Helping children remember

[Amanda Gray]

As I usually do at the end of every month on my Learn to be Buddies blog, I try to answer some of the questions asked by parents and teachers reading my blog. This is a post where I tried to answer the question:
Do you have suggestions how to improve working memory and executive function?

The question came from a struggling mum, so don't hesitate to add a comment on the blog if you think there is anything else that she might need to know.....

Here are a few things to think about…

Helping address working memory

… by linking new information to what the child already knows or using routine

If you are trying to teach a child a new skill in a way that will help it stick, make sure you tie it into something that the child is interested in or knows about. Keep referring back to this. Repetition may also help it stick.

Of if you want them to remember things like the equipment they need to pack in their bag for school, establishing a routine could be helpful.

For example, every day before school have your child do the same sequence of things – get up, have breakfast, get dressed, check the day’s timetable (if in secondary school), pack required equipment, watch cartoons if there is any time left.

The same principles can be applied to learning. Establish a classroom routine. When teaching new concepts, give examples that the child can relate to. Use their interests, like their favourite sport, art or music, to help establish the new concept in their minds.

…. By using songs, rhythm and rhyme

In addition to routines and repetition, use rhymes and mnemonics.

We (especially of the older generation) are likely to remember key spelling rules through rhymes like “i before e except after c”. Or the mnemonic “every, good, boy, deserves, fruit” to help us remember musical notation.

These can be useful and fun tools both at home and in the classroom to help children remember concepts and tasks.

… by using visual or written reminders

Most children with working memory issues will also benefit from visual or written reminders as well.

To help children learn maths, spelling and reading, hang words, numbers, formulae and poems or short stories around your house or classroom. Read these regularly. Label everything, and get children to read the label every time they want to use that object. Keep the same words hanging in one spot until the child can un-erringly read it for three or four days in a row. But make sure it remains fun, even if you have to use incentives.

For example, you might have a lucky dip box. Have a word or phrase or number on that box. Every time the child reads the word, they get to open it and take a reward. But make sure you reward their attempts at reading the word as well as their successes.

Using repetition, and the child’s learning style – whether it be visual (pictures), hands-on (learning by doing) or auditory (singing, speaking) – will increase the chances that they will remember what they have been taught or told.