Memory Techniques Cheatsheet

1. Spaced Repetition

Instead of cramming everything at once, review material at increasing intervals. Each time you successfully recall something, wait a little longer before reviewing it again. This takes advantage of how your brain strengthens memories over time.

Suggested Review Intervals

2. Active Recall

Testing yourself on material is far more effective than re-reading it. Active recall forces your brain to retrieve information, which strengthens the memory pathway.

Three Ways to Practise Active Recall

1. Cover and recite — read a section, cover it, then say or write what you remember from memory.
2. Flashcards — write a question on one side and the answer on the other. Test yourself regularly.
3. Brain dumps — close your notes and write down everything you can remember about a topic on a blank page.

3. Mnemonics

Mnemonics turn hard-to-remember information into something more memorable by using patterns, associations, or imagery.

Types of Mnemonics

• Acronyms — take the first letter of each item to form a word or phrase (e.g. "ROYGBIV" for rainbow colours).
• Method of Loci (Memory Palace) — imagine placing items along a familiar route or room. Walk through the route in your mind to recall them.
• Peg System — associate numbers with rhyming images (1 = bun, 2 = shoe, 3 = tree), then link each image to what you need to remember.
• Stories — connect unrelated items into a vivid, silly story. The more unusual, the more memorable.

4. Chunking

Your short-term memory can hold about 4–7 items at once. Chunking groups individual pieces of information into larger, meaningful units so you can remember more.

• Phone numbers: 07712345678 becomes 077 1234 5678
• History dates: group events by decade or theme
• Vocabulary: group words by topic (e.g. food, travel, emotions)

5. Dual Coding

Combine words with visuals to create two memory pathways instead of one. When you see both a diagram and a written explanation, your brain stores the information in two different ways, making it easier to recall.

How to Use Dual Coding

• Draw simple diagrams or sketches next to your notes
• Create timelines for historical events
• Use colour-coding to highlight categories or themes
• Turn processes into flowcharts

6. The Forgetting Curve

Research shows that without review, you forget roughly 50% of new information within an hour, and up to 70% within 24 hours. Each time you review, the curve flattens — you forget more slowly. This is why spaced repetition works so well.