How to Develop a Child's Memorization Skills

Memory is an active process; your youngster̵7;s brain isn̵7;t going to absorb the timetables, algebra or periodic table all on its own. He̵7;ll need to develop the memorization skills that will help him internalize and recall the information he has learned. Fortunately, you can start while your child is still young -- still climbing on your lap for story time -- and continue the learning adventure well into his school-age years when he̵7;s tackling multiplication and other mathematical equations.

Things You'll Need

  • Memory games

Instructions

    • 1

      Start with the basics; ensure your child is receiving adequate nutrition, sleep and exercise to provide her brain with the ideal recipe for growth and development throughout childhood.

    • 2

      Ask questions. After you've been to the movie theater, a local fair or a walk through a local conservation area, ask your child about the event, incorporating questions, such as, "What was your favorite part?" and "What did your favorite flower look like?" Encouraging your child to use and develop his recall skills can help him to develop his memorization skills as well. It̵7;s OK to help him fill in the details if he gets stumped. Do the same when reading story books. Pause throughout the book and ask your child to recall what̵7;s happened and then talk about the story when you̵7;re finished.

    • 3

      Play memory games to help your child sharpen her skills. You can create your own memory game from family photos, cutouts from magazines or hand-drawn pictures. Make two copies of each one, paste the pictures on cards and turn them all face down for your child to hunt for the matching pairs. If you don̵7;t have time for preparation, take a look around the room together and then have your child face the other way. Ask her what objects she can recall from her brief perusal of the room.

    • 4

      Practice often. You can help your child learn to memorize by incorporating simple drills into his daily routine. When you̵7;re getting ready for school in the morning, have your child tell you which order he puts on his winter gear or which food groups he ate for breakfast. When he begins learning multiplication, quiz your youngster on the timetables every day during homework time.

    • 5

      Give simple instructions to your child. Start with issuing a single instruction, such as, "Can you please pick up the building blocks on the floor?" Gradually progress to increasingly more complex requests with multiple steps necessary to complete the task, such as, "Can you please put the red blocks in the red bin and the blue blocks in the blue bin?" Working toward multi-step tasks will help your child learn to focus on your instructions and keep the order of tasks in her mind -- even if that̵7;s through repeating the steps aloud repeatedly until the tasks are complete.

    • 6

      Praise your child for her efforts. You can offer positive reinforcement when your child successfully utilizes memorization skills, such as repetition, verbal recitation or even singing the steps, but be sure to praise him when you know he̵7;s giving it his best effort, too. By recognizing his successes, you can help him to pinpoint what enhanced his skills and therefore utilize them further, and by making the learning process fun and rewarding, he̵7;ll be more likely to put forth his best effort and continue progressing even more.

    2. Previous:

    Next: