Memory strategies 1 Acronyms and Acrostics:(for information involving key words An acronym is an invented combination of letters. Each letter is a cue to an idea you need remember. Example: BRASS is an acronym for how to shoot a rifle--Breath, Relax, Aim An acrostic is an invented sentence where the first letter of each word is a cue to an idea you need to remember. Example: EVERY GOOD BOY DESERVES FUN is an acrostic to remember the order of g-clef notes on sheet music--EG. B.D.F 2 Rhyme-Keys:(for ordered or unordered lists) First, memorize key words that can be associated with numbers. For instance, bun with one, shoe with two tree with three. door with four hive with five etc Next create an image of the items you need to remember with key words. For example, if you had to remember the four basic food groups--diary products; meat, fish, and poultry grains; and fruit and vegetables--imagine cheese on a bun, livestock with shoes on, a sack of grain suspended in a tree, and opening a door to a room stocked with fruits and vegetables The method of Loci:(for approximately twenty items Select any location that you have spent a lot of time in and have easily memorized Imagine yourself walking through the location, selecting clearly defined places--the door sofa, refrigerator, shelf, etc. Imagine yourself putting objects that you need to remember into each of these places by walking through this location in a direct path. Again, you need a standard direct path and clearly defined locations for objects to facilitate the retrieval of these objects. For example if you had to remember George Washington Thomas Jefferson, and Richard Nixon, you could imagine walking up to the door of your location and seeing a dollar bill stuck in the door; when you open the door Jefferson is reclining on the sofa and nixon is eating out of the refrigerator 2. The Keyword Method:(for foreign language vocabulary) First, after considering the foreign word you need to remember, select a key word in English that sounds like the foreign word Next, imagine an image which involves the key word with the English meaning of the For example, consider the Spanish word"cabina"which means"phone booth "For the English keyword, you might think of"cab in a.. "You could then invent an image of a cab trying to fit in a phone booth. When you see the word"cabina"on the test, you should be able to recall the image of the cab and you should be able to retrieve the definition 3. The Image-Name Technique: (for remembering names) Simply invent any relationship between the name and the physical characteristics of the aple, if you had to remember Shirley Temples name, you might ingrain the name in memory by noticing that she has"curly"(rhymes with Shirley) hair around 4. Chaining:(for ordered or unordered lists)
Memory strategies 1 Acronyms and Acrostics: (for information involving key words) An acronym is an invented combination of letters. Each letter is a cue to an idea you need to remember. Example: BRASS is an acronym for how to shoot a rifle--Breath, Relax, Aim, Sight, Squeeze. An acrostic is an invented sentence where the first letter of each word is a cue to an idea you need to remember. Example: EVERY GOOD BOY DESERVES FUN is an acrostic to remember the order of G-clef notes on sheet music--E, G, B, D, F. 2 Rhyme-Keys: (for ordered or unordered lists) First, memorize key words that can be associated with numbers. For instance, bun with one; shoe with two, tree with three, door with four, hive with five, etc. Next create an image of the items you need to remember with key words. For example, if you had to remember the four basic food groups-- diary products; meat, fish, and poultry; grains; and fruit and vegetables--imagine cheese on a bun, livestock with shoes on, a sack of grain suspended in a tree, and opening a door to a room stocked with fruits and vegetables. 1. The Method of Loci: (for approximately twenty items) Select any location that you have spent a lot of time in and have easily memorized. Imagine yourself walking through the location, selecting clearly defined places--the door, sofa, refrigerator, shelf, etc. Imagine yourself putting objects that you need to remember into each of these places by walking through this location in a direct path. Again, you need a standard direct path and clearly defined locations for objects to facilitate the retrieval of these objects. For example if you had to remember George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Richard Nixon, you could imagine walking up to the door of your location and seeing a dollar bill stuck in the door; when you open the door Jefferson is reclining on the sofa and Nixon is eating out of the refrigerator. 2. The Keyword Method: (for foreign language vocabulary) First, after considering the foreign word you need to remember, select a key word in English that sounds like the foreign word. Next, imagine an image which involves the key word with the English meaning of the foreign word. For example, consider the Spanish word "cabina" which means "phone booth." For the English keyword, you might think of "cab in a ... ." You could then invent an image of a cab trying to fit in a phone booth. When you see the word "cabina" on the test, you should be able to recall the image of the cab and you should be able to retrieve the definition "phone booth." 3. The Image-Name Technique: (for remembering names) Simply invent any relationship between the name and the physical characteristics of the person. For example, if you had to remember Shirley Temple's name, you might ingrain the name in memory by noticing that she has "curly" (rhymes with Shirley) hair around her temples. 4. Chaining: (for ordered or unordered lists)
Create a story where each word or idea you have to remember cues the next idea you need to recall. If you had to remember the words Napoleon, ear, door, and germany, you could invent a story of Napoleon with his ear to a door listening to people speak in German Adapted by bob Nelson from The Complete Problem Solver by j.R. Hayes, 1989 STUDY STRATEGY Principles of Biology Dr J. E. Silvius BIO 100 Cedarville University Introduction As you know from experience, you must plan to be successful. This" Study strategy is intended to give you the necessary ingredients to plan your personal study strategy based upon what has worked for you in other courses. It includes some built-in incentives that have immediate grade implications (e.g. quizzes, exams); but, it also has much flexibility to fit your learning style. This Strategy" " has the following four parts: Commitment, Consistency, Conceptualization, and Cooperation COMMITMENT Success in any endeavor requires commitment. To become committed to this course must acquire a firm inner conviction that biology is relevant to your vocational development, and that this course is a trustworthy means of becoming more literate in biology. Having enrolled and paid your tuition for BIO 100, gaining all you can from this course becomes your responsiblity to god to those (or yourself) who assist you financially, to your professor, and to your peers in this CHALLENGE: Devote some time alone with God and His word. Read Col. 3: 23-24 Phil. 2: 3-4 and other passages that speak of commitment and responsibility. A FRUIT of this commitment is a willingness to share in valuing the course objectives to the point of accepting a personal responsibili to achieve them. This FRUIT becomes evident to peers and professor through CONSISTENCY in your efforts to lean CONSISTENCY There are four settings in which you will have opportunity to demonstrate a CONSISTENT effort These are discussed in your Sy llabus, page 2; they are Out-of-Class Study, Laboratory Lecture-
Create a story where each word or idea you have to remember cues the next idea you need to recall. If you had to remember the words Napoleon, ear, door, and Germany, you could invent a story of Napoleon with his ear to a door listening to people speak in German. A d apted b y B ob N elson f rom T he C omplete P roblem S olver b y J .R. H ayes, 1 989. STUDY STRATEGY Principles of Biology Dr. J. E. Silvius BIO 100 Cedarville University Introduction As you know from experience, you must plan to be successful. This “Study Strategy” is intended to give you the necessary ingredients to plan your personal study strategy based upon what has worked for you in other courses. It includes some built-in incentives that have immediate grade implications (e.g. quizzes, exams); but, it also has much flexibility to fit your learning style. This “Strategy” has the following four parts: Commitment, Consistency, Conceptualization, and Cooperation. COMMITMENT Success in any endeavor requires commitment. To become committed to this course of study, you must acquire a firm inner conviction that biology is relevant to your vocational development, and that this course is a trustworthy means of becoming more literate in biology. Having enrolled and paid your tuition for BIO 100, gaining all you can from this course becomes your responsiblity to GOD, to those (or yourself) who assist you financially, to your professor, and to your peers in this class. CHALLENGE: Devote some time alone with God and His Word. Read Col. 3:23-24, Phil. 2:3-4, and other passages that speak of commitment and responsibility. A FRUIT of this commitment is a willingness to share in valuing the course objectives to the point of accepting a personal responsibility to achieve them. This FRUIT becomes evident to peers and professor through CONSISTENCY in your efforts to learn. CONSISTENCY There are four settings in which you will have opportunity to demonstrate a CONSISTENT effort. These are discussed in your Syllabus, page 2; they are Out-of-Class Study, Laboratory, Lecture-
Discussion, and Office Hours. Each of these settings will complement the others -e.g reading-study assignments prepare you to gain more from the lecture-discussions; and immediate review of study notes from lecture reinforces your insights from lecture. It is essential that you establish a pattern of regular attendance in lecture and laboratory, promptness to class, and attentiveness and rticipation Several specific assumptions that I am making as your professor for the 1. You will spend time on a regular basis to read and study your text,answer questions, and review lecture and study notes in order to reach the desired level of learning proficiency. To accomplish this, you will regularly commit at least two(2) hours of quality out-of-class time for each hour of lecture/discussion 2. Major differences in pre-college science preparation exist among students. You devote add itional time and effort and seek assistance where necessary to compensate deficiencies in your academic preparation failing early-on to establish consistency, consult either myself or your laboratory professor, and we will meet with you to discuss the issue of commitment(#l above) ways of implementing a consistent study effort. Take advantage of office Hour CONCEPT-LEARNING My responsibility as your"professor of biology"is to guide you in the learning process rather than being just a disseminator of information in a note-take 6 memorize 6"regurgitate experience. We all know hat memorizing and correctly"regurgitating" " information is a quick way to generate there are no lasting benefits, and you may even feel cheated when you look back. Yet memorization out the window altogether. Instead we harness memorization into a learning process which emphasizes conceptualization; lets call it CONCEPT-LEARNING. Conceptlearning involves associating words(vocabulary) with abstract ideas through acquiring and memorIzing clear definitions. Then, one goes further by fleshing out the meaning of that definition
Discussion, and Office Hours. Each of these settings will complement the others – e.g. completion of reading-study assignments prepare you to gain more from the lecture-discussions; and, immediate review of study notes from lecture reinforces your insights from lecture. It is essential that you establish a pattern of regular attendance in lecture and laboratory, promptness to class, and attentiveness and participation. Several specific assumptions that I am making as your professor for the lecture-discussion: 1. You will spend time on a regular basis to read and study your text, answer questions, and review lecture and study notes in order to reach the desired level of learning proficiency. To accomplish this, you will regularly commit at least two (2) hours of quality out-of-class time for each hour of lecture/discussion. 2. Major differences in pre-college science preparation exist among students. You may need to devote additional time and effort, and seek assistance where necessary, to compensate for deficiencies in your academic preparation. 3. If you are failing early-on to establish consistency, consult either myself or your laboratory professor, and we will meet with you to discuss the issue of commitment (#1 above) and suggest ways of implementing a consistent study effort. Take advantage of Office Hours. CONCEPT-LEARNING My responsibility as your “professor of biology” is to guide you in the learning process rather than being just a disseminator of information in a note-take 6 memorize 6 "regurgitate" experience. We all know that memorizing and correctly “regurgitating” information is a quick way to generate good grades, but there are no lasting benefits, and you may even feel cheated when you look back. Yet, we can’t throw memorization out the window altogether. Instead, we harness memorization into a more meaningful learning process which emphasizes conceptualization; let’s call it CONCEPT-LEARNING. Conceptlearning involves associating words (vocabulary) with abstract ideas through acquiring and memorizing clear definitions. Then, one goes further by fleshing out the meaning of that definition
by learning to associate the word with other vocabulary and their meanings-i e. developing a conceptual framework. One learning model suggests that mastery of biological concepts requires that you through a series of levels of biological literacy as defined below. Study questions and problem-solving draw us"upward"but we may find it necessary to move"downward"to memorize and define before we can construct meaning and apply the knowledge Study the four literacy levels in Table 1 below and notice how the word"Zygote "takes on meaning as the conceptual framework is formed to include concepts ofsexuality,"sperm", and"generation BIOLOGICAL LITERACY: The quality of being able to understand biological ts make moral and ethical jud gements about biological issues, and solve realworld problems that involve biological issues Table 1. Biological Literacy Begins with Nominal Literacy and Works Upward TERACY LEVEL DESCRIPTION DEMONSTRATED BEHAVIOR MULTIDIMENSIONAL LITERACY Applies knowledge to solve How should my wife and i deal with our apparent infertility? STRUCTURAL LITERACY Constructs appropriate meaning of concept based upon his/he own understanding/experiences ZYGOTE"is the beginning of a new generation of life in FUNCTIONAL LITERACY Defines or describes a term ZYGOTE rme union of sperm and egg Recognices a term as "biological
by learning to associate the word with other vocabulary and their meanings–i.e. developing a conceptual framework. One learning model suggests that mastery of biological concepts requires that you advance "upward" through a series of levels of biological literacy as defined below. Study questions and problem-solving draw us "upward" but we may find it necessary to move "downward" to memorize and define before we can construct meaning and apply the knowledge. Study the four literacy levels in Table 1 below, and notice how the word “Zygote” takes on meaning as the conceptual framework is formed to include concepts of “sexuality”, “sperm”, and “generation.” BIOLOGICAL LITERACY: The quality of being able to understand biological concepts, make moral and ethical judgements about biological issues, and solve realworld problems that involve biological issues. Table 1. Biological Literacy Begins with Nominal Literacy and Works ‘Upward.’ LITERACY LEVEL DESCRIPTION DEMONSTRATED BEHAVIOR MULTIDIMENSIONAL LITERACY Applies knowledge to solve real-world problems How should my wife and I deal with our apparent infertility? STRUCTURAL LITERACY Constructs appropriate meaning of concept based upon his/he own understanding/experiences "ZYGOTE" is the beginning of a new generation of life in sexually reproducing species. FUNCTIONAL LITERACY Defines or describes a term from memory "ZYGOTE" = cell formed by union of sperm and egg NOMINAL LITERACY Recognizes a term as "biological
Associates"ZYGOtE with biology As you begin your study of biology, aim for concept-learning. This"literacy ladder" can be a model and a goal in which you constantly seek to move biology vocabulary"up the ladder"into a meaningful conceptual framework. Indeed, the analogy of" framework suggests that we are building out of"vocabulary words"i. e. boards and nails) a framework(building). Your BIO 100 Study uide will serve as the blueprint to guide you as you assemble the"boards and nails" into a meaning framework How does one accomplish this mental"building"? I suggest that you purchase a loose-leaf use a"Split Notebook Approach. "As the notebook lays open, use the right side for lecture-discussion notes and pages of your Study Guide. The left side( back of each page) can be used for related readingstudy The following plan is suggested to assist you in maximizing use of study time and retention of information from your reading. This reading-study approach will be called the"S-I-R D-E-C-A Approach SURVEY->INQUIRE-> READ-> DEFINE-> EXAMPLE-> CONCEPTUALIZE-> APPLY SIR-DECA"is a modification of the SQ3R method (robinson, F.P. 1961. Effective Study Row) which has proven effectiveness in maximizing study efficiency and retention. SIR DECA be used in conjunction with your Study Guide. It emphasizes active questioning(inquiry)and writing perform each reading assignment. To use this approach, keep in mind our analogies of the Literacy Ladder"(Table 1)or"Learning as Building"and proceed as follows: 1. SURVEY--Consult your Course Schedule " at the Blo 100 web page to be sure of the scope of the assignment. Print out the Study Guide for the day' s assignment. Each Study Guide page has an OVERVIEW and BLUEPRINT sections to introduce the topic. Then, survey (glance thoughtfully over) assigned pages in your text, noting major headings, illustrations, and diagrams. This survey will your mind more receptive to the information you will be reading 2. INQUIRY--Return to the first page of the assignment read the captions in the left margins of ssigned page. Also, read the section headings as you come to them, and formulate questions to arouse curiosity and focus your attention in preparation for later reading. You may wish to write your
Associates "ZYGOTE" with BIOLOGY As you begin your study of biology, aim for concept-learning. This “literacy ladder” can be a useful model and a goal in which you constantly seek to move biology vocabulary “up the ladder” into a meaningful conceptual framework. Indeed, the analogy of “framework” suggests that we are building out of “vocabulary words” (i.e. boards and nails) a framework (building). Your BIO 100 Study Guide will serve as the blueprint to guide you as you assemble the “boards and nails” into a meaningful framework. How does one accomplish this mental "building"? I suggest that you purchase a loose-leaf notebook and use a "Split Notebook Approach." As the notebook lays open, use the right side for lecture-discussion notes and pages of your Study Guide. The left side (back of each page) can be used for related readingstudy notes. The following plan is suggested to assist you in maximizing use of study time and retention of information from your reading. This reading-study approach will be called the "S-I-R D-E-C-A Approach." SURVEY-> INQUIRE-> READ-> DEFINE-> EXAMPLE-> CONCEPTUALIZE-> APPLY "SIR-DECA" is a modification of the SQ3R method (Robinson, F. P. 1961. Effective Study. Harper and Row) which has proven effectiveness in maximmizing study efficiency and retention. SIR DECA can be used in conjunction with your Study Guide. It emphasizes active questioning (inquiry) and writing as you perform each reading assignment. To use this approach, keep in mind our analogies of the “Literacy Ladder” (Table 1) or "Learning as Building" and proceed as follows: 1. SURVEY -- Consult your “Course Schedule” at the BIO 100 web page to be sure of the scope of the assignment. Print out the Study Guide for the day’s assignment. Each Study Guide page has an OVERVIEW and BLUEPRINT sections to introduce the topic. Then, survey (glance thoughtfully over) the assigned pages in your text, noting major headings, illustrations, and diagrams. This survey will make your mind more receptive to the information you will be reading. 2. INQUIRY -- Return to the first page of the assignment read the captions in the left margins of each assigned page. Also, read the section headings as you come to them, and formulate questions to arouse curiosity and focus your attention in preparation for later reading. You may wish to write your