Learning and Memory

1. Learning and Memory Ch. 6: Day Two - Memory

2. How Your Brain Remembers • Memories are stored in three different “storage banks” in your brain: • Sensory Memory– holds an exact copy of what you see and hear and lasts only for a second or less • Certain information is then selected and moved to short-term memory • Short-Term Memory – a temporary information storehouse that lasts no more than 10 to 20 seconds • You are consciously aware of material in short-term memory • Unimportant information is quickly dumped • Important information is moved to long-term memory • Long-Term Memory – the mind’s more permanent storehouse

3. Memory Strategies • Genuine interest and passion • When you care about something, your brain responds differently, so learning is easier • This is because you want to learn and remember it (Example: Song lyrics) • Understanding what you memorize • Easier to recall information that makes sense • The information is more likely to become part of your long-term memory if you have a deep understanding of the material • If you have trouble remembering something new, think about how it fits into what you already know (critical thinking!) • Example: If you forget the meaning of a new vocabulary word (microphone), then knowing the prefix word “micro” means small, and the suffix “phone” means emits sound, then it will help you recognize and remember that “microphone” means small device to emit sound.

4. Memory Strategies • Limit and organize the items you are processing • Separate main points from unimportant details – Ask yourself, “What is the most important information?” (Highlight only the key points and central ideas) • Divide material into manageable sections (When material is short and easy to understand, studying it from start to finish improves recall) • Use organizational tools (Example: outline)

5. Memory Strategies • Recite, Rehearse and Write • Recite: repeat key concepts aloud, in your own words, to aid memorization. Summarize the concepts. • Rehearse: similar to reciting but is done silently • Write: reciting on paper *This does not mean simply rereading material and repeating it out loud (you can reread material without actually learning it!) *If you convert text concepts into key points, then you are thinking and learning (you assess what you know and what you still need to learn!)

6. Memory Strategies • Study during short, frequent sessions • Spread your study sessions over time – short sessions (20-30 minutes), followed by rest, is more effective than continual studying (cramming). • Create groupings • Grouping - forming digestible information segments that are easy to remember • Limit groups to less than 10 items • Example: Phone numbers

7. Memory Strategies • Use flash cards • Short, repeated review sessions • Provides immediate feedback • Portable; provides flexible study times • Allows you to test yourself in both directions • Use the information • Recognizing information is different than recalling information • Try to use the information in other contexts that it applies and link it to new problems

8. Mnemonic Device • Mnemonic devices are a memory technique • Mnemonic devices depend on vivid associations (relating new information to other information) that engage your emotions. • Associations give you a “hook” on which to hang facts and retrieve them later (rather than learning new facts by rote (repetitive practice) • Mnemonic devices make information familiar and meaningful through unusual, unforgettable mental associations and visual pictures.

9. Mnemonic Device • Create visual images and associations • Turn information into visual pictures (this works well for visual learners) • Involve bright colors, three dimensions, action scenes, inanimate objects with human traits, and humor • Example: Calendar on your knuckles (how to remember if a month has 30 days or 31) • Example: “How the West as won”

10. Mnemonic Device • Use visual images to remember items in a list • Mental Walk – strategy in which you imagine that you store new ideas in familiar locations (check out Key 6.7 on p. 197) • Example: Memorizing elements of the periodic table and their atomic radius in relation to the first floor of Lincoln

11. Mnemonic Device • Create a vocabulary cartoon • Visual cartoons use the DAP Method (definition, association, and picture) to harness the power of humor to help you remember challenging vocabulary words • There are four steps to the DAP Method

12. Vocab Cartoon - DAP Method • Step 1: Write down the new vocabulary word followed by its pronunciation and definition • Example: • Word: panache • Pronunciation: (pa NASH) n. • Definition: dashing elegance of manner or style

13. Vocab Cartoon - DAP Method • Step 2: Think of a link word (an association) that rhymes with your word or sounds like it • Example: • Association: Mustache

14. Vocab Cartoon – DAP Method • Step 3: Create a picture or simple cartoon with the main word and the link word, to serve as a visual mnemonic. Next, write a caption that connects the word you are trying to learn with the association word in a way that defines its meaning in the context of the picture • Example: • “Sir Charles’ MUSTACHE is a symbol of his PANACHE.”

16. Vocab Cartoon – DAP Method • Step 4: Use the word in sentences of your own • Examples: • The modified plot seems too tired and generic, while the dialog lacks panache and imagination. • Most female pop stars try to copy Madonna at some point; very few do it with such panache. • Ashley tells a simple story with considerable panache.

17. Mnemonic Device • Create acronyms • Acronym – a word formed from the first letters of a series of words created in order to help you remember the series • Example: • ROYGBIV – Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet • My Very Education Mother Just Served Us Nachos – Order of the plants from the sun: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune

18. Mnemonic Device • Use songs or rhymes • Rhyming poems that tend to stick in your mind • Example: “I” before “E” except after “C” • You might use the tune of a song and change the lyrics • Example: Fifty Nifty Song to learn the fifty states

19. Team Building Activity • Each person place one item on the desk (no repeats!) • Look at the items for one minute • Cover the items… • Each person gets 3 minutes to recall and write down as many items as possible • Compare lists to the actual items • What did you forget and why? • What helped you remember?

20. Team Building Activity • Each person put a new item on the table • Look at the items for 5 minutes • Repeat the exercise using a mnemonic device (with new items) – develop an acronym or idea chain during the 5 minute viewing time • Cover the item and write down the items you remember (3 minutes) • Did the mnemonic device help you remember more items?