By Howard Gardner (1983)

1. Linguistic intelligence
("word smart")
2. Logical-mathematical
intelligence
("number/reasoning smart")
3. Spatial intelligence
("picture smart")
4. Bodily-Kinesthetic
intelligence ("body smart")
5. Musical intelligence ("music
smart")
6. Interpersonal intelligence
("people/social smart")
7. Intrapersonal intelligence
("self smart")
8. Naturalist intelligence
("nature smart")
• Has to do with words, spoken or
written.
• Display a facility with words and
languages.
• Typically good at reading,
writing, storytelling, memorizing
words and dates, debating,
persuading, etc.
• Skilled at explaining, teaching,
and oration or persuasive
speaking.
• Can read for hours and
auditory skills tend to be
highly developed.
• Learn foreign languages very
easily because of high verbal
memory and recall.
• Ability to understand and
manipulate syntax and
structure.
• Learn best by speaking,
reading, taking notes, and
listening to lectures, and via
discussion and debate.
• Careers: writers, lawyers,
philosophers, politicians,
religious leaders, poet,
journalists, novelists,
copywriters, editors and
teachers.
• Has to do with logic,
abstractions, inductive and
deductive reasoning and
numbers.
• Emphasize the rational: good at
finding patterns, establishing
cause-effect relationships,
conducting controlled
experiments and sequencing.
• Naturally excel in:
– Mathematics,
– Chess,
– Computer programming
– Other logical or numerical activities
and reasoning capabilities
– Abstract pattern recognition,
– Scientific thinking & investigation,
– Ability to perf orm complex
calculations.
• Think in terms of concepts and
questions and love to put ideas to
test.
• Careers: scientists,
mathemati cians, accountants,
doctors, economists,
statisticians, engineers and
computer programmers.
• Has to do with vision and
spatial judgment.
• High capacity for perceiving,
creating and re-creating
pictures and images.
• Strong visual memory
• Often artistically inclined.
• Typically very good at
visualizing and ment ally
manipulating objects
• Can usually sketch ideas
out of graphs, tables or
images and are often able
to convert words or
impressions into mental
images.
• Generally have a keen sense of
location and direction
• May also have very good hand-
eye coordination, normally
seen as a characteristic of the
bodily-kinesthetic intelligence.
• Careers: artists, navigators,
photographers, sculptors,
decorators, designers,
engineers, and architects.
• Has to do with physical self,
movement and doing.
• Generally adept at physical
activities such as sports or dance
and often prefer activities which
utilize movement.
• Can handle objects with relative
ease.
• Tactile sense is well-developed
• Enjoy physical challenges and
pursuits
• May enjoy acting or perf orming
• Are good at building and making
things
• Often learn best by physically doing
something, moving and acting
things out, rather than reading or
hearing about it
• Use muscle memory; i.e., they
remember things through their
body, rather than through words
(verbal memory) or images (visual
memory).
• Careers: athletes, dancers,
actors, comedians, builders,
artisans, mechanics, surgeons,
sculptors, firefighters and
masons.
• Has to do with rhythm, melody,
music, and hearing.
• Display greater sensitivity to
sounds, rhythms, tones, and
music.
• Normally have good pitch and
may even have absolute pitch
• Can sing in key, keep tempo,
analyze musical form, play
musical instruments, and
compose music.
• Use songs or rhythms to learn
and memorize information
• May work best with music
playing.
• Careers: musicians, singers,
conductors, composers,
songwriters, disc jockey,
music teacher and music
critic.
• Has to do with interaction
with others.
• Are naturally social,
friendly, outgoing and
extroverts.
• Work well with others
• Are sensitive to slight
variations in people’s
moods, temperament s,
attitudes and desires
• Communicat e effectively
and empathize easily with
others.
• Know how to gauge,
identify with and react to
the temperament s of
others.
• Are generally excellent
team players and
managers.
• Typically learn best by working
with others and often enjoy
discussion and debate.
• Careers: politicians,
administrators, managers,
consultants, teachers,
social workers, therapists,
psychologists, counselors,
salespersons and
diplomats.
• Has to do with introspective and self -
reflective capacities.
• Typically introverts and pref er to work
on their own as they use and trust their
self-understanding to guide them.
• Are usually highly self-aware and
capable of understanding their own
emotions, goals, and motivations
• Often have an af finity for thought-
based pursuits such as philosophy
• Are in touch with their inner
feelings and are able to form
realistic goals and conceptions
of themselves.
• Learn best when allowed to
concentrate on the subject by
themselves.
• Careers: philosophers,
psychologists, theologians,
monks, researchers,
novelists, entrepreneurs and
writers.
• Has to do with nature, nurturing,
and classification.
• Highly attuned to the natural
world of plants and animals,
natural geography and natural
objects.
• Have greater sensitivity to
nature and their place within it
• Have the ability to nurture and
grow things
• Have greater ease in caring for,
taming, and interacting with
animals.
• Good at recognizing and
classifying different species.
• Love to be outdoors and tend to
notice patterns, features and
anomalies in the ecological
setting.
• Have appreciation for and deep
understanding of the environment.
• Careers: scientists,
naturalists, biologists,
environmentalists,
conservationists,
ecologists, botanists,
zoologists, veterinarians,
taxonomists, gardeners,
and farmers.