Siya Patil (Week 16)- Memory Tricks


Siya Patil

Period 5 APENG

Blog Week 6

Memory Tricks

Remembering things isn’t the easiest thing to do, especially during finals or AP exam season, while high-schoolers are experiencing one of the most stressful times during their four years of high school. Recalling things for an important task is necessary, and super helpful too; but, some things are easier said than done. That does not mean that certain tricks can’t be used to sharpen our memories, though!

As mentioned in an article by Dalhousie University, there are certain things you can do to help best prepare yourself for an exam requiring effective memorization in order to do well. For example, reciting key facts and points out loud can help “engrave” the study material in your brain, and if done correctly, you will be able to flawlessly recall certain points in time for the exam. 

In addition, (and, you may have heard of this method), teaching the material to another individual may also be greatly beneficial. When saying things out loud, you’ll tend to keep talking until you get stuck on something you don’t know, and, bingo! You can then focus on the topic which you stopped on, and get the rest of the things correct. 

And last but not least, memory devices tend to come in the clutch as well! One of my favorite examples includes acrostics, where the first letter of a specific word spells out a word itself. It’s a quick and easy way to remember a “list” of things, such as the planets in our solar system. “My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos,” which translates to Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, is a popular example of an acrostic. 



With these tips in mind, what tricks do you already use, and which of these do you plan to use in the future?

    Photo Source: https://www.space.com/16080-solar-system-planets.html

                                                            Info Source: https://www.dal.ca/news/2013/11/20/study-tips--top-5-memorization-techniques.html

Comments

  1. AmaniMay 23, 2022 at 5:59 PM

    Hi Siya,
    After reading your blog, I am wondering if different memory devices work for different people or if we just force ourselves to believe those work better for us. More than memory, I think perception plays a huge role in our lives. The way we remember and think about certain things influences our lives greatly. For example, remembering something nice that someone said as sarcastic would change the way you think about that person.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Natasha AnguelouchMay 23, 2022 at 9:54 PM

    These fun memory tricks, called mnemonic devices, are indispensable! I can attest to the memorization benefits of explaining things out loud, though sometimes I feel silly telling my cat everything I know about psychotherapy. I also really like the “My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos” trick because it has saved me countless times on science tests.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Aarav SakiMay 24, 2022 at 10:38 AM

    Hi Siya, a lot of these memory tricks seem super useful, and there's a handful in your post that I've used myself as well. I can definitely vouch for the tactic of teaching the material you wish to memorize to another individual—it seems to me that I only truly understand something when I am able to teach it to someone else. Saying things out loud has also helped me with memorization, especially in conjunction with other memory tricks. I haven't really used a lot of acrostics to memorize things, but they are very helpful for a lot of people I know.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ananya KulkarniMay 24, 2022 at 2:35 PM

    Hi Siya, I enjoyed reading your blog on different memory tricks that can help you on exams or in daily life. I personally find the method of teaching the topic to others helpful and it usually helps me memorize and understand the topic myself. I also agree that it is easier to remember things using mnemonics like the one you mentioned about the planets.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Angie HuangMay 24, 2022 at 2:59 PM

    Hi Siya, I found your blog to be very informative on how to improve our memory. Several tricks such as making flashcards, teaching it to another person, are all ways in which we can better retain the information we gain. By practicing these useful tricks, we can enhance our memory capacity, and remember events more easily.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Daniel A.May 25, 2022 at 1:53 PM

    Hi Siya, memory is always something we can improve, and we keep finding ways to do so. Different people remember things differently and tricks won't work for everyone. I think that finding tricks to help improve memory is a journey that is different for everyone, and that everyone must eventually take.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Jerome AMay 25, 2022 at 10:02 PM

    Hey SIya, I feel like forgetting things when they are needed most is just something that is unavoidable because it pushes us to try harder to focus on the importance of everything. If we were able to remember everything then how would we be able to ever truly learn or to make mistakes it would take a large chunk of development out of our life.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Avinash PatelMay 30, 2022 at 9:33 PM

    Hi Siya, for me remembering things for an exam is not as easy as it seems. I tried all the tricks and things I could have, and none worked. The only thing that I can do is repeat terms or concepts starting a week before the exam. So I have to make the exam my life to keep them in my head while I am taking the test.

    ReplyDelete

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