I first encountered learning styles theory when I was taking a psychology class in college. We all took a quiz to determine our learning style; I was informed that, because I fidgeted a lot, liked to play sports, and favored learning through active participation, I was a kinesthetic learner.
As someone who spent ten hours a week reading for pleasure, thrived on classroom discussion, and wasn’t particularly good at sports, I found this a bit perplexing, but I believed it at the time.
You have almost certainly heard of learning styles–the idea that there are several distinct ways of learning, and each person will learn most effectively if they’re taught in the one of those styles that works best for you. That second thing–the idea that everyone has a single style that works best for them–is called the meshing hypothesis.
The version you have most likely heard of is the VAK model– visual, auditory, kinesthetic. You may also have heard of the newer VARK model– visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinesthetic.