S/O Why memorize so much?

[joannqn]

I have never required my kids to do memory work because I've never understood the point beyond torturing the kids.

 

I only remember being required to do memory work twice in school. Once, in 6th grade, we had to memorize and recite (with feeling/acting) a poem of our choice. I thought I did an awesome job but I wasn't popular and got no response from the class whatsoever. I was nearly in tears over it. The second time was my junior year in high school. We had to memorize the beginning 15-20 lines of The Canterbury Tales in old English. I never got the point though I still remember the first line. Can you tell I hated memory work?

 

My kids remember things they need (as in use daily) for school pretty easily on their own. I'm talking about things like the parts of speech and multiplication tables. I tend to feel that an exposure to science, history, literature, and poetry is enough so I don't require memorizing dates and such. I'm just not sure how having a bunch of dates stuck in your head, or being able to recite all of the states in alphabetical order with their capitals, is important when you understand the general gist of things or know how to look them up when you need them. But, then I think that maybe I'm missing something that is really important.

 

So, exactly why is memory work important?

[OnTheBrink]

I think it keeps the brain sharp and "alive."

 

I have no data to back this up, jmo, but one of the reasons I think this is because of the former senior pastor at my church. He would memorize scripture, poems, sayings, hymns, etc. He stayed very mentally sharp well into his 90's. He died at 95. Now there can certainly be other variables that account for his mental acuity at such an elderly age, but my money is on the fact he memorized things, and recalled them, frequently.

 

And, I also think back to the story of the Burnhams, missionaries who were kidnapped while on vacation celebrating their anniversary. In the book written by Gracia Burnham after her rescue, she said that having scripture and hymns in her memory kept her sane and focused emotionally and spiritually.

 

So, I think there's something to be said for memory work. :001_smile:

[Daisy]

1) It builds a valuable skill. My husband rarely had to memorize anything and now he struggles so much when he needs to memorize something. It's like he never learned HOW to memorize. I had to memorize a chapter of the Bible every month for school along with a billion (it felt like it) other things. I can now memorize just about anything in less than 20 minutes. AND generally in life I tend to have a better memory than my hubby. I can learn ss #'s, phone numbers, people's names, descriptions, books, very quickly.

 

I want my children to have this same ability.

 

2) I think there is beauty in being able to recall Bible passages, poems, speeches, etc. in moments of solitude when no book is handy. I think of all the things that can happen in life. At some point in all our lives we were at a place that didn't have the words we needed whether it was a hospital sick room or a lonely stretch of road. So I carry them in my head. I see it as a gift I am giving my children that no one can ever take from them.

[HayesW]

My grandfather was a POW, for a short time. He lived by reciting the Bible, Canterbury Tales, and other assorted passages.

[GESTEP]

I had to memorize a bunch of things that I no longer remember. I used to be able to memorize pages of notes to study for a test and do very well but there was little understanding. Once I no longer needed the info it was gone. I now have a HORRIBLE memory so I don't think the long-term effect is there for me and I truly struggle to memorize anything new now.

 

I still remember things in a foreign language that my grandmother taught me as a very young girl to this day even though I don't use it regularly. So if it is something you want your children to remember for life have them memorize it when they are young.

[Whereneverever]

I think learning the skill early makes it easier long term. My kids memorize a lot- all the suggested amounts in my curricula and more for church. It's not torture, though!

[Mamagistra]

You are furnishing their minds with beautiful things to muse on, to emulate, and to call upon for inspiration when it is needed.

 

:iagree: Yep. :001_smile:

[elizabeth]

I cannot tell you how many times I have been at a loss for a word or words and one of the brilliant authors/poets that I was urged to commit to memory will simply pop into my head and voila. The good, the noble, the beautiful and true. On a very personal level when my brother died tragically and suddenly I cannot tell you what it felt like to hear my dearest friend hold my hand and recite Dylan Thomas' poem And Death Shall Have No Dominion in my ear while choosing a casket . I could not have borne that pain without those lovely comforting words that he had committed to memory for me.

[katilac]

I can see where memory work would be torture if planned once a decade or so, lol! We do memory work every day, and it's one of our favorite parts of the day. My kids recite poetry fairly often without any prompting, which is a neat and enjoyable skill, imo.

 

My reasons, off the cuff:

 

We memorize in general because I believe that it's an extremely useful skill that builds on itself, and builds brain power and concentration in general.

 

We memorize poetry because it's beautiful and fun and something you can always have with you.

 

We memorize speeches because they are meaningful and motivating.

 

We memorize facts because they provide meaning and context to our studies.

 

I'm not a believer in "why memorize when you can google?" I think that original ideas and true thinking require a certain amount of knowledge and context.

 

Also, I find that the 'incidental' memorization you speak of in your post occurs mostly in the earlier school years. Facts, ideas and vocabulary get far more complex as you go along. No practice in memory work makes life harder than it has to be. If a student does manage to incidentally memorize all the facts they need to have at the ready to study more advance literature, math and science, that's great, but very uncommon. Having to look up vocabulary and rules for each step of a multi-step problem makes work painfully slow; it's easier to put the work in up front and so some memory work.

 

Having said that, I don't believe in random or arbitrary memorization, even though I do think it can help train the brain. We memorize things that are beautiful, useful or fun. In my world, memorizing the states if fairly important, because people who think New Mexico is a country sound like idiots. Memorizing state capitals is much less important, although I certainly think you should know your own, *g*.

 

And, y'know, if my entire family is tossed into a dark dungeon, with nothing but our minds to entertain ourselves, we're gonna rock!

[woolybear]

Well, I don't know why one is "supposed" to do it, but I'll tell you why I am having ds,7, do it. He clearly needs to learn to focus, pay attention and listen better. In CM terms, it is "the habit of attention". I am working a lot with him on this this year. Without attention, all the rest of school is less effective. We are doing this in several ways. One way is once a week I have him memorize a short poem. At this point, it is just Mother Goose. Later, we will do other poems and longer pieces. I do not have either dc memorize dates or other such things. Well, actually, I'm having my other ds memorize his times tables. I just know how helpful it is just to have that in your brain. So that's it for memory work around here at this stage.:)

 

Woolybear

[Ritsumei]

I'm one of those people who doesn't memorize easily. I started memorizing scripture a while back. I was stunned. Not only was it easy (I used this system), which was a shock in itself, but my memory, as a whole, began to work better. Lots better. I've let it slide recently, and I can *really* tell the difference.

 

It doesn’t matter how long the passage is. In fact, your family should memorize longer passages regularly. Simply once or twice each day read the entire passage through until everyone can recite it together. Don’t worry about how many days it takes for everyone to memorize the selected Scripture. Hiding God’s Word in your heart is not a race; it’s a lifelong habit.

 

This idea, from the above website, is what won me over to the idea of memorizing. And the principle is true regardless of what it is you're remembering: it's not a race, it's a habit. And when you look at it that way, it's a lot less pressure and a lot more enjoyable.

[Jugglin'5]

You are furnishing their minds with beautiful things to muse on, to emulate, and to call upon for inspiration when it is needed.

 

:iagree: Beautifully put.

[kalanamak]

I have never required my kids to do memory work because I've never understood the point beyond torturing the kids.

 

So, exactly why is memory work important?

 

I loved memorizing things. I didn't give two hooeys that my gradeschool classmates didn't know many of the words in the things I memorized. The teachers beamed. But the value to me, is knowing it now.

 

When I am stuck someplace really bland...no paper to sketch on, etc, I recite those poems in my head. I get a laugh from a late night nurses station when I recite Strictly Germproof, and I have brought tears to the eyes with WS's sonnet number 65, and what a delight at a dinner table somewhere in my 30's when 3 of us could do all of Little Boy Blue together in full melodrama. I love being able to speak Who Has Seen The Wind to my kiddo on a gusty day as we watch the leaves spin out over the valley.

 

Once it even saved me money! I'd fainted from pain during a procedure I was paying cash for. The doc stopped it. I came to and they were scratching the whole thing....I'd had my usual myoclonic jerks and they were in a panic over seizure. I said "no, I'm all here: Since brass nor stone nor earth nor boundless sea..." and they went on the salpingogram.

[Sahamamama]

Here are some articles that convinced me:

 

http://www.city-journal.org/html/14_3_defense_memorization.html

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/memorization-without-pain/

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/poetry-memorization-methods-and-resources/

 

http://www.lulu.com/content/5348956 (click on the preview, then click to pages 8 & 9 for "Why to Memorize") -- I highly recommend this book!

 

HTH.

[Joy at Home]

You are furnishing their minds with beautiful things to muse on, to emulate, and to call upon for inspiration when it is needed.

 

 

Well said. You're as classy as your avatar.

 

Blessings,

Lisa

[Joy at Home]

You are furnishing their minds with beautiful things to muse on, to emulate, and to call upon for inspiration when it is needed.

 

I think it's a great return on your investment. For minutes a day, over time, your child will have portions of scripture, important speeches, historical documents, dates, etc, committed to memory. Why not?

 

I've always felt the way I memorized for a test during school a waste, and still do. But pull out the few things that are really worth knowing in the long term, and rather than cram them into short term memory, overlearn them until they cannot be forgotten. Then, the wasted time becomes priceless.

 

Blessings,

Lisa

[fj62]

Cicero said "To speak well, one must remember well." Check out this link

memoriapress.com/articles/One-Myth.html

[EKS]

I have enough work that I need to enforce without adding memory work to the list. It's all about priorities.

[Peela]

Lol, my memory is really bad. It seems to be a common thing once you hit a certain age (40ish). I see the value in memory training.

But the reason I have had my kids memorise poetry is because i just think its a beautiful thing to do. It is also really fun. I dont make it a heavy chore and we dont memorise dates or Kings and Queens of England (I tried- didnt stick, I wasnt going to die on that particular hill) but having an arsenal of poetry up your sleeve can be a wonderful thing. We only memorise poems we enjoy and it's not a chore.

[joannqn]

So, follow up questions...

 

The Charlotte Mason link looks like a good method. I looked at it on the other thread and liked the organization.

 

Do you have all your children memorize the same things all together, or do they memorize different things? If everyone is working on the same things, how do you deal with adding in, say, history or science things if they are learning different things? I expect my daughter to be moving towards middle school stuff on her own starting in 2011 while my son stays with our elementary rotation.

 

How do you memorize dates/history/ Do you just memorize the event name and date, or is there more to it? How do you choose which dates to memorize? I ask this because my historical knowledge stinks; I retained practically nothing of the very little we seemed to have covered in school.

 

Scripture is easy. Choosing significant historical quotes or speeches is easy. How do you decide which poems?

[OnTheBrink]

I let dd read through some poetry sources and decide what she'd like to memorize. If she likes it, she's more apt to want to memorize it. Naturally, I have the final say (she tends to want to memorize easy poems!).

[kalanamak]

How do you decide which poems?

 

I would allow whatever poem moves the child. My mother recited Strictly Germproof to me when I was little, so when class assignment came up, it was a natural choice for me. We also had some old 45's of poetry being read, and that gave me (us) ideas on how to present things. Kipling spoke to me as a child, and he has many varied works. McCroskey's book on Maine isn't a "poem" but it can be read as one very effectively. (The guy who wrote Make Way for Ducklings).

[Haiku]

I've never understood the point beyond torturing the kids.

 

My kids love memory work. It is one of their favorite parts of the day. It's certainly not torture.

 

Why do I think memory work is important?

 

1. It exercises the brain.

 

2. It helps build the framework from which to hang future knowledge.

 

3. Having certain things committed to memory frees up space in working memory to utilize that knowledge (read Why Students Don't Like School by Daniel Willingham for more information on memorization and working memory).

 

4. It gives my kids a sense of pride and accomplishment.

 

Tara

[Laura Corin]

Two reasons: I want their minds to be ringing with great words; memorising is a skill that takes practice, and will be of great benefit for future testing.

 

Laura

[In the Rain]

Great thread! It is a timely reminder that I need to get started on memory work this year. We'll start today with Who Has Seen the Wind.

 

Thanks!

[Laura Corin]

How do you decide which poems?

 

And we are working our way through it, just skipping a few things that are too long. I add in other things that I come across and like, but the book is the spine. Each boy started on it at about age 9; before that, we memorised children's poems.

 

Laura

[Saille]

I can see where memory work would be torture if planned once a decade or so, lol! We do memory work every day, and it's one of our favorite parts of the day. My kids recite poetry fairly often without any prompting, which is a neat and enjoyable skill, imo.

 

My reasons, off the cuff:

 

We memorize in general because I believe that it's an extremely useful skill that builds on itself, and builds brain power and concentration in general.

 

We memorize poetry because it's beautiful and fun and something you can always have with you.

 

We memorize speeches because they are meaningful and motivating.

 

We memorize facts because they provide meaning and context to our studies.

 

I'm not a believer in "why memorize when you can google?" I think that original ideas and true thinking require a certain amount of knowledge and context.

 

Also, I find that the 'incidental' memorization you speak of in your post occurs mostly in the earlier school years. Facts, ideas and vocabulary get far more complex as you go along. No practice in memory work makes life harder than it has to be. If a student does manage to incidentally memorize all the facts they need to have at the ready to study more advance literature, math and science, that's great, but very uncommon. Having to look up vocabulary and rules for each step of a multi-step problem makes work painfully slow; it's easier to put the work in up front and so some memory work.

 

Having said that, I don't believe in random or arbitrary memorization, even though I do think it can help train the brain. We memorize things that are beautiful, useful or fun. In my world, memorizing the states if fairly important, because people who think New Mexico is a country sound like idiots. Memorizing state capitals is much less important, although I certainly think you should know your own, *g*.

 

And, y'know, if my entire family is tossed into a dark dungeon, with nothing but our minds to entertain ourselves, we're gonna rock!

 

Yes yes yes to all of this!

[SilverMoon]

For the OP, I'll just agree with Laura Corin, TaraTheLiberator, Katilac, and Patty Joanna (I think that's all of them). I can't add anything better than they've already stated. :)

 

 

Do you have all your children memorize the same things all together, or do they memorize different things? If everyone is working on the same things, how do you deal with adding in, say, history or science things if they are learning different things?

My kids each have their own memory box. Often their memory work does overlap, but they practice it individually most of the time. If all four kids have the same piece, all four kids will get their own card for their box.

 

How do you memorize dates/history/ Do you just memorize the event name and date, or is there more to it? How do you choose which dates to memorize? I ask this because my historical knowledge stinks; I retained practically nothing of the very little we seemed to have covered in school.

I haven't added lists of dates. They memorize many of them just through our history study, but I don't assign it unless it's attached to the memory piece. For example, when saying The War Inevitable, by Patrick Henry, they'd add the date it was written before starting the actual piece.

 

How do you decide which poems?

They seem to fall into my lap before we're ready for the next one. Two of my four already know what they want for their next poem, because they saw it somewhere or marked it as they randomly flipped through The Harp and Laurel Wreath. If I'm ever at a loss, I'll surf through the suggestions at Ambleside Online.