How can I memorize all the presidents and their dates in office?

Question

I have a final on Monday and the teacher has no clue how to make finals, so he's making it about 100 multiple choice, one essay, and he gives us a blank piece of paper where we have to write the name of every single president and the dates in which they were in office.

I normally cheat when we have a quiz for 10 to 20 presidents, but I'm too scared to cheat on a final, ecspecially since the cheat sheet will be pretty big.

Does anyone know of any songs, poems, or other ways to memorize this?

Answer 1

Make a timeline, crossing over national and international events with th presidents and their term lengths.

Study the timeline.

Try reciting the presidents three at a time:

Washington, Adams Jefferson;

Madison, Monroe, JQ Adams...

Good luck!

Answer 2

I've known the presidents, in order, since I was 5 years old. In fact, I tape recorded the Kennedy-Nixon debates for Show and Tell for Nursery School...when I was 4 1/2 years old. I am 53 now. In fact, I have spent my whole life studying presidential history. I give lectures and have written articles about them. What grade are you in? If you need help, please write to me. George Washington April 30, 1789 - March 3, 1797 John Adams March 4, 1797 - March 3, 1801 Thomas Jefferson March 4, 1801 - March 3, 1809 James Madison March 4, 1809 - March 3, 1817 James Monroe March 4, 1817 - March 3, 1825 John Quincy Adams March 4, 1825 - March 3, 1829 Andrew Jackson March 4, 1829 - March 3, 1837 Martin Van Buren March 4, 1837 - March 3, 1841 William Henry Harrison March 4, 1841 - April 4, 1841 died John Tyler April 4, 1841 - March 3, 1845 James Knox Polk March 4, 1845 - March 3, 1849 Zachary Taylor March 4, 1849 - July 9, 1850 died Millard Fillmore July 10, 1850 - March 3, 1853 Franklin Pierce March 4, 1853 - March 3, 1857 Jame Buchanan March 4, 1857 - March 3, 1861 Abraham Lincoln March 4, 1861 - April 15, 1865 assassinated Andrew Johnson April 15, 1865 - March 4, 1869 Ulysses Simpson Grant March 4, 1869 - March 3, 1877 Rutherford Birchard Hayes March 4, 1877 - March 3, 1881 James Abram Garfield March 4, 1881 - September 19, 1881 assassinated Chester Alan Arthur September 19, 1881 - March 3, 1885 Grover Cleveland March 4, 1885 - March 3, 1889 Benjamin Harrison March 4, 1889 - March 3, 1893 Grover Cleveland March 4, 1893 - March 3, 1897 William McKinley March 4, 1897 - September 14, 1901 assassinated Theodore Roosevelt Sept. 14, 1901 - March 3, 1909 William Howard Taft March 4, 1909 - March 3, 1913 Woodrow Wilson March 4, 1913 - March 3, 1921 Warren Gamaliel Harding March 4, 1921 - August 2, 1923 died Calvin Coolidge August 3, 1923 - March 3, 1929 Herbert Clark Hoover March 4, 1929 - March 3, 1933 Franklin Delano Roosevelt March 4, 1933 - April 12, 1945 died Harry S Truman April 12, 1945 - January 20, 1953 Dwight David Eisenhower January 20, 1953 - January 20, 1961 John Fitzgerald Kennedy January 20, 1961 - November 22, 1963 assassinated Lyndon Baines Johnson November 22, 1963 - January 20, 1969 Richard Milhous Nixon January 20, 1969 - August 9, 1974 resigned Gerald Rudolph Ford August 9, 1974 - January 20, 1977 Jimmy Carter January 20, 1977 - January 20, 1981 Ronald Wilson Reagan January 20, 1981 - January 20, 1989 George Herbert Walker Bush Jan. 20, 1989 - Jan. 20, 1993 William Jefferson Clinton Jan. 20, 1993 - Jan. 20, 2001 George W. Bush January 20, 2001 - January 20, 2009 Barack Obama January 20, 2009 -

Answer 3

There is an easy way to learn the dates in office.

A presidential term lasts from 4 years. So, look at the year George Washington started. Then, add four years for every term the president serves. This way, you'll only have to memorize the number of terms that a president served and you can just add the years.

But, be careful, because some presidents died in office or were impeached or something like that and their term ended earlier. Note the presidents to whom this happened too.

Good Luck; hope this helps.

Answer 4

Sorry, I don't know any tricks for memorizing the presidents.

Here is a link with all presidents and thier dates in office.
My suggestion is to try to memorize the least amount of info possible for each pres.
Try to just memorize first and last initials and the last 2 digits of the dates. If you can memorize them in order you should be okay on the final.

i.e. INstead of George Washington 1789-1797
Try to remember GW 8979 etc...

If you write out the list over and over again, you'll maybe remember... Or you could just go for last names or weird nicknames you create.

Good luck. I think your teacher blows - this is a horrible test idea. It is useless and perpetuates the idea that history is boring.
>:(

Answer 5

Well sounds like your cheating has caught up with you because by now you would have learned the names and dates. And I do think your teacher does know how to make finals, you just don't agree how the teacher is doing it.

Multiple choice is easier and the essay is your ability to bring thoughts together in idea that flows from begining to end.

To learn sing (without background music) the name and years to the same song, a song like Row Row Row Your Boat, try it, it works

And if you fail you only have yourself to blame since you did not learn it during the year.

Answer 6

***Try this! It worked really well for me! It works for all ages, and it's (sort of) fun!***

There's a book called Yo, Millard Fillmore by Will Cleveland and Mark Alvarez. You should try to find it. It teaches you the order of the presidents, as well as their years of office, using a funny story.

Answer 7

The best way to memorize is the read the material and the look away and repeat the what you just read. you can read all day but unless you remove the material your brain will depend on it. remove it and force it to remember.
repeat. waiting longer and longer intervals to impove long term memory.

yes what cathylwgp said will help-look for memory aids.

Answer 8

For the presidents, there is a song that goes to the tune of Yankee Doodle Dandy...as for the dates, I really don't know

Answer 9

My son made up a rap and it worked for him. You will have to make up your own so it will make sense to you. Just making up the rap should help you memorize them.

Answer 10

I can only remember Bill Clinton's.