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Methods of Remembering Lists

Lists are ever present, covering everything from groceries to things to do and what to study. The task of remembering all these lists can seem daunting. The human brain is made to organize information and the key to remembering is to do just that using mnemonics. Mnemonics are tools and techniques to recall information. The goal of mnemonics is to encode information in an easy-to-remember way personalized to each individual.

  1. Loci Method

    • The loci method for memorization has been around since the time of the Greek and Roman empires. The term loci refers to location or places. To use the loci method, you must think of a place, such as your home or school, that you can picture clearly in your head. You then associate landmarks and items in the location with the information you need to remember.

      For example, if your house is the location and you need to memorize the original 13 colonies, you may start with the Carolinas. The front of the house faces north and the back faces south so associate them with North and South Carolina. In the hallway closet, you see the coat that Aunt Mary gave you and you remember Maryland. Continue to associate items and places you know well with information you need to know.

    Story Method

    • The story method involves creating a tale using the information you need to remember and linking the items together. This method is different than the loci method as it does not require a location as the base for memory recall; the key component is fabrication of a vivid story that interweaves the information. If you wish to remember your grocery list, you can make up a vivid and silly story about the various grocery items hiding in your house. While silly, it is memorable, which is important in recalling information.

    Acronym

    • Acronyms are abbreviations formed from the first letter of each word in a sequence. If you have a short list, no more than 10 items, the acronym method works well. A well-known acronym is "Roy G Biv," which assists in recall of the full color spectrum -- red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet.

    Write It Down

    • Writing down lists, even if you don't plan on carrying them, can help the brain retain the information. In order to formulate and write the list, your brain has to analyze information, such as the theme of the list (e.g., a grocery or to-do list), expend energy on deciding what to put on the list (e.g., no I don't need eggs because I have a half-carton) and the act of physically writing them down, demands focus and attention, a key component of memory. The last step is usually to go back over the list, which reiterates the information. All these steps expend mental energy and require focus, which are key in memorizing information.

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