This is the continuation of a previous article on mnemonics which considered the first four forms of mnemonics which can be used to recall information. Consider the last four below.
5. Note Organisation Mnemonics
The way textbook and class notes are organised can make it difficult to recall anything. Three examples of organising note formats that will help you remember are as follows:
Notecards
Notecards are an easy way to organise main ideas and relevant details to be recalled. If main ideas are formatted into possible test questions, notecards can give learners practice in seeing questions and recalling answers as they must do on exams.
Outlines
Outlines clearly separate main ideas from details. This helps organise the information in the mind, making it easier to remember.
Cornell System
The Cornell System is another way to promote recall. A vertical line is drawn 3 inches from the left margin of notebook paper. Main ideas or questions from them are placed to the left of the line and details or answers placed to the right.
6. Image Mnemonics
An image mnemonic is constructed in the form of a picture that helps you remember information when you need it. The sillier the image mnemonic is, the easier it is to recall the related information.
These images may be mental or sketched into notes. Don’t worry about your artistic ability. As long as you know what your sketch means, image mnemonics will help you learn and remember.
Example: Picture meeting someone new at a party named Peter Adeshina. To remember his name, you may try to connect the name Peter to its meaning, rock. Now there’s Olumo rock in Abeokuta, but you live in Lagos. So how do you get there? Travelling by road, which means ona in Yoruba; whose king, the Alake wears a crown, also known as ade in Yoruba. See the mental connection?
7. Connection Mnemonics
In this type of mnemonic, the information to be remembered is connected to something already known. Examples include:
Remembering the direction of longitude and latitude is easier to do when you realise that lines on a globe that run North and South are long and that rhymes with LONGitude.
Another connection mnemonic points out that there is an N in LONGitude and an N in North. Latitude lines must run east to west, then because there is no N in latitude.
8. Spelling Mnemonics
Here is an example of a spelling mnemonic: A principal at a school is your pal, and a principle you believe or follow is a rule.
To spell Mississippi and Hippopotamus, many learners combine a rhythm mnemonic with a spelling mnemonic.
