I recently came up with an easy way to learn the 13 colonies in chronological order. Stories are a great memory technique because they follow a sequence. The brain stores information using a sequence or pattern, so this is why it works so well.

What children need to do, is visualize the story. As you read the story, draw simple little pictures. Use stick figures and have the children draw along at the same time. It makes the story memorable and it’s fun to do. Tell 5 other people the story to reinforce the memorized information.

Encourage the entire family to get involved and see who can remember all the colonies in order.

A  girl named Virginia went to Mass (Massachusetts) every Sunday.

Her family always ate a new ham (New Hampshire) after church.

Her sister Marilyn  (Maryland), was playing a “Connect-the-dots” game, (Connecticut) but stopped when her dad  said,

“Let’s hit the road for the island!” (Rhode Island).

He called to his wife, “Hurry up Della and get something to wear”. (Delaware).

While driving, they all sang Christmas Carols (North & South Carolina). 

Suddenly they saw a Jersey cow (New Jersey) 

It had a tag saying it was from New York in a big Pen (Pennsylvania) and the cow’s name was Georgia.  So they took it back to it’s home.

That’s the end of the story and now you can remember all 13 colonies in order! Tell someone else the story to lock it in your memory.

All Memory Joggers products come with an unconditional 30-day money back guarantee.

The Owl and the Pussy-Cat

This title reminds me of a  line from a song in My Fair Lady, “The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain.”  We may not know any other lines in the song, but we remember that one because it’s a type of mnemonic – a rhyme.

Something is happening in our educational system and our language. Children are no longer required to memorize poetry or the Gettysburg Address or lines from Shakespeare. The beauty of our language is quickly being replaced with cryptic text messages like,  GGOH    Gotta Get Outa Here  or  LOL   Laughing out Loud.  Writing is becoming a lost art, along with the beauty of recitation. Maybe you are saying, “Who cares if someone can recite Longfellow’s poem, Paul Revere’s Ride.”  You should care because your children are losing the ability to retain information. Use it or lose it!

Children who are able to memorize, become successful students.
* Begin young. Read aloud to infants and continue reading to them, even when they are 10.
* Encourage your kids to memorize short little nursery rhymes like Jack & Jill or Humpty Dumpty or those happy funny rhymes from Dr. Seuss.
* Read with enthusiasm and expression! Make it fun!
* Help your kids memorize history facts by making it into a rhyme. Remember, “In fourteen hundred and ninety two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.”
* Memorize quotations or sayings to develop good character traits, “You can’t win unless you know how to lose.” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Or, Ben Franklin’s, “The person who is good at making excuses is seldom good at anything else.”
*  Memorize fun poems like “The Owl and the Pussy-Cat” or Shel Silverstein’s “A Giraffe and a Half.” Reciting poetry develops an appreciation for the cadence and rhythm of verse. Children become excellent readers and proficient writers.

Young children are amazingly good at memorizing. Recently, my 3 year old grand-daughter was begging her dad to read her favorite book to her. He told her he was too tired that night. Jade looked up with empathy and said, “Daddy, do you want me to read it to you?” Surprised and curious to see what she’d say, he said “Yes, that would be great.” Jade opened her book and quoted the entire text from memory, not missing one word. He was astounded. He had no idea she had been internalizing the story every time he read it. We need to remember to encourage children to memorize. Their little brains are hungry and open to information. Just make sure it’s the right information that’s being stored!

All Memory Joggers products come with an unconditional 30-day money back guarantee.

I recently found the most amazing book Mapping the World by Heart by David J. Smith, that teaches students (5th grade through college) how to learn the names and locations of 190 countries in the world. And if that isn’t enough, the student is able to draw and label all the countries including rivers, mountains and major cities, starting from a blank sheet of paper!

“How is this possible?” you ask. Well, the brain remembers information, not in words, but in pictures. By drawing the shape of Africa and remembering where some of the major rivers run; students are able to begin drawing the borders of the countries and using mnemonics they remember the country’s name.

“Why is that important?” you say. Understanding the world, the countries and the people, make our children globally minded.  We need to begin thinking of our world as a village. There may be a variety of people, religions and economic differences but we are all human with the same needs and desires for our life.

“The brain remembers information, not in words, but in pictures.”

Begin with the U.S., learning to draw the outline, adding the Mississippi River and mountain ranges. Add the state boundaries and capitals. Using Memorize States & Capitals makes the process easier. But don’t stop there. Move on to the other countries in North America, Central America and South America. Hmmm…maybe I need to think of some mnemonics for remembering these countries. (This is how the seed of an idea is planted in the brain!)

I love the idea of learning and remembering with pictures. Students who draw their own maps remember 100 times better than those who only read about the location. Try it. What a great family project to do together.

All Memory Joggers products come with an unconditional 30-day money back guarantee.