Resources for Memory Work?

[sleepymommy]

I'm having a hard time getting ds1 to remember things that I feel he should be memorizing by now. He's known the days of the week and months of the year song sing he was 2 1/2 yrs, but even now if I ask him to tell me the days or months he can't. Same with the number of days, or number of months.

 

Other things that are maybe not as important, such as facts about the Pilgrims (since Thanksgiving is coming up) or the 5 senses too. We go over these periodically throughout the week, but I feel like it's not the same as if he had to say, know the facts for public/private school. He did go to preschool and they had him spouting out random facts all the time. Why can't I replicate some of this at home?

 

Maybe I'm just not teaching or presenting these things in the right way.. Anyone have any advice for me or can point me towards some "how to"guides?

 

Also, if there is a list out there of age appropriate memory work, I would love to know. I might help if I had it all planned out ahead for me so I can set approximate "deadlines" for myself to present information.

 

I know that as long as he's learning new things and enjoying it I probably shouldn't worry too much. But I really need help with this memory work thing.

[VA6336]

Classical Conversations is AWESOME for what you're describing. Even if you don't choose to join a community, you might want to invest in the Foundations Guide. It has three 24 week cycles of memory work designed for 4K-6th grade. Having a logical, written down (where somebody else did all the legwork!) plan for memory work has been the best thing we've chosen so far. It's laid out a week at a time so it's easy to see how much they should do each week.

 

Even with CC, my daughters go through "not knowing" their MW, too. There are just some days they aren't interested in spouting off the information. I have to be sneaky and play games with them. They love doing Candyland with an extra draw pile of flashcards with MW questions on them. In order to move the way the Candyland card says they have to answer the MW question. You could do that with almost any board game. So games help, but another way is listening to it on an audio cd. They absorb it without us feeling like I'm banging it into their heads.

 

Games and audios are our biggest helps with MW besides drill.

[Leonor]

A technique that has worked well is the following:

I have taken memory work from "Living Memory" the book by Andrew Campbell and take enough information to dictate for 1 min and repeat that 5times--for a total of same info being heard for 5 minutes. I tape this on a tape recorder. My ds listens to it with headset on pushing the left side off behind his ear. In other words, using his dominant right ear to hear the information.

[FairProspects]

Songs or poems are the best tricks I know of for this age. Ds has learned loads from Mother Goose - days of the week from Solomon Grundy, number of days in months from Thirty days hath September, all his letters from A was an Apple Pie, numbers from One, Two, Buckle my Shoe etc. There is a reason those poems have lasted through the ages!

[atozmom]

Here's a free resource I learned about from the boards several months back. You can find it on Lulu....

 

http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/grammar-stage-memorization/596907

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

Here's a free resource I learned about from the boards several months back. You can find it on Lulu....

 

http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/grammar-stage-memorization/596907

 

Thanks for the great resource:)

[mom31257]

Are you also looking for ideas on how to memorize? I have had success with my ds using a couple of methods. One is to have him say the item 5 times a day the whole week, then say it from memory. Another method that has worked is for me to write in on the board, then erase a word at a time having him say it and fill in the blank words from memory. He can remember scriptures we learned in August. I didn't try much memory work before 1st grade; however, so I'm not sure it would have worked as well last year.

[sleepymommy]

Classical Conversations is AWESOME for what you're describing.

 

Is it possible to use CC if I'd like to keep things secular? If there are just some bible verses that I can omit and still a lot of other things, I would definitely like to look into it.

 

A technique that has worked well is the following:

I have taken memory work from "Living Memory" the book by Andrew Campbell and take enough information to dictate for 1 min and repeat that 5times--for a total of same info being heard for 5 minutes. I tape this on a tape recorder. My ds listens to it with headset on pushing the left side off behind his ear. In other words, using his dominant right ear to hear the information.

 

Thanks, I had forgotten about that book. I like the idea of a tape recorder, I might have to invest in one of those.

 

Songs or poems are the best tricks I know of for this age. Ds has learned loads from Mother Goose - days of the week from Solomon Grundy, number of days in months from Thirty days hath September, all his letters from A was an Apple Pie, numbers from One, Two, Buckle my Shoe etc. There is a reason those poems have lasted through the ages!

 

Yes, songs are the way I've been trying to get him to learn thus far, but he still has a lot of trouble with them. Of course he has no problem with remembering the not so great words he hears on the playground from time to time!

Here's a free resource I learned about from the boards several months back. You can find it on Lulu....

 

http://www.lulu.com/content/e-book/grammar-stage-memorization/596907

 

This looks great and it's got my favorite kind if price tag!

 

Are you also looking for ideas on how to memorize? I have had success with my ds using a couple of methods. One is to have him say the item 5 times a day the whole week, then say it from memory. Another method that has worked is for me to write in on the board, then erase a word at a time having him say it and fill in the blank words from memory. He can remember scriptures we learned in August. I didn't try much memory work before 1st grade; however, so I'm not sure it would have worked as well last year.

 

I think this is where I've been lacking, I do have him repeat things to me through out the day, but usually only up to 3 times and I'm not consistent. Maybe if I make a chart and check it off throughout the day this would help.

 

 

Thanks all, these have been some great suggestions!:001_smile:

[mom2abcd]

Thanks for the great resource:)

 

And just so you know, Hannah is here... one of us:o)

[mom31257]

I thought I'd share how I track the 5 times. I type whatever is being memorized on the top of the page, then I type "Say 5 Times" with check off boxes. I type this as many days as I want him to say it. I will also sometimes put a check off for writing it as well. This way I just have one page for each week.

Edited November 21, 2009 by mom31257
left off something

[VA6336]

Yes, you could use it at home and do CC secular. If you're in a community, it would be much more difficult to avoid Christianity. CC uses Veritas Press history timeline cards which are Biblical in perspective, so you might skip that section. The History Sentences are really broad in perspective.

 

The memory work "subjects" in the Foundations guide are Math, English Grammar, Science, Geography, Latin, History Sentence, and History Timeline. There are also sections on Fine Arts (music theory, music history, basic art instruction and art history) and Science Experiment but they are both hands-on materials and not memory work. In addition to the Foundations guide which has all the memory work written out with the essential maps, CC also produces audio cds, resource cds and online tutorials to go along with the work.

 

I don't think we would be having nearly as much success with memory work if I hadn't had the CC materials to "show me the way." That said, I know there are materials out there that give different ways to present memory work once you've decided what that is for you...but of course, I can't find the notebook I've kept that stuff in. :glare:

[JudoMom]

I really like this Memory System. I use it for all our memory work (not just Scripture), and I use a 3 ring binder instead of index cards.

[sleepymommy]

I thought I'd share how I track the 5 times. I type whatever is being memorized on the top of the page, then I type "Say 5 Times" with check off boxes. I type this as many days as I want him to say it. I will also sometimes put a check off for writing it as well. This way I just have one page for each week.

 

This seems like a very easy and doable system, thanks for sharing!

 

Yes, you could use it at home and do CC secular. If you're in a community, it would be much more difficult to avoid Christianity. CC uses Veritas Press history timeline cards which are Biblical in perspective, so you might skip that section. The History Sentences are really broad in perspective.

 

The memory work "subjects" in the Foundations guide are Math, English Grammar, Science, Geography, Latin, History Sentence, and History Timeline. There are also sections on Fine Arts (music theory, music history, basic art instruction and art history) and Science Experiment but they are both hands-on materials and not memory work. In addition to the Foundations guide which has all the memory work written out with the essential maps, CC also produces audio cds, resource cds and online tutorials to go along with the work.

 

I don't think we would be having nearly as much success with memory work if I hadn't had the CC materials to "show me the way." That said, I know there are materials out there that give different ways to present memory work once you've decided what that is for you...but of course, I can't find the notebook I've kept that stuff in. :glare:

 

I'm going to look a little more closely at CC, it sounds like it's a great way to have everything laid out for me, at least until I get 'into the groove' with memory work. I really like the that there are CD's to help out.

 

I really like this Memory System. I use it for all our memory work (not just Scripture), and I use a 3 ring binder instead of index cards.

 

This is a neat system too, Thanks!

 

You all have been great with all these suggestions:thumbup: