligence involves understanding of one’s own inner world of emotions and thoughts, and growing in the ability to control them and work with them consciously. Naturalist intelligence involves understanding the natural world of plants and animals, noticing their characteristics, and categorizing them. Naturalist intelligence generally involves keen observation and the ability to classify other things as well. Everyone has some sense of all nine intelligences, some better than others. Researchers have found "that parents with high IQs tend to have children with high IQs, and parents with low IQs have children with relatively low IQs (Crooks and Stein, 1995). A child whose parents with a high IQ score would be more willing to tend to their child’s school work and push them further in education.