US$5.99
Author
Fiona McPherson, PhD

This concise book goes far beyond the same tired descriptions of mnemonics, using the latest research to explain exactly how these strategies work and are best used. This 2nd edition includes multi-choice chapter reviews and a step-by-step case study.

Category

This 2nd edition includes multi-choice chapter reviews, extra images, and a very detailed step-by-step case study showing how to use mnemonics to learn the Geological Time Scale.

 

A successful student uses effective strategies

Being a successful student is far more about being a smart user of effective strategies than about being 'smart'. In fact it is possible to predict how well a student will do simply on the basis of their use of study strategies.

Mnemonics is one class of study strategy that is of proven effectiveness, but (like only too many effective strategies!) is used far too little. Despite many studies showing the effectiveness of mnemonic strategies, they remain the least frequently used formal memory aid used by students.

Perhaps the main reason for this is that their effectiveness is not intuitively obvious -- truly, no one really believes that these 'tricks' can so remarkably improve memory until they try them for themselves.

But while mnemonics do not help you understand your material, they do help you remember those many details you need to achieve expertise in a topic -- details such as the names of things, technical words, lists of principles.

Moreover, mnemonics can help you remember tags or labels that allow you to access clusters of meaningful information -- for example, headings of a speech or main points for exam essays. For both these reasons, mnemonics are a valuable assistance to building up expertise in a subject, as well as in helping you 'cram' for an exam.

This concise book covers

  • acronyms & acrostics
  • rhythm & rhyme
  • keyword strategies (including the face-name association method)
  • the story method
  • the loci or journey method
  • the pegword method
  • the link method
  • coding mnemonics

While you can find basic information on these various mnemonic strategies in many books and websites, Mnemonics for Study goes far beyond the same tired descriptions, using the latest research to explain exactly how these strategies work and are best used.

The hardest part of permanently improving your memory is changing your habits and becoming an effective user of effective strategies. The best way to do this, research has shown, is through understanding how different strategies work, and when and how to use them. Through examples and exercises, that is what this book aims to teach you.

 

 

 

 

Publication date: March, 2018

File size: 247 pages (print); 13.5 MB (ePub); 26.9 MB (mobi); 21.3 MB (pdf)

ISBN:

978-1-927166-45-1 (pdf)

978-1-927166-44-4 (epub)

978-1-927166-43-7 (mobi)

 

 

 

1. INTRODUCTION TO MNEMONICS

    What are mnemonics and what are they good for?

    Why are mnemonics effective?

    About imagery

    Individual differences

    Using imagery

    Review

PART I SIMPLE VERBAL MNEMONICS

2. FIRST LETTER MNEMONICS

    The two types of first-letter mnemonics

    How to create effective first-letter mnemonics

    Problems with first-letter mnemonics

    When first-letter mnemonics are a good strategy to use, and when they’re not

    Review

3. RHYTHM & RHYME

    Some familiar mnemonic jingles

    Singing to remember

    Spoken rhythm

    Review

PART II KEYWORD STRATEGIES

4. THE KEYWORD METHOD

    Some examples to practice

    Creating good keywords

    How effective is the keyword method?

    Limitations of the keyword method

    Remembering for the long term

    Comparing the keyword mnemonic to other strategies

    Tasks for which the keyword method is useful

    Using the keyword mnemonic to remember gender

    Non-European languages

    Review

5. EXTENSIONS OF THE KEYWORD METHOD

    More than words

    Applying the keyword method to text

    The face-name mnemonic

    Applying the face-name mnemonic to art & artists

    Applying the face-name mnemonic to animals

    Extending the mnemonic to taxonomic & attribute information

    Review

PART III LIST MNEMONICS

6. THE STORY METHOD

    Examples

    Remembering word lists

    Remembering text

    Pros & cons of the story method

    Review

7. THE PLACE METHOD

    Using the place method

    Some advice from antiquity

    When to use the place method

    Review

8. THE PEGWORD MNEMONIC

    Applying the pegword method

    Review

9. THE LINK METHOD

    Effectiveness of the link method

    Review

PART IV ADVANCED MNEMONICS

10. CODING MNEMONICS

    A system for remembering numbers

    Extending the coding mnemonic with other mnemonics

    Practical uses for coding mnemonics

    Dealing with decimals

    Retrieval

    Other languages may work better!

    Using the coding system to extend the pegword mnemonic

    Review

11. MASTERING MNEMONICS

    What mnemonics are good for

    Assessing the text and the task

    Choosing the right strategy for the task

    Choosing the strategies that are right for you

    Successful strategies need practice

    Review

12. CASE STUDY

    Memorizing new words, lists and dates

    Acronyms

    Looking for meaning

    Chunking your information

    Using a Coding Mnemonic to remember dates

    More chunking

    Visuals always help

    One era at a time

    Paleozoic Era

    Time to review

    Review 12.1

    The Mesozoic Era

    Review 12.2

    Cenozoic Era

    Review 12.3

    Review 12.4

    Precambrian

    The big picture

    Review 12.5

ANSWERS

REFERENCES

I wanted to thank you for writing your Mnemonics for Study book. I am using it to help me prepare my English lessons, but, most importantly, I am using your strategies to help me learn the classical guitar fretboard, which I have been trying to do off and on for the last 25 years. Developing an acrostic for each string using rhyme and rhythm is just what I need. Thank you so much for this gift! Grateful reader