11 Strategy: Learning Vocabulary

Vocabulary through action is a method that involves the muscle memory of the learner.  By acting out or Role-playing the vocabulary term, though it may feel ridiculous and awkward, will create a powerful memory of the term that is being learned.  Actors have used this strategy to aid in memorization of scripts, people that compete in Speech or Debate use this technique for similar reasons.

Vocabulary through personal usage is a method that allows each individual to assign a sentiment or significant meaning to a term.  By using powerful emotions and memories to associate with a term it will allow for retention and later recall.  To use this strategy effectively it is a good technique to write using the word in your writing.  Repetition through usage and association with memories should increase the ability to learn certain terms.  To find an easier way to assist in using the term in your writing to give it relevance is to find a synonym for the word that you are familiar with to associate with the original term.

One of the easiest ways to memorize vocabulary is with mnemonics. A mnemonic device is any specific learning technique that aids information retention. Mnemonics (pronounced neh-MA-nicks) are tricks for memorizing lists and data. The most commonly used mnemonic devices are acronyms, acrostics, rhymes, and jingles.

Acronyms are words or phrases made up by using the first letter of each word in a list or phrase. Need to remember the names of the Great Lakes? Try the acronym HOMES using the first letter of each lake:

Huron

Ontario

Michigan

Erie

Superior

To create an acronym, first write down the first letters of each term you need to memorize. Then rearrange the letters to create a word or words.

Acrostics are similar to acronyms in that they work off the first letter of each word in a list. But rather than using them to form a word, the letters are represented by entire words in a sentence or phrase. If you’ve studied music, you may be familiar with “Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge” to learn the names of the notes on the lines of the musical staff: E, G, B, D, F.

To create an acrostic, list the first letters of the terms to be memorized in the order in which you want to learn them (like the planet names). Then create a sentence or phrase using words that start with those letters.

Rhymes are short verses used to remember data. A common example is “In fourteen hundred and ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.” Need to remember how many days a given month has? “Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November…,” and so forth.

Jingles are phrases set to music, so that the music helps trigger your memory. Jingles are commonly used by advertisers to get you to remember their product or product features. Remember “Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun”—the original Big Mac commercial. Anytime you add rhythm to the terms you want to memorize, you are activating your auditory sense, and the more senses you use for memorization, the stronger the links to the data you are creating in your mind. To create a jingle for your data, start with a familiar tune and try to create alternate lyrics using the terms you want to memorize. Another approach you may want to try is reading your data aloud in a hip-hop or rap music style.

Mental images are one of the best ways to remember vocabulary. We need a fast way to create new memories that last a long time and can be easily recalled later. The best way to do this is to create a mental image and focus on it intensely. It only takes a moment. It’s hard for us to forget something that we see or imagine, especially if it is unusual or vivid. If you can put something that you want to learn into a mental picture, it creates a new, lasting memory of whatever you’re learning.

• Identify the cue and response.
• Pick a visual representation of the cue (what prompts you to remember).
• Pick a visual representation of the response (what you want to recall).
• Form a vivid mental image that involves the cue interacting with the response.
• Remembering the mental picture that has the cue in it will remind you of the other part of the image.

It’s important to truly “see” and focus on the mental picture. Sometimes it’s easy to just coming up with the idea for the picture but move on before imagining it; this will not work. Pause to imagine the image.

This chart is commonly used in elementary schools to teach children vocabulary.