Another type of memory aid is something you probably learned back in elementary school or high school and haven’t thought of since. This basic technique is to learn new information using letters, such as acronyms and acrostics, rhymes, and jingles to remember bits of information, such as the names of the planets or the number of days in each month. How well does this method work? You probably still remember all or most of the information you memorized this way—and you may even recall it with the same trick you learned way back when.
Not only can you use already created memory aids for such basics—some of which you will find familiar—but you can create your own memory cues for whatever things you want to remember. This process works especially well for remembering up to about a dozen bits of information, such as names, places, topics to cover, or other lists of information. When you have longer material to remember, use chunking to create smaller units. You can also pull out one word to represent a longer sentence or subject you want to remember, so you can use that word for its first letter or ability to rhyme.
Here’s how these different memory aids work.
In this method, you take the first letter of each word in a set you want to remember and create a word or sentence using those letters.[1] Then, you use that word or sentence to trigger your memory for every word in the set. Hearing the first letter of each word you want to remember helps you recall the whole word. The overall category that you want to remember helps you remember, too. (For example, if you are trying to recall the colors of the rainbow, each word will be a color.) Here are some popular memory cues that have been used:
ROY G. BIV (the colors of the rainbow—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet).
Every good boy does fine (the musical notes on the lines of a treble cleft: EGBDF).[2]
Green bananas help sister nations create prosperity (the countries of Central America, in order from North America to South America—Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama).
My very educated mother just sliced up nine pickles (the order of the planets in the solar system—Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto—although now there will need to be a new memory cue, since Pluto just got demoted and is no longer a planet!)
Phyllis came over for Gene’s special variety (the categories for classifying plants and animals in biology, which I learned in elementary school—Phylum, Class, Order, Genus, Species, Variety).
Similarly, you can use this approach to help you remember a grocery list, names of people in a group, tasks to complete each day, and so forth. Here’s an example to get you started; practice creating some of your own lists using the chart below. Then, turn the first letter of each item on the list into a word or the first word of a sentence.
Acronyms are much like acrostics in that they use the first letter of each word in a set or series to create another word or easy to remember combination of letters. But the difference between acrostics and acronyms is that in acronyms, the letters combine to form a single word or collection of letters. And sometimes an acronym uses a second letter from a word in the series, most commonly a vowel, to make the acronym easier to read.[3] And often a small word like “of” or “and” is dropped in creating the acronym.
You will be familiar with many of the acronyms that are in common use, such as the FBI for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (an example of dropping the “of”) and NASA for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (an example of dropping the “and”). In fact, many times the names of organizations, particularly in the government, are shortened to acronyms, and some common terms in science and technology actually started off as acronyms. For example, “radar” is an acronym for radio detecting and ranging (and an example of taking two letters from a word for easier reading). Even if an organization doesn’t have a common acronym or you don’t know it on hearing the full name, you can easily create one yourself, such as the Bureau of Homeland Security (BHS).
You may also be familiar with some acronyms used to help you remember items in school, such as HOMES, used for the five great lakes—Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior.
You can also create your own acronym to help you remember a short list of items or tasks to do—up to about six or seven.
Here’s an example to get you started. Then practice creating some acronyms yourself using the chart below. Just take the first letter of each item on the list to create an acronym (and use the rule about taking the first two letters or dropping small words to make the word as appropriate).
USING ACRONYMS TO REMEMBER | |
|---|---|
Items to Remember | Acronym to Use |
Tasks to Do for Presentation:
| HB-PAP |
Rhymes and jingles are still another way to learn and remember new material. A jingle is basically a rhyme set to music so you can sing it.
You have probably learned a number of these in elementary, junior high, and high school to help you remember new concepts and historical references; they are a common device on TV programs for preschool children, such as Sesame Street. Using a verse or a catchy tune helps to make the topic more exciting and fun, and therefore more memorable.
For example, some of the rhymes and jingles I remember from school—yes, even after not thinking about them for decades—include these:
For remembering the dates of the month:
Thirty days has September,
April, June, and November.
All the rest have thirty-one
Except for February,
Which has twenty-eight or twenty-nine.
For remembering when Columbus discovered America:
Columbus sailed the ocean blue
In 1492.
For learning spelling:
I before e
Except after c.
Rhymes and jingles are often used in advertising to make an ad more memorable, such as this rhyme that I remember from childhood. (In fact, I won a contest to make up other ad jingles for the product—though ironically, I can’t remember my own submission.)
You’ll wonder where the yellow went
When you brush your teeth with Pepsodent.
Think about what rhymes and jingles you have used in the past, and if you feel creatively inspired, create your own rhymes and jingles to help you remember something. Here’s an example of how you might create your own rhyme or jingle. Then, try creating your own for tasks you have to do. (Or create these with your family members as a fun way to help them remember to do certain tasks.)
Items to Remember | Rhyme or Jingle to Use |
|---|---|
Things to Get at the Store: | |
| I need a jacket and a coat. Have to get some shoes and socks. And don’t forget to go To the drugstore for a clock. |
Tasks to Do at Home: | |
| Pick up the trash. And do the dishes. Get the laundry. And feed the fishes. |
These basic ways of making things memorable can also be a fun way to get friends, family, or work group members to remember to do something. For example, in The Great Memory Book, Karen Markowitz and Eric Jensen describe how rhymes were used to teach children the household rules in a fun way, such as: “When you’re sick, you get your pick. . . . When you’re tall enough to touch your toes, you’re big enough to pick up your clothes. . . . Take what you’re served, eat what you wish, and leave the rest upon your dish.”[4]