How do you improve your memory naturally?

Question

I mean, I have exams, I've got to learn a lottttttttt..... I'm stressed out with tension. I know tension doesn't help, I just don't have time and I need to learn a lot of notes.

Answer 1

1. do simple math problems fast.
-add subtract multiply divide, but dont get hard do all the elementary math. time yourself and do about 30 a day. in less than a minute.
2. read about 5 paragraphs also fast aloud. make sure you pronounce each word.
3. count syllables in a ten different sentences

do all three everyday, and each day youll improve. time yourself each day and you will see the the time go down, and you will get better.

Answer 2

You need to first relax for tension/stress impedes your memory which is something you do not want-drink some chamomille tea-relaxes just enough but not to point where you gt sleepy, Can also take Holy Basil-can get any Health Food store as you can the Chamomille-it improves memory and health in general and has no negative reactions with other meds and will relax so your brain functions at its highest capacity-its well worth checking out. Instead of just rereading text book and memorizing ***Concentrate on the main topics and then a summary of the information that relates to that topic. I will often do a OUtline where for each chapter I will make Headings out of the Main points Of INformation as for example I. The Test and then underneath a.b.c. d.etc will list the points that I need to remember about the topic in order of importance Then Go on to II or 2 and again a,b,c etc until I've covered the scope of the material that will be on the exam(test) then I will go back and study until I can comfortably give a summary of the important information for each topic. Your memory will begin kicking in already as you are doing the outline and then going back and restudying you are fine tuning your memory. This makes the material much easier to remember for you are only concentrating on the important words and eliminating unneeded words that will only clog your memory cells unnecessarily-you remember more by having less to remember.It will also improve your ability to pick out from all the information given in a text just the important info that explains the topic and leaving out the clutter words. This method ,because it makes it so much easier to study,to retain information will also boost your confidence which will relax you for you know that you really know what you need to know . Its a win situation and Good Luck!

Answer 3

Alright, i'm not good in Spanish and i use my own method to work it out. Here's a solution:
make notecards of what you don't know, not everything because that will hurt your hand and brain and you'll get bored faster while studying. Just write up the things that you don't know or have trouble remembering without a hint.

once you make the notecards organize them according to subject. Once their subject organized organize them again into concepts.
ex) Science----> Magnetism, Bouyency, Atoms, Ions, etc.
Math---------> Fractions, Percents, Graphing, etc.

(get it?)

when all the notecards are organized read them over a good many times and try to remember certain things that can relate to that card. an example is:

Lets say you like to paint and you have a card about how to turn an Atom into an Ion. Think of a painter's paper (the thing with the paint on it). if one atom is pink and the other atom is black, and you want to make a dark pink color then you have to take a bit of the black paint. The bit that you take is 1 electron from the valence shell of the black paint. When you take it away from the glob of black paint the paint won't be the same as it was before (an Atom) so because it is missing a bit is will have a negative charge and it will be an ion. Now when you put that paint (electron) on the pink glob, it has more than it normally needs so it will have a positive charge and it is an ion.

If the thing you need to study is Vocabulary, try and think of bits of the word that sound like another simple word that doesn't have anything to do with the word, but you will make up a crazy sentence about the definition.
example concerning spanish words:

Lavaplatos means sink. so use the funny saying, "There's lava in the sink"

I don't know of many other studying tips other than that, but maybe tell your friends about the same tips and then when you all have your cards together, look over which ones that you each have that are the same and talk about different ways to remember them.

Also, even if your friends don't have the same cards as you, try quizzing each other on all the cards. This might help...

the boring way of studying is to make study guides on each subject and on only what you don't know or have trouble remembering, then reading it over and over.

((Not suggested))

well, i don't know how much help i could be, but this is how i study and I get straight A's....
Then again, each person has their own was that they happen to learn better, this is just mine...

((results may vary))

Answer 4

I use comparison. For example: To remember the supine position in medical I think of a guy in a soup line holding his hand out for food. If a person is laying on his back palms up, it is called the supine (sue-pine) position.

Another example is the word left, and the word right. Left has less letters so it comes first. (on the left side) The same with port and starboard, port is a shorter word and it comes first (left side) of a boat.

Don't forget to get plenty of vitamins and rest and good diet and exersize, and breakfast always helps you think straight. No drinking or drugs, minimal coffee, that reverses the whole thing over time as your brain cells rot away and you start losing a lot of memory and all you will have is short term if that!

Get a study buddy to quiz each other.

Go to the library and get a book or two on memory building skills. Flip through a few of those and they should have a lot of good suggestions. That is how I pick up a new skill quick.

Pray too that God ( I hope you believe!) will help you find ways to remember notes and study with a passion. If you love something, it seems to stay with you in memory, be it work or a person.

Answer 5

What you do is, you make summary notes of the stuff you need to know, and if you are really pushed for time close to the exam, you get lots of paper (and some nice coloured pens may help) and write out the formula or whatever you need to remember at the top of one page. Then you fold it over and try and write it again from memory. Look to see if youve got it right. If you haven't, you fold that part over, try again, and so on.

It should take about 3 goes for a long definition of something (eg science) or a statistic (eg history). This done very quickly, over and over helps you remember each bit. Later on, if you run out of time doing this, just jot down key bits once, or twice if it hasn't gone in properly. When you are really running out of time and its getting a bit late, read the remainder of the notes in bed, then you're sort of getting some rest as you do it. Be in bed by half eleven at the latest, probably before then if you live quite a way from school/college.

In maths, the best way is to practice qs (you remember about 40%) then for other things, writing as above helps you to remember '20%' (though for me it seems like more) and just reading is 10-15%.

To 'naturally improve your memory' get a nintendo ds and the dr. k brain training game :P, that has good stuff to improve your memory lol.
Can't believe i've put so much... good luck with exams, i finished yest! yaaaaay lol.

Answer 6

I know that studying for the exams is stressful and there is never enough time but I have found that we think that theres never enough time.The work or homework everyday should be done with great concentration,this will help you to store this information,also it is a good idea to listen very attentively in class because 90% of remembered info is done through listening.Once it is time to study for exams your brain will just retrieve all this and it will make the lot of work seem so much less.So you see there is always time to study we are just unaware of.Happy learning!!!!

Answer 7

I can tell you from personal experience that learning a few memory tricks will help you tremendously. If you go on-line to "Alibris.com" and search out memory books by either 'Jerry Lucas' or 'Harry Lorayne', in fact they have written one together called "The Memory Book"....It will help you to remember anything, easily...

For example, as a child I wanted to learn the Morse Code but it seemed to be too difficult at the time. It wasn't until recently I discovered this book and thought I'll give it a try, why? who knows, I guess just because I had that desire as a child. Anyway, with the tricks I learned, I tried their suggestions and by the next day I knew the code.

Give it a try, you will be impressed and amazed at what you can remember!

Answer 8

Memory can be classified in two different categories... 1) Storage 2) Recalling time As far as storage is concent, we really can't do anything in this regard as we can keep as many things as other can and its more or less same in all individuals. Storage capacities diminishes with old age as neuron cells dies with rapid rate and there is no cure for that. We can improve recalling abilities with doing things more often or with good concentration. All one has to do is to take interest in the subject what he/she want to keep in memory. Unfortunately there are no tablets or medicine that does this! If anyone promising to improve your memory by medicines; that person simply telling lies.

Answer 9

Get plenty of sleep! Wake up early do a couple of hours of studying. Make sure you eat a GOOD breakfast, first. Go for a walk at a nice park or beach to keep you relaxed (let those endorphins flow). Then come back and continue studying. Doing this may help get rid of the stress and tension so you can focus. Going to bed and waking up early are vital to healthy brain function and that's when eating well (especially breakfast) and some exercise (even if just a walk) with nice scenery, if possible go hand-in-hand. I wish you the best, you can do it!

Answer 10

I'm a nuke in the Navy. This is the third toughest schooling you can get in the nation. We have absolutely zero multiple choice therefore everything is based on "understanding" (that means memorize everything if you want the points). So something that helps many of the students here is using a small portable white board and a dry erase marker and then sit down and copy what needs to be memorized out of the notes a few times and then continuosly trying to look as little as possible from the notes as you repeat it over and over. The repetition alone will help but also forcing yourself to remember will help also. Before you know it you'll have it.

Answer 11

You have received some great answers so far but one I use in addition to those mentioned already is visualization.

Often if I visualize something I need to remember, often in a funny way, I can remember it better.

For example, if I need to remember a name, I will come up with images to associate with the person. An easy example is to remember the name of a man I met Warren Field. I picture soldiers fighting in a wheat field = a war in a field. I can never forget that man's name.

Get a good book on memory techniques. They can be great but also read the other answers about planning, study habits, sleep and exercise, etc and you will find your memory improves substantially.