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December 2001
Memorization Tips: Memorization Approach
Have you established a successful pattern for memorizing scripture
verses? If not, here are some suggestions that might assist you when
attempting to memorize new verses.
1. Make sure it is the right size. Don't try to memorize too much all
at once. If it seems too long to you, it probably is and should be
broken up into smaller pieces. After you have memorized the smaller
pieces, you can then, if you want, join them back together for future
review.
2. Read and understand. Read through what you are memorizing and make
sure you understand the concept and context. Many times knowing the
verse context, such as who is speaking and the historical background,
will facilitate the memorization process, especially if you can
visualize specific details that relate to the verse.
3. Determine the key words. What is the main theme of the verse you
are memorizing? For example, if you are memorizing John 3:16, you
might think of the phrase "God sent his Son" as the keywords to help
you remember the concept of the verse. Remember that keywords should
be no more than a brief phrase and perhaps, in some cases, a single
word would suffice in representing the entire verse. Keywords should
also be somewhat unique to the verse being learned so they are not
confused with other verses of similar content.
4. Identify the pieces. Unless the verse you are learning is very
short, the next step would be to summarize the different sections of
the verse you are learning. This is done to ensure that the different
portions of the verse are understood and can be associated in a
logical sequence when memorizing verbatim. Using John 3:16 again, you
might break it down as: God loved the world, He sent His Son, Belief
in the Son brings everlasting life.
5. Memorize the verse. The first four steps should probably not take
more than a few minutes. However, if done properly, they will make the
task of memorizing verbatim much easier. Memorizing word perfect has
many benefits, but perhaps your goal is not that stringent and you are
only concerned with familiarity. In either case, take whatever time is
necessary for you to memorize the verse to meet your own goal.
Scriptorian's Learn mode is quite helpful in completing this step.
6. Review to retain. Once you have memorized a verse, it is very
important to review what you have learned in order to retain it. After
you have completed step 5, make sure you review the verse again the
following day. If you have successfully retained what you have
learned, then you can review it again a couple days later. After about
a week or so, you can review it more infrequently. When you start
accumulating many "review" verses, it would be a good idea to create a
"review" study list in Scriptorian. Take a few minutes each day to
review four or five verses in the list and you will find that you will
be able to retain what you have learned.
Do you have some favorite tips and techniques for memorizing? Please
feel free to share them with us.
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