Memory Work?

[Just Kate]

Do you take a certain time of the day and spend on memory work? What kind of memory work would you plan for an 8 yo boy (3rd grade)? We use FLL, so I think that the poems and parts of speech would be good. I would also like to introduce some scripture memory. We will be starting SOTW1 next year. Anything from there that we might want to add?

 

Just thinking out loud and would love to pick your brains on how you have handled this. Thanks!

[Mystie]

We do all our memory work during "Circle Time." I got the idea from preschoolersandpeace.com (she sells an eBook about putting it together.

 

Here is my post on CT for this current school year: http://www.simplyconvivial.com/2012/2011-2012-school-year-circle-time-or-morning-gathering

 

I'm putting together our next school year now and will be posting more about CT, memory work, and organization next month!

[SilverMoon]

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Edited July 12, 2022 by SilverMoon

[ladydusk]

I wrote this all up somewhere else on the board, but here you go ...

 

We start our day with Circle Time, which is a blend between Memory Work and some Ambleside read-alouds. It's actually almost all memory work. It takes about an hour with my 3 children. I utilize the Simply Charlotte Mason Memory work system, but I use a notebook, not a box. We do our Circle Time approx 4 days a week, so I created this chart. I number each grouping of memory work, then put the numbers on that chart. It saves moving cards, making three sets of cards, and children dumping cards (ask me how I know).

 

I don't give the children copies of this, it is all done orally. It is a capacity I want them to work on. I read, they repeat each day. We generally add 1 stanza of poetry, 1 verse of a Hymn, 1 Bible verse, etc. each week.

 

We start our Circle Time each morning with either the Doxology or Gloria Patri, alternating by month.

 

Then, we pray together, including prayer requests from the children, missionaries from our denomination, and other requests as needed. We also pray for our day of school.

 

We start with our newest hymn. I read and they repeat the new verse for the week. Then, we sing the hymn starting with verse 1 through the verse we're working on. We use the Trinity Hymnal with Hymns for Kith and Kin, Hymns for a Kids Heart, or Listen While we Sing (no one plays piano well enough yet so we use a mp3 playlist that has all our hymns on it). My 2012 hymn list is here.

 

Over the past two years, we've learned the Apostle's Creed and Nicene Creed. We recite them, alternating by month.

 

We do Bible verses one verse at a time. We're still (two years later) reviewing Gen 1 daily, but we've learned Ps 1, Ps 100, Ps 130, and are working on Matt 5:1-12 currently.

 

We're also working on The Catechism for Young Children We work on a page until they have it down pretty well. Then it moves through the SCM Memory System chart.

 

Again, I just recite and they repeat.

 

We use IEW's Poetry and love it. We follow the same sort of system, working on one stanza per week. I usually read the poems, but sometimes let Mr. Pudewa do so on the mp3 player. We don't use his system, but the SCM system.

 

I usually read some poetry after they're done, a page or so from an anthology per day.

 

We do skip counting (these are cute charts). Geography Songs. History from Hannah's Grammar Stage Memorization. Science from Living Memory. We do one of these subjects each day. It's too much to review otherwise. We'll see this year how much we get through.

 

Then, we're reading from Aesop and just started Parables from Nature. I just read a little each day.

 

It often helps if we stand when we sing. Everyone focuses better.

 

One of the most important parts, for me (and we generally don't accomplish it) is on Saturday we try/want to/ sometimes do "Recitation for Daddy" where they must stand and recite/respond clearly and as grown uply as they're able. It's a nice carrot when we're on schedule ... "You're going to have to recite it on Saturday ..."

 

ETA: Currently there are a couple of good, free lectures on Memory Work available for download. They really encouraged me in my efforts to spend the time ... and to keep on this track:

 

Andrew Pudewa's talk Reflections on Redeeming Repetition: Rut, Routine, and Ritual as he was considering Memory Work (it's in CiRCE's free library right now). It was pretty interesting and enjoyable as I consider Memory work and doing it as habit or ritual.

 

My favorite talk on Memorization is from Christian Kopf at the Society for Classical Learning's 2011 conference: Rote Memorization and Classical Education, a better apology for Memorization I haven't heard.

[SuperDad]

We do it during Circle Time using an adapted form of the Simply Charlotte Mason method. Memory pieces depend on the age. For a 3rd-grader, I would do scripture, poetry, facts related to schoolwork (such as multiplication facts), famous quotes and proverbs, etc.

[delaney]

I did it all last year faithfully with all sorts of facts. They remember none of it now.:glare: I would also advise not doing skip counting. My friend's son CANNOT do multiplication well b/c he relies on the songs. I prefer straight up memorization of the facts.

Right now we are doing none. I plan on putting poetry back in as well as some geo facts and MAJOR history facts that help them organize history in their heads. The card box method works well but I just switched to cards on a ring for them since it is easier and prevents the inevitable "dump" of all the cards.

[Just Kate]

I wrote this all up somewhere else on the board, but here you go ...

 

We start our day with Circle Time, which is a blend between Memory Work and some Ambleside read-alouds. It's actually almost all memory work. It takes about an hour with my 3 children. I utilize the Simply Charlotte Mason Memory work system, but I use a notebook, not a box. We do our Circle Time approx 4 days a week, so I created this chart. I number each grouping of memory work, then put the numbers on that chart. It saves moving cards, making three sets of cards, and children dumping cards (ask me how I know).

 

I don't give the children copies of this, it is all done orally. It is a capacity I want them to work on. I read, they repeat each day. We generally add 1 stanza of poetry, 1 verse of a Hymn, 1 Bible verse, etc. each week.

 

We start our Circle Time each morning with either the Doxology or Gloria Patri, alternating by month.

 

Then, we pray together, including prayer requests from the children, missionaries from our denomination, and other requests as needed. We also pray for our day of school.

 

We start with our newest hymn. I read and they repeat the new verse for the week. Then, we sing the hymn starting with verse 1 through the verse we're working on. We use the Trinity Hymnal with Hymns for Kith and Kin, Hymns for a Kids Heart, or Listen While we Sing (no one plays piano well enough yet so we use a mp3 playlist that has all our hymns on it). My 2012 hymn list is here.

 

Over the past two years, we've learned the Apostle's Creed and Nicene Creed. We recite them, alternating by month.

 

We do Bible verses one verse at a time. We're still (two years later) reviewing Gen 1 daily, but we've learned Ps 1, Ps 100, Ps 130, and are working on Matt 5:1-12 currently.

 

We're also working on The Catechism for Young Children We work on a page until they have it down pretty well. Then it moves through the SCM Memory System chart.

 

Again, I just recite and they repeat.

 

We use IEW's Poetry and love it. We follow the same sort of system, working on one stanza per week. I usually read the poems, but sometimes let Mr. Pudewa do so on the mp3 player. We don't use his system, but the SCM system.

 

I usually read some poetry after they're done, a page or so from an anthology per day.

 

We do skip counting (these are cute charts). Geography Songs. History from Hannah's Grammar Stage Memorization. Science from Living Memory. We do one of these subjects each day. It's too much to review otherwise. We'll see this year how much we get through.

 

Then, we're reading from Aesop and just started Parables from Nature. I just read a little each day.

 

It often helps if we stand when we sing. Everyone focuses better.

 

One of the most important parts, for me (and we generally don't accomplish it) is on Saturday we try/want to/ sometimes do "Recitation for Daddy" where they must stand and recite/respond clearly and as grown uply as they're able. It's a nice carrot when we're on schedule ... "You're going to have to recite it on Saturday ..."

 

ETA: Currently there are a couple of good, free lectures on Memory Work available for download. They really encouraged me in my efforts to spend the time ... and to keep on this track:

 

Andrew Pudewa's talk Reflections on Redeeming Repetition: Rut, Routine, and Ritual as he was considering Memory Work (it's in CiRCE's free library right now). It was pretty interesting and enjoyable as I consider Memory work and doing it as habit or ritual.

 

My favorite talk on Memorization is from Christian Kopf at the Society for Classical Learning's 2011 conference: Rote Memorization and Classical Education, a better apology for Memorization I haven't heard.

 

Wow...thank you so much! I have already downloaded the Hannah's Grammar Stage Memorization book and I plan to spend some time exploring your other links as well. I appreciate your help!

[Mrs Twain]

I also have used Hannah's Grammar Stage Memorization book. It gave me many ideas. However, check the facts for accuracy. I found some things that I needed to edit.

 

Bible verses, history, civics, geography, and science principles have been our focus. We spend about 5-10 minutes per day practicing. First we review one or more old things, and then we work on our new selection.

 

My parents were impressed when they heard my kids recite the presidents, excerpts from the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and other history/civics facts like that. Impressing the grandparents is a nice additional benefit of memory work. ;)

[ChrissySC]

I keep it relevant and simple. I would not weight memory work with too much that does not apply to your lessons or studies. It will become frivolous and serve no purpose at all.

 

My words of caution.

 

I have an organizer on my blog if you want some ideas on how to assemble a book. :)

[MeganW]

I introduce memory work at home, by reading a book or showing a diagram or whatever, but then all review work is done in the car. My kids each have a "smarty pants book" (notebook with memory work divided by topic). I just add a page to each section of the notebook as necessary. I either find a song or record my voice saying whatever it is they are memorizing, and then every month or so I burn a new CD. I have the new stuff on the CD and just skip over it if we haven't learned it yet. When the CD can play straight through, I know it's time to pull in some new material.

 

 

Notebook sections:

• Bible (books of the Bible, AWANA verses, 10 Commandments, John 1:1-3)
  
• Math (skip counting, money, etc.)
  
• Timeline (from CC - 160 bullet point overview of world history)
  
• History Sentences (from CC)
  
• Science (from CC)
  
• Geography (planets, where we live (planet, continent, country, state, city, address), states & capitals
  
• Poetry (we only have a few poems, but hope to add to that this summer)
  
• General Knowledge (steps of scientific method, our phone number, Mom & Dad's names, etc.)
  

For the past 8 months, most of what we added was from CC, but I try to keep the old stuff up as well.

[fourcatmom]

We haven't been to involved in memory work but I did make up some cards awhile back and we use them when it connects to what we are learning. I made some Geography cards with the states on them and some cards with the Presidents too. I also did Geography vocabulary terms. I don't have a schedule but we just piece it into our lessons when they fit.

 

You can find my cards on this post but you have to scroll down to almost 1/2 the page.

 

http://www.morninghugsandgoodnightkisses.blogspot.com/search/label/Mindful%20Monday

[wearejenandkev]

I create a memory work binder and basket in which we store everything that we use for our memory work. I keep it on the kitchen table. Everything we need is in one place. While the kids are eating, I am quizzing them or playing the audio versions.

 

Here is a further explanation of how I set it up:

 

http://teachingboys.net/2012/03/24/memory-masters-study-binder-and-basket/

 

 

 

As far as what kinds of memory work....

 

We do Classical Conversations, so most of our Memory Work centers around that. Keep in mind that you can get the audio CDs without participating in a CC community. (Although, I love the community!)

 

I highly recommend skip counting songs! Use them as a stepping stone, not an end point. They give the kids a "peg" from which to retrieve the information. Later, once the songs are stuck, they can easily memorize the facts without the songs.

 

If you are wanting ideas on how to spice up your memory work so everyone stays awake.......check out another post I wrote about making memorization fun!

 

http://teachingboys.net/2012/03/24/memorization-made-fun-and-easy/

 

Also, I have typed up our typical school day, which includes our Memory Work time.....

 

http://teachingboys.net/category/our-schedule/

 

Jennifer

[Clpretzel]

:bigear:

[Woodland Mist Academy]

Throughout the day we spend a few minutes in each subject doing memory work.

 

It probably totals 30 min or less on most days.

 

We use a combo of note cards, timelines, songs and games.

[garddwr]

We use the Mnemosyne system to set up a memory binder with things to recite on a daily, every-other-daily, weekly, etc. basis. We have some scripture work, some foreign language work, skip counting, science, history--it's a real mish-mash, whatever I think would be good for us to recall long-term. Most of ours we just make up songs to help us remember. I want to add in some poetry, but haven't done it yet.