Memory Tips for Students

There is no other time in our lives when we are tasked with memorizing things more than when we are students.  

From kindergarten to law school, we put our brains to work to improve our capacity to remember concepts that help us advance to the next level of schooling. 

Here are some tips for students to help them memorize material for the next exam or presentation.  Good luck!

The SQ3R Method of Memorization

Memorizing using the SQ3R method is great for students because it helps the brain recall things that are presented in a large body of written work, like a book!   

This handy acronym should help students who have trouble retaining a lot of the information that they read

Survey: Read the material to be learned, including table of contents, introduction and headings, to get an idea of what you are going to be studying. 

Question: What is the purpose of the material?  What am I going to learn? 

The 3 R’s: 

• Read: Be sure to underline what you don’t know. 

• Recite:  Re-tell the material in your own words, as if explaining it to someone else. This is most important for comprehension and storage in long term memory. Research indicates at least half of your study time should be spent in this type of activity. 

• Review:  go back over the material. Part of this review should be in the form of self testing.  Ask yourself key questions. Eg: What are the 5 steps for _______?  What are the 10 parts of the_______? Describe the______________ of the____________.

Memorize with Spaced Repetition

Those of us who are or have been students, which is most of us, are familiar with the human tendency to procrastinate. The proverbial “all-nighter” is one of the most common phrases in the college student vernacular. 

But cramming, or studying intensively just prior to taking a test, has been shown to be inferior to studying at intervals. For enhanced recall of new material, it’s much better to practice spaced repetition when studying the material.  

Review the subject matter after one hour, then after four hours,  then daily and weekly.  Basically, study a little bit every day and every week instead of waiting until the night before the test. 

Memorize Through First Letter Cuing

– Acronyms:  Each letter stands for a word, such as in the familiar HOMES for the great lakes Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior. 

– Acrostics:  Each word stands for the beginning letter of the item to be remembered. For example: Planets in order from the sun:  My very elderly mother just served unusual nasty pudding (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter,  Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto)

Mix up The Material

Items in the middle of a list are harder to remember.  Try re-arranging them and study in a different order. 

You can also try studying the items in the middle of a list a little more.  Other information to be learned can also be studied in random order.  The exception being that if you are using acronyms or acrostics, as noted above. 

Replicate Set and Setting

If possible, study in the same or similar place as the testing.  If not possible, while studying imagine yourself being the testing place.  Conversely,  when in the testing place, imagine being in the place you studied. 

Reduce Interference When Studying

Sometimes it can be challenging for students to memorize material that is similar to another set of materials they are studying.  For instance, a veterinary student may be studying a feline respiratory system in one class and kanine pulmonary systems in another. 

If two subjects are similar, study in different places at different times.  Consider using different ink or highlighting colors and different types of notebooks.  Eliminate distractions.

Use all Your Senses When You Study

It’s harder for students to forget subject matter if it has entered their consciousness through a variety of means. 

Talk aloud, make notes, draw pictures; use maps, videos, and diagrams. Reading aloud uses visual, auditory and tactile feedback and has been shown to enhance recall. Some people also find it helpful to have soothing music in the background while studying.

Memorize through Association

As a student, often the most powerful method to help you memorize things is to connect what you want to learn or remember with something you already know or can recall easily. 

Here are some simple associations: 

– A Bactrain camel has 2 humps and a Dromedary camel has 1, like the letters “B” and “D”

– A piano has 52 white keys and 36 black keys – 52 weeks in a year and 36 inches in a yard.

– Bad grammar can “mar” a report (a word often misspelled with an “e”)

– Stationery is for a letter. 

– She screamed “EEE” when she passed the cemetery. 

– Spring forward, Fall back (clock changes for daylight savings time)

Study using Memory Maps

Drawing on the concept mentioned above about utilizing all of our senses to help memorize something,  you can do this using a memory map.

A memory map is a diagram that outlines the main ideas and sub ideas, and details of a subject.  Write a key word in the center of a page.  Jot down related words and ideas around this.  Connect the ideas and expand the diagram. 

Use different colored pens. This is similar to an outline, but more visual/spatial. 

There are even apps & websites, such as MindMiester, that help you create mind maps digitally.   Give it a try!

Memorize through Visualization

Form an unusual, funny or bizarre image to remind you of what you want to recall.  Link items or concepts by imagining them interacting with each other. 

For example, to remember that Alexander the Great invaded India in 327 BC imagine a large purple grape (for great) sitting on the Taj Mahal (symbol of India) and it’s hot because (BC) it’s 3:27 in the afternoon. 

Conclusion

That wraps up our memorization tips for students. As you can see there are a number of different techniques you can deploy to help you study for your next test.

Remember, we are all different. One method might work like magic for one person and not help much for another.  We encourage you to try a variety of memorization techniques and pay attention to what works for you.   

Good luck and happy studying!