To implement Gardner's theory in an educational setting, I organized my third grade classroom in Marysville, Washington, into seven learning centers, each dedicated to one of the seven intelligences. Curriculum is thematic, and the centers provide seven different ways for the students to learn the subject matter. Each day begins with a brief lecture and discussion explaining one aspect of the current theme. For example, during a unit on outer space, the morning's lecture might focus on spiral galaxies. In a unit about the arts of Africa, one lecture might describe the Adinkra textile patterns of Ghana.
All students learn each day's lesson in seven ways.
They build models, dance, make collaborative decisions, create songs, solve deductive reasoning problems, read, write, and illustrate all in one school day. They analyze and organize information in written form. Following their work at the centers, a few minutes are set aside for groups and individual students to share their work from the centers. Much of the remainder of the day is spent with students working on independent projects, either individually or in small groups where they apply the diverse skills developed at the centers. The daily work at the seven centers profoundly influences their ability to make informative, entertaining, multimodal presentations of their studies.