Howard Gardner's Naturalist Intelligence
Naturalist intelligence is the ability to recognize and classify elements of the natural world. That is, this intelligence enables us to classify, understand, and explain the elements of nature. Those "at promise" in this domain have an understanding of the environment; they learn well through outdoor activities, including those that involve interacting with natural and environmental materials and concepts.
Young children may be fascinated by all kinds of creatures, including the ants crawling along a picnic blanket. Older children love to learn the names of trees and flowers, and have a good eye for the differences between them. They spend hours compiling science reports on their favorite animals and exotic plants. In short, they tend to be aware of the subtleties in appearance, texture, and sounds that those weaker in this intelligence may not grasp. Stated a slightly different way, this intelligence has to do with observing, understanding and organizing patterns in the natural environment. A naturalist is someone who shows expertise in the recognition and classification of plants and animals. They love collecting items from nature, studying and grouping them. This could be anyone from a molecular biologist to a traditional medicine man using herbal remedies. Examples of naturalists strong in this intelligence might include George Washington Carver, Rachel Carson, Charles Darwin, or a classroom student who skillfully sorts and classifies rocks, insects, shells, or dinosaur details. These same skills of observing, collecting, and categorizing might also be applied in the "human" environment as witnessed in a child sorting sports cards, or an adult who shrewdly distinguishes between the sounds of different engines or analyzes the variations in fingerprints.
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