(MNEMONIC)

A mnemonic is a tool that aids in memory. To demonstrate this, we took the word ‘mnemonic’ and turned it into a mnemonic! Mnemonics are a wonderfully easy way to remember information, whether it’s the names of the great lakes or an important date in history. Below are 12 surefire links to ready-made mnemonics to help you create and use mnemonics.

Links to Mnemonics!

1. Click here for one of Susan’s previous articles on mnemonics and memory strategies!

2. http://www2.ku.edu/ – Mnemonics from Barbara J. Ehren, University of Kansas – Center for Research on Learning, with illustrations by David Gnojek

3. http://tinyurl.com/yvv7k3 – Using Mnemonic Instruction to Facilitate Access to the General Education Curriculum

4. http://www.buildyourmemory.com/mnemonics.php – The mnemonics resource that unleashes the incredible hidden potential of YOUR memory!

5. http://www.ict4us.com/mnemonics/ – Another great source for ready-made mnemonic devices!

6. http://www.mindtools.com/memory.html – This section of Mind Tools teaches you useful techniques that help you improve your memory.

7. http://www.eudesign.com/mnems/_mnframe.htm – Another good resource for ready-made mnemonics.

8. http://www.magicmnemonic.com/math/mnemonic_example_10144.html – Scroll down past all the ‘tags’ to the list of links. Those links have many powerful resources for helping you to use mnemonics with your students.

9. http://www.learningassistance.com/2006/january/mnemonics.html – Types of Mnemonics for Better Memory by Dennis Congos, University of Central Florida. This site is beautifully illustrated. Well worth your time!

10. http://musom.marshall.edu/anatomy/grosshom/mnemonic/ – This is a mnemonic generator. Type in a list of words to memorize and it creates a mnemonic. If the mnemonic doesn’t work for you, adjust and make it better.

11. http://www.onlinemathlearning.com/math-mnemonics.html – Math mnemonics from Online Math Learning.

12. http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/archives/mnemonics.shtml Education World’s Math Mnemonic Archive.

For more information about study strategies for your student, see Susan Fitzell’s book, Ummm, Studying? What’s That?. Available in both print and electronic versions!

Would you like to reprint this article, or an article like it, in your newsletter or journal?
CLICK HERE to visit the articles page.

The post My Newly Established Method Of Knowing Information Creatively appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Paraphrase Immediately to Maximize the  Power of Paraphrasing

Another strategy to enhance short-term memory so information isn’t “gone” in two seconds is to have a student paraphrase what we just taught. For example, after you’ve taught something important, ask a volunteer to paraphrase that information for the class. Most likely, your students will not relate the information in the same words you used, which will be novel to the brain.

How To Enhance Short Term Memory …In Only Seconds

This strategy only takes seconds to do, yet it lets your students hear the information again, in a different way, with a different voice. The brain likes novelty and will remember the information better.

Paraphrase One Hour Later to Reinforce Short Term Memory

Ask your students to paraphrase information that was shared earlier in the day.  When they take something you taught an hour ago and bring it back into play, it returns to short-term memory and is then pushed into working memory.  Using this paraphrasing strategy in your classrooms will help students to remember what you are teaching.

Watch Memory Trick: The Secret Power of Paraphrasing

[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

The post Memory Trick: The Secret Power of Paraphrasing appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Homework is controversial. There’s research that says it’s not beneficial. There’s research that indicates that it increases achievement. Which is it? Because I know that I need to do some “homework” no matter whether it’s school work or practicing my Kung Fu, I believe there is value on what I call “do-able” homework. The goal of homework is to take something learned earlier in the day and bring it back into working memory before bedtime. Research shows that practice increases recall the next day. It’s not about quantity, or the amount of time spent on the homework. Rather, it’s about forcing your brain to remember what was learned several hours ago and thereby building those neural connections.

As parents, we can use homework strategies to adapt assignments to our child’s learning preferences so that they retain what they learned in school earlier in the day. How? Here is a list of seven strategies that you can use at home to help your child increase their academic performance and make the homework experience more enjoyable, rewarding, and productive.

How to remember the sequence of events

1. To help your child remember the sequence of events in a story or history lesson, have them create a cognitive map with words and pictures. Using visual images to represent facts or a series of events helps to enhance recall and learning. By using colored pencils, crayons, or even colored fonts on a computer, your child can create a step-by-step map of the story – complete with descriptions of events and drawings or clip art to help them remember what happened, in sequence.
2. Another way to help your child remember a sequence of events in a story or history lesson is to have them create a sequence chart. Think of this as a time line or story line that shows events drawn out and written in chronological order. Although this can be done on any type of paper, long adding machine tape works well. Don’t forget to use color and visuals to increase memory.

How to Study Vocabulary Words

3. Increase vocabulary retention by creating visual flash cards. This strategy uses visual images to enhance recall and learning. Have your child write their vocabulary word on an index card and then place a border around it. The border will help them memorize what the word looks like. Then have them draw, print from the internet, or cut out from magazines pictures that help define the word. Attach the visual to the front of the card. On the back of the index card, have your child write the definition and a silly sentence using the word to help them remember the definition.

Foldable Note-Taking

4. Create a “fold-able.” A fold-able is a small book made out of folded pieces of paper that can become a study guide for various things. For example, your child can make a fold-able for a series of vocabulary words, historical figures, or even the cell cycle. Each page of the mini book would display, through words and drawings or pictures, one vocabulary word, a historic figure and related fact, a stage in the cycle of a cell, etc. http://foldables.wikispaces.com/

Have your Child Teach You!

5. It has been shown that we learn and retain the most when we teach someone else – so be your child’s student! Divide up their vocabulary list into manageable chunks (start with two to three words per night), then have them learn to finger spell or sign the words on their list and teach them to you.

Mnemonic Strategies

6. Increase their ability to remember by teaching your child to use various memory devices such as mnemonics, associations, rhyming, chunking, acronyms, and acrostics. These devices help us to remember the order of things as well as facts and concepts. What works for one child may not work for another, so test each device and see what works best. Some examples:

A mnemonic: I Am A Person – The four oceans (Indian, Arctic, Atlantic, Pacific),

An acrostic: Mallory Valerie Emily Meetzahs Just Served Us Nachos – The order of the planets (Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune).

A rhyme: 30 days has September; April, June, and November.

Famous Figure Wanted Poster

7. A fun way to help your child remember facts and concepts about famous figures is to have them create “wanted posters.” Have your child either use the computer or hand draw a wanted sign, complete with a picture of the famous figure. Then have them write the name of the person, their date of birth, and a list the “crimes” (facts) the person is “wanted” (famous) for – these will be facts about the person’s life and accomplishments. For example, Susan B. Anthony would be wanted for helping women gain equal rights.
http://mrslampkinsandmrsshawsclass.blogspot.com/2012/09/wanted-dead-or-alive.html

Remember, no one strategy will work for every child. Talk to your child and give them some options. Help them choose strategies that they are comfortable with and that they think will help them to retain the most information.

Have you, or your student, used any of these homework strategies? If so, how did they work for you? Have you adapted any of these homework strategies to make them your own? Tell us about that.

For more information about study strategies for your student, see Susan Fitzell’s book, Please Help Me With My Homework. Available in both print and electronic versions!

Would you like to reprint this article, or an article like it, in your newsletter or journal?
CLICK HERE to visit the articles page.

The post Seven Homework Strategies That Parents Can Use to Reinforce Learning appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Imagine if you were armed with effective strategies for inclusion, memorization, and engaging students before your first day in the classroom. These education majors from Carroll University had the opportunity to attend one of my seminars as part of their preparation for going into the classroom. Melissa and Whitney learned a wide range of strategies for teaching in a short period of time – even admitting they may use some of the memorization tips at the college level!

By exposing tomorrow’s teachers to strategies for success before they enter the classroom, we’re improving the quality of teaching in our schools and the chance for our students to thrive.

[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][embedplusvideo height=”312″ width=”380″ standard=”http://www.youtube.com/v/E0qZNx_DnbU?fs=1″ vars=”ytid=E0qZNx_DnbU&width=380&height=312&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=0&chapters=&notes=” id=”ep9500″ /]

[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

The post Giving New Teachers Strategies for Success appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Songs for Memorization

No matter what subject you teach, using singing and music to help students remember material can be one of the most powerful tools in your teaching toolkit. Math teachers use “Pop! Goes the Weasel” to help students remember the quadratic formula. English teachers use “Mary Had a Little Lamb” to teach the various forms of ‘to be.’ And in Social Studies…well, let’s look at an example.

I was recently talking about memorization with my kung fu teacher, who’s a few years younger than me, and he had a great story about using music as a memory strategy. When he was in high school, he had a tough assignment – to memorize the Constitution. He studied it every night, but just couldn’t seem to get it into his head.

One day, he was talking about this assignment at lunch, when a girl jumped in and asked him if he’d tried using the song. It turned out that she’d seen Schoolhouse Rock on a Saturday morning cartoon, and the show had a song for the Constitution. Soon word got out to all the students in the class about the song from Schoolhouse Rock – and all of the students passed the assignment. The teacher was flabbergasted – he’d never seen a class where every student was able to memorize the Constitution. The funniest thing to me was when my kung fu teacher started singing the song on the spot; 20 years later, he still remembered it. Talk about learning!

As teachers, we absolutely must use every tool we have available to us, and music is one of the most powerful strategies we can utilize. You don’t have to be a Broadway star to help your students use music and singing in the classroom. Whether you teach them a song for the multiplication tables or have them make up lyrics for karaoke that are relevant to your unit, by attaching something new to something the kids already know, they’ll learn.

The post The Power of Songs for Memorization appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Jan teaches GED courses for adults at a local community college. In her first class after attending the seminar, she was planning on starting a new unit on Social Studies. “One of the things I’m hoping to start right away is to have the students work together to create some of their own mnemonic techniques,” she told me. Laughing, she commented that “I think [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][the students] are going to enjoy that more than always listening to me!”

Most of the time, when we consider techniques and strategies for the classroom, we think in terms of elementary, middle, and high school. But these strategies can be used anywhere learning takes place, including at the college level – and even in the corporate world, where “students” go through workplace training and continuing education.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

The post Small Groups – Good for All Ages! appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Practice Mnemonics as a Group

I’ve had more success with ‘group’ mnemonics than individual student mnemonics. If the entire group or class has the same memory trick, then we can practice the mnemonic as a class and practice it often. When students create individual memory tricks, we have to count on the student to memorize the mnemonic on their own.

So, when as a class, we need a mnemonic to reinforce facts or a concept, I have the students work in small group ‘teams’ to come up with a silly rhyme, chant, acrostic, etc. I give them 3-5 minutes to come up with one. When the time is up, each group shares their mnemonic and then the class votes on the best one. The class vote determines which mnemonic we use to reinforce learning. “Publish” the mnemonic and copyright it and put the students’ names on it. They love that incentive and it’s an effective feel good activity.

Mnemonics: Tips from the Trenches

Here are some mnemonics from teachers that have attended my sessions and been kind enough to share their ideas:

• How to remember ‘solute & solvent’ in a solution: A thief broke into a building and filled a bag with loot. Then the police came. The thief hid the loot in a vent, so he wouldn’t get caught. The solute goes into the solvent. Lute – loot, Vent – vent, The soLoot goes into the solVent. – Amanda Patenaude, Keene Central School, Keene Valley, NY

• Use OREO to teach persuasive writing; O-opinion, R-reasons, E-examples, O-opinion restated. I also bring in Oreo cookies – kids never forget. – Beth Price, Rapid Run Middle School

• Beth also has her students come up with mnemonics to help them remember the 27 amendments to the constitution. For example; with the 1st amendment, remember PAPERS spelled PAPRS. The 1st amendment is about the freedoms of Press, Assembly, Petition, Religion, and Speech. Also, PAPER is used for all 4 freedoms. Another example could be the 2 letters in DC (As in the District of Columbia). Washington DC gets 3 electoral votes because of the 23rd amendment. These mnemonics are then made into flashcards for review.

• To recall the 13 colonies use 3 different sentences. 1. No More Red Crayons. (New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut). 2. Nice People Need Dessert. (New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware). 3. My Very Nice Son George. (Maryland, Virginia, No. Carolina, So. Carolina, Georgia). Kids can also draw a picture for each sentence to help them remember. -Margie Moore, Spencer School, Brighton, MI

• An easy way to remember the continents. North America married South America. They had 4 kids; Africa, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica and they all moved to Europe. – Daniel Carpenter, Beaver Area High School.

Free Online Mnemonic Resources

Online resources for mnemonics can also be incredibly helpful in finding those tricks to helping students pass their tests.

The post Mnemonic Ideas from the Classroom appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

A poem about small group work sung to the tune of Singing in the Rain.

Written by Susan Heath, Kellie Wolfe, Linda Smith, and Judy Burkett

We are the groupies and we’ll help you with your lengthy hour if you’ll pay attention to our flower power.

Today I am going to see in which groupie you will be. I’ve had a chance to look at last year’s EOG. (North Carolina’s End Of Grade test.)

There is a test we will use to see the various aspects of your personality.

I’ve observed you in the classroom and various other places so you may not be with your friends today but brand new smiling faces.

Your academic abilities may not be the same, combine your strengths and weaknesses you’re sure to win the game.

The interest you have is sure to grow as you share with each other the knowledge you know.

You may not be quite ready for the task that is at hand but after class instruction now you’ve got it man.

In a small group there is no time to sleep recorder, reporter or the time you will keep.

Some of you learn better by listening to what I say. Others learn by touching or in a visual kind of way.

Self-assessment is a valuable tool so leave your exit card with me and you’ll definitely be cool.

The post Singing the Guidelines for Flexible Grouping appeared first on Susan Fitzell.

Today, I worked with two groups of teachers at Rochelle Middle School who are interested in learning more strategies to differentiate instruction and meet their students needs. We discussed behavior management strategies for working with groups and Four Corners activities, and quietly cueing kids to get on task or to receive Kudos for doing the right thing! We also discussed four powerful teaching tips, adaptation strategies for students reading below grade level, and mnemonic devices as well as several other best practice ideas. We are on our way to oustanding differentiated instruction! Thanks Rochelle M.S. teachers, Mr. Nick Harvey, principal, and Pat Tunstall for a great day and the honor of working in Lenoir County!

The post Using Differentiated Instruction Strategies at Rochelle M.S. appeared first on Susan Fitzell.