How Memory WorksTest taking Strategies

Neural traces created in the brain

Linkages or connections between neurons

Chemical bond caused by strong association

Created by an initial sensory or emotional event

Sustained repetition of the event is what causes it to become stored in memory

What is Memory?

Registration

Retention

Recall

The Three R’s of Memory

◦ when something comes to your attention and has

meaning for you

◦ What you do with the info depends on your purpose

◦ Look up a number to order a pizza vs. try to remember the number of your best friend

Registration

when you make a conscious decision to remember something. You must decide on how to make that happen.

Your goal is to retain the information for a long time.

Retention

in order to recall stored information you must use a memory storage technique that will make it likely for you to retrieve the information.

Recall

Short- term Memory- is where things are stored at the registration stage of remembering

If you don’t do something active with the information such as write it down, draw a picture, or say it out loud, it will be forgotten.

7 plus or minus 1 items

Through rehearsal and review you can transfer the info to long term memory

The more often you review the information that is stored the greater the chances of being able to recall it easily and quickly.

Short Term Memory

New facts

Short-term Memory

Forgetting

Long-termMemory

Remembering

Rehearsal

No Rehearsal

Short Term Memory Transfer

The importance of beginning the review/rehearsal process as soon as possible after something enters your short-term memory is very important.

If you don’t actively do something to create long-term memories you will forget most of what you encounter

Forgetting

25%

50%

75%

100%

PercentRemembered

Ebbinghaus Curve

30 min

1 Hour

12 hours

1 day 10 days 1 Month

The more senses you employe in ther rehearsal and review stages, the more you will remember.

Use these in conjunction with your many intelligences and give yourself a far better chance of embedding materials in your long-term memory.

Multi-sensory Effect

20% read only

30% hear only

40% see only

50% say only

60% do only

90% of what you learn with many sensory learning activitiesRead, hear, see, say do

You Remember…

Recency- you tend to remember things that happened most recently

Primacy- you have better recall for things that happen at the beginning of an event or situation

Recency and Primacy effects

More effects

Similarity effect Association Effect

Grouping Clustering Organization

Link things you want to remember with something that is already in your brain

Memory are strongly tied to visual images, sounds, and smells.

Also things in which you have a strong emotional connection are easily remembered.

The more intense the color, feeling, or smell the more likely you will never forget it.

Memory is a sensory process

My Very Elegant Master Just Served Up Nine Pineapples

Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto

Use acronymic sentences the brain is trained to store and recall patterns of language

Create Assocications Through Meaning

You are most likely to remember things that are unusual, outrageous or out of place.

When things stand out they are memorable

Weirdness Effect

Words that are specific or definite are easier to learn rather than words that are elusive or intangible

Specificity Effect

The more you repeat what you want to embed in long-term memory, the better you will remember it.

You must drill in the things you want to remember

Repetition Effect

Relax- be free from stress

Be active with material- teach someone it, make up a rhyme, write key ideas in your own words, draw a picture, make mental connections to something you already know, review it backwards- work with the material

Use your Multiple Intelligences

Use smaller chunks of time on different tasks

Improving Your Memory for Studying

Chunk material- organize it into smaller groups so it is easier to store and retrieve

Create strong associations (sensory and emotional)

Practice output- quiz yourself, have some quiz you, take a practice quiz on paper or on the computer (under time pressure); make up your own essay or multiple choice questions. Use Quizlet!

Review Early and regularly

Improving Memory (cont.)

You can increase your memory of a 3 hour lecture by up to 500% by using 3 minute review sessions

Immediately after lecture, within 1 hour, one day, one week, one month, two months, etc.

This will change the normal forgetting curve

The impact of Review

Make flash cards

Make mind maps

Create mnemonic devices

Make rhymes, rhythms, and songs

Practice, practice, practice!

Sleep on it- sleep is a necessary component to good memory. What you review immediately before you go to sleep is what you brain filesmost effeciently

Develop Basic Memory Aids