Homework Help: An Academic Tutor shares Memorization Techniques

homework help study skills

As the school year kicks into gear for all students from the middle school grades, through the high school years, into college and beyond, it’s time to get back into the academic groove. Any academic tutor will tell you that the key to academic success is to identify efficient study habits and technique that work for you.

Most subjects – from the sciences to the humanities to languages – require a fair amount of memorization. So, today we’ll offer some memorization strategies that might help you ace your coursework and studies this fall. Every student is different, so think carefully about which memmorization technique will work best for you:

1) Acronyms

An acronym is an invented combination of letters. Each letter in the made-up word indicates an item or process that you need to remember.

Remember middle school math class?

* PEMDAS (sequence in solving or evaluating math equations):

Parenthesis | Exponents | Multiplication | Division | Addition | Subtraction

Biologists out there may be familiar with…

* IPMAT (the stages of cell division):

Interphase | Prophase| Metaphase| Anaphase | Telephase

Remember to repeatedly practice the acronym before your exam so it becomes second-nature.

2) An acrostic is a sentence or poem with a first letter cue.

Acrostics are useful tools because they are easy to imagine and can be personalized. 

Another common middle school strategy for remembering the PEMDAS process is:

* Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

Parenthesis | Exponents | Multiplication | Division | Addition | Subtraction

When you are trying to master a process (especially for math or science), write it out and highlight the first letter of each word. Then think of a catchy phrase that incorporates each of these letters. Write, repeat, speak, Write, repeat, Speak...soon it will be impossible to forget. 

3) Chaining (for lists and facts)

When you have a list of facts or dates, create a one-liner or short story that reduces all the information you need to recall. A list of disparate factoids becomes easier to remember once it’s woven into a short anecdote. 

For example, if you had to remember the biography of the French artist Van Gogh, there are a few important key points: Van Gogh, 19th century, France, painting. 

Synthesize these facts into a single sentence that would sound something like:

Van Gogh was a 19th century artist who painted French landscapes.

Once you have this down, fleshing out the details will be a piece of cake.

More tips from an academic tutor to come.

Good luck with the fall semester! 

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