Mnemonic devices are tricks used to increase your ability to recall everything from speeches to grocery lists. Waiters use them to remember orders without writing them done, and speakers use the devices instead of note cards. The possibilities for students are endless.
Despite all this, there are three serious limitations to using mnemonic devices. First, they don't always help in the understanding and digesting of material. They only help in rote memorization, instead of critical thinking skills. Second, the devices can sometimes be hard to learn and also time-consuming to learn. It may take you longer to think of a mnemonic device to help you remember something, than to actually memorize it by just simply studying and going over the material. Third, they can be forgotten. Recalling the device might be harder than recalling the material.
There are four general categories of mnemonic devices: new words, creative sentences, rhymes and songs, and special systems (loci and peg).
New Words: Good examples of these are acronyms. Acronyms are words created by the initial letters of a series of words; such as NASA (which is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration), Roy G. Biv (to remember the colors of the rainbow), and HOMES (to remember the Great Lakes).
Creative Sentences; Good examples of these are acrostics. Acrostics are sentences that help you remember a series of letters that stand for something, like "My Very Educated Mother Just Served us Nine Pizzas- (which help you remember the order of the planets, "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally- (which helps you remember the order of mathematical operations), "Never Eat Shredded Wheat- (which help remember the directions of a compass), and "May I please have a large container of orange juice?- (Which help remember the first 9 digits of pi "the mathematical term).
Rhymes and Songs: These are the most common mnemonic devices used.
