Innate intelligence to develop: Part 2

A day ago, I have covered visual-spatial intelligence, musical intelligence, verbal-linguistic intelligence and bodily-kinestic intelligence.

Yesterday, I have written about my son who loves nature, having great fun, exploring the muddy swamps of Tanjung Dawai in Kedah. When a young toddler, he would take a sprinkle and water the plants in my garden. The first sentence he uttered, at hardly one year of age, was 'I water the plants.' He has a love for animals and a curiousity about them. He had his first hen at the age of three years, wondered why the eggs did not hatch into chickens, got the answer from me, and so went to hunt for a cockerel. Our chickens live among the tree-tops in my garden and my son would hunt for the eggs laid at various places. Once the hen built a nest on a jutting window ledge, sat each day up there, observed by my inquisitive son till the day the eggs hatched and the chicks jumped and flew down to the ground. The excitement of the event expressed on the face of my son was a delight to see. Since then, we had ducks, geese, rabbits, pigeons, parakeets, budgerigars, discus, hamsters, roboskies, tortoises, fresh-water turtles and many other types of fish. Each of the animals were studied as they were reared. Books came from the library or the book-stores and knowledge as well as linguistic improvement took place. It gave him a love for books and knowledge. This son is born with strong naturalistic intelligence. He can remember scientific names of natural things so well, something I am weak at.

Encouragement to his interest resulting from his naturalistic intelligence has seen him improve in many areas of his life. Where linguistic ability is concerned, he has developed the love for books and knowledge. He is able to converse especially well on things concerning nature. since he loved watching animal cartoons, music and songs became a part of his early life. He enjoys listening to songs. He compares the lives of animals, their similar sicknesses and treatment, with humans and himself, reaching an understanding of himself. He realises he is an introvert but through his observation skills developed through observing animals and nature, he is able to understand others. Of course, besides his strong naturalistic intelligence he has other fairly prominant intelliegence which is enhanced as he used them in his interest on nature.

People who have prominant innate naturalistic intelligence are among biologist, landscape artist, scientists, veterinarians and geologists.

My second son is someone interested in the workings of machines and electronic things. Even before he entered university to study engineering, he could repair televisions and radios.

Today, I have a new television I have used only for a week because my son repaired the old television after I have decided to throw it out. The old television had been having problems and each time I sent it to a professional repairman, the television worked for just a few weeks before it broke down again. After the fourth time, I decided that it was no longer economically viable to go on repairing it. I bought a new television just before this son returned home from his residential school for his final holidays. He saw the television, told me he wished to open it up for a look inside and when he did, it took just a few minutes before he told me he saw the problem and would like to repair it. That he did and today, that television, after about four years, is still working with no further repairs needed.

Obviously, logical-mathematical intelligence is this son's strong point. He has repaired a clock, radios, disc-players and televisions of some friends. People like him can be possible matematicians, scientists, engineers, or accountants.

Some people are very quiet when young. They observe others and think much about themselves and life. In their persuit of an understanding of life, they may find themselves interested in spiritual things.

I am one of them. In fact, when I was young I was so quiet that my parents thought I was dumb. They did not realise that exchange of thoughts took place not between people but within my own mind. I searched for spiritual truth and knowledge even to this day. I observed a lot of things and so was able to understand people even better through sharpened observation. Today, though I can be very vocal, I can also draw inwards into myself and my mind in order to make observations quietly. People like me have what is known as intrapersonal intelligence.

People with such intelligence are the spiritual leaders, psychologists, teachers and philosophers. I was a teacher and my appreciation of myself as well as others helped me to understand children and plan ways to encourage their strengths as well as overcome their weaknesses. I am now writing in this blog also to share my observations and knowledge, hoping to help plan and direct lives to greater heights, more happiness and constant good health as a result of this intelligence in me. By doing so, I head towards more knowledge, greater understanding and an improved, more meaningful life. Thus, where this blog is concerned, everyone is a winner.

There are those who have the knack of interacting with others well. They are able to feel others' emotions easily and so are able to adjust themselves to people. They are the Public Relations Officers. Since these people mix well with others, they cultivate language skills easily and are usually good at verbal as well as non-verbal skills. Besides public relations, they can be excellent teachers, social workers and politicians.

Then, we have people who are inclined to religion. These are the people whose intelligence lead them to the understanding of human existence, meaning of life, death and the thereafter, eventually straight to God and divinity. They are the priests, the monks, the preachers, the thinkers and the writers.

Everyone is unique and has a role to play in our society. Each must be allowed, as well as encouraged, to find his niche in life. When a person is enjoying his/her talent, his/her talent-related work is pleasurable as it no longer is work but joy, a sort of hobby. When that happens, the person will develop even further the other intelligence that he possess, although to a lesser degree. For no person possess just one or two intelligence. All of us have them all, it is just the degree of the intelligence which is different and most of us have not been given the opportunity to develop all our intelligence to the full. Researchers tell us only a very small percentage of our brain has been utilised. Therefore, there is still so much more, no matter what age we are at, to learn and develop.