Is there anyone that loves memorization? Yeah, not me. As part of Boo’s weekly homework she has to memorize a bible verse and a short poem….every week. That’s a lot of memorization so I’ve had to come up with some creative ways to make it easy and fun.
Our favorite? the shower method. I write what she has to memorize on cards and tape them on the outside of the shower door at the beginning of the week. She reads it when she’s taking a bath. It becomes a game because I take away a word or two at a time and she has to see if she can fill in what’s missing. By the time all the words are gone at the end of the week she knows it backwards and forwards. If she ever forgets a word she can usually visualize the card and remember it.
Other ways we memorize things:
iPad/iPhone Recording:
Boo had to learn all 50 states and capitals earlier this year using the Animaniacs song. We recorded the song in 4 parts onto my iphone and the iPad and played it every single night. Just by listening to it over and over….we all learned it. I finally learned all the capitals…..after 35 years. We also carried around these fun flashcards by Pen and Paint for down time in restaurants and waiting rooms:
Word Scramble:
Kind of like the shower game….I write all the words on 3×5 cards and mix them up on the floor and we have to assemble them like a puzzle.
Fill-in-the-Blank:
I write sentences she has to learn but with certain words left out and she fills in the blank.
Are there any methods you use for memorization that you think work particularly well? I’d love to learn a few more to mix it up!
P.S. Speaking memorization…..I’m kind of obsessed with the number Pi. The first 25 decimal places can be learned in a night with this site (it’s pretty catchy). Is it cheating if you have it on a belt?
Ashley, will you teach me next, please??
I seem to be losing that skill……
Way to go, Boo!!
Patricia
I used mnemonic devices for many things…Great Lakes=HOMES; sentences out of grocery list…I need (eggs)to (condition)my hair after i (shampoo) it.
I am looking for ways to help my gdaughter learn her multiplication facts…we’ve tried everything…nothing seems to be clicking. Any suggestions will be appreciated!
Love the “drop the word” method Ashley…thats brilliant!
Bible Minded – an app for iPad – lets you record the verse with your own voice and it will play it back so you have auditory help…. Another one is a cheap software package for PC called MemLok…uses pictures to help you “see” the verse…awesome for the cost
You are such a great mom! Your ideas are inspiring. : )
Is it strange that I looked up your state/capital flashcards early this morning and now see where you posted this here? I hear Twilight music…
What grade is your daughter in ? She seems very young to be learning the capitals of the state. She must go to a very good school.
I love the shower for many reasons… mostly because i get to be in there by myself and think! That being the case, I have used it as a place to have a daily prayer time, memorize scripture and a host of other things that are difficult to do with kids constantly interrupting. I print out my prayer list, scripture verses, whatever, and laminate it. Then, I punch a hole in it and hang it from one of those suction cup hangers you can buy by the dozen at dollar tree! Besides the car, the shower is my best place to pray! I think that is awesome that you are redeeming the time with Boo. She will probably do things like that for the rest of her life!
HI Colleen,
I just read this post and this is the 2nd time I think I ever responded in my life to a post. Feeling the nudge from above! Thank you for sharing that idea about the scripture in your shower. Im going to share that with my bible study on Tuesday. They will love it! I find it so hard myself to memorize anything these days other then the song, “old Mcdonald” had a farm. My 2 year old asks me to sing that almost 50x a day.
So thanks for sharing that….
hugs & Smiles from Wisconsin,
Tara
i need to record the multiplication songs for Sienna! She will be a math whiz for sure! maybe I can figure out how to record and send it to you.
I used that pi song in my math classes on Pi Day (3/14) we would do all sorts of activities around pi and also eat pie! 🙂 I wore my t-shirt that said “pi is irrational and so am I” – math humor is always lost on middle schoolers! ; ) I may need to make a belt now! I also always had a contest to see who could memorize the most places of pi.
That new comments box at the top confused me. I wasn’t sure why I needed to use Facebook (which I deactivated a while ago) or hotmail to comment. When I chose hotmail, it wouldn’t let me comment unless I said that Facebook could access my account. I finally agreed, so I guess it put my comment on Facebook???
And then I noticed the regular comment box down here.
Now I know.
That Animaniacs video is too cute.
I don’t have any good memorization tricks, but what’s up with all the memorization at her school. Is that suppose to be good for the brain or something? Sounds like something my son would fight about and definitely not be any fun.
HA! I love it! I used to have a sliding door in my bathroom that I posted my biochemistry notes on so that I could study while showering. My boyfriend hated it cause he said he didn’t want to “accidentally learn biochem”. In our new place we don’t have a door, just a curtain, so to help me study he bought me bath crayons so I could draw my current study materials onto the wall. I know that sounds ridiculous, but I’m in PA school and I study every spare min I get and I really think it helps. Glad to see someone else finds it useful to keep the mind busy even when showering!
There’s an app for that:) Fighter Verses. My husband and I just started the first of the year memorizing a verse a week. They have different quizzes and ways to test yourself. Of course, it won’t have her verse on it, but you might get some ideas from there.
I am so proud of how you love your family and want to help them become the best they can become!! I am sure the Lord is very satisfied…especially with the verse memorization. God’s word is the sword the destroys satan’s plans. Jesus is the word made flesh!! My prayers have been answered…..mom
My daughter used the shower door method in high school and when she was in preschool, I traced her hand and feet onto poster board and wrote down the sight words and cut them out, laminated them, hole punched them and put them on a binder ring. She loved them because she was part of the process.
Love your blogs, your an inspiration
I was a kindergarten teacher at a Christian school and yes there is a lot of memorization.. We know those little brains are sponges so we take advantage… As for the sight words…. That is exactly what I told parents to do, like what you have done! Great job!