Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV
A BODY smart is a learner who learns through touch, movement and motion. The technical word for being a body smart is a kinesthetic learner. A body smart can go on to become great surgeons, architects besides athletes.
BODY smart
If I were to ask are you smart with regards to your body, you might be unsure of the answer. However, if I were to ask you about Cristiano Ronaldo and his talent, you would be unanimous in answering that he is a brilliant athlete who uses his body and the skills to succeed in his profession to the fullest.
One of the many ways for being body smart is to express your skills physically. Physical skills also take intelligence to succeed. Our football hero who is a successful athlete not only has to be faster and smarter on the field but also has to calculate speed, maintain an equilibrium on the field, have a precise shooting range and have physical endurance and strength to pull it all together. That’s a lot of work for the body and the brain!
A SOUND BODY AND A SOUND MIND
The Romans had a philosophy where they felt that unless and until you have a healthy body, you cannot have a healthy brain. They had strange customs to weigh an infant as soon as he or she is born. If the unfortunate child did not meet the required weight criteria stipulated by the Roman society, the little infant would be dumped in the garbage bin. The Romans even had a saying for it: ‘Mens Sana in corporesano,’ in Latin and it stands for: “A sound mind in a sound body.” This is also an extension of the Olympic slogan: Higher, Stronger and Faster.
MEDICINE
If this give you an idea that only athletics and sports require physical skills, you perhaps need to consider the work of surgeons and dentists. The medical profession relies heavily on the sense of eye -hand coordination and dexterity to do the jobs. This itself is being body smart.
Thus, we can explain the word body smart as something that involves thinking and learning through touch, movement and motion. The technical word for being a body smart is a kinesthetic learner.
SPORTS AND SALAH
The Messenger of Allah 
new exactly how to encourage and motivate his sahabas. To perform at the peak was as much about the spiritual connection like reading the Quran and traveling to spread the word of Allah 
as it was about a good physical body.
Body to mind ratio was the syllabus of the companions. The companions where encouraged to indulge and actively participate in three sports, namely, swimming, archery and horse riding.
The Scholars have made some amazing connection with regards to these three sports and Salah. Archery is as much about being accurate as it is about concentration. An archer has to hold his head still and concentrate for long hours in the practice session. This is actually reflected when a believer stands in prayers. The keyword is “khushu”, which is literally translated as concentration.
Swimming is about stamina. One of the biggest weaknesses for Muslim especially in Ramadan is the long Qiyaam. Imagine if we can develop the stamina to stand up for the nights. This can be connected to our regular swimming lessons.
The ability to control an animal which is about 5 times heavier and stronger than you gives the mental strength and the power that a child needs. Horses are among the most faithful and strongest animals that have been domesticated by humans. This mental strength is what we need to get up for Fajr and other prayers to engage in our daily rituals, which is described as the most powerful medium of connecting with Allah .
Ways to Become Body Smart
- Learn to juggle
Best way to get eye – hand – mind coordination
- Play dumb-chardes
Best way to get the message across using only your body and expressions
- Think of an idea and build it
Use clay, cloth hangers, paper clip (www.exploravision.org – project for students)
- Learn a craft
Embroidery, Knots (as in scouts), calligraphy (Steve Jobs’s idea of icons came from calligraphy classes)
- Repair a bike / computer
Where will your ENERGY take you?
Summary:
- A body smart is the expression of your skills physically;
- The Olympic slogan is higher, stronger and faster, a quality of Kinesthitic learner;
- The medical profession relies heavily on the sense of eye -hand coordination and dexterity to do the jobs;
- The three sports that was recommended by the Prophet are swimming, archery and horse riding.
Next:
We will explore the next multiple intelligence profile: NUMBER Smart. These are those learners who are great with logic, formulas and numbers. If you have a maths – phobia, this article will help you overcome the fear and be a logical learner.
Please share your views in the comments section below. We would love to hear from you. 🙂
13 replies on “Multiple Intelligence at School [Part 5]”
This was one awesome piece! 🙂
Jazakallah for your ‘awesome’ comment. Yes Multiple Intelligence has shaped a lot of our curriculum design efforts.
Infact I use it often to teach my 3 kids. With their specific skills in mind, not only they learn quicker but enjoy the process.
MashaaAllah Nice Post Keep It Up …
nice articles mashaaAllah
fanoussy cares about the kids physical activities. we made a clip to encourage kids to do exercises. https://goo.gl/B5GdU7
Very informative, please keep it up….
Salam,thanks for sharing this educative piece. May Allah increase you in knowledge.
How can we easily the differentiate between these kinds of learners? Are there precise signs for them?
I look forward to seeing your reply.
Yes you can notice their inclinations. For example a linguist learner would be good with spoken word but a kinesthetic might like to watch cars or sports.
However, you can develop these patterns and use the strong intelligence to improve on the weak ones.
Very nice post mashallah. Will definitely consider the three sports for my kids!
This is very beneficial article, i love this and learn new thing from this article.
JazakALLAAHU Khyran, I have heard that you were in Nigeria last week, can Akaramakallah confirm it? Can we gets the details from your page?
Barakallah. I guess you must be referring to Dr. Bilal’s visit to Nigeria. I am associated with Islamic education at primary level. You can visit https://www.facebook.com/BuroojAngels
Very Beautiful and informative post please Keep it up…
Jazakallah. Good to know that the article is benefitting our Islamic schools.