Test 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

 Registration  Retention  Recall

◦ 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

 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.

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

 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.

New facts Short-term Memory Forgetting Long-term Memory 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

25% 50% 75% 100% Percent Remembered 30 min 1 Hour 12 hours 1 day10 days1 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.

20% read only 30% hear only 40% see only 50% say only 60% do only 90% of what you learn with many sensory learning activities Read, 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

Similarity effectAssociation 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.

 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

 You are most likely to remember things that are unusual, outrageous or out of place.  When things stand out they are memorable

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

 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

 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

 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

 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

 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