SESSION NINE
MEMORY
Memory
• What types of things do you think you will
never forget?
Memory
• Most of the events discussed are relevant to
us,
– We do not forget certain things like how to get
home, how to eat, the names of our family
members.
Memory
The science of memory
• The scientific understanding to day is that
there is not one specific place for our
memories.
– Our memory system is very complicated and inner
connected– The memory system is very holistic
– Memory and retrieval are one and the same, they
are interconnected.
– A memory is stored on a dormant neuron, when
the brain needs it, it is activated
Memory
The science of memory
• When enough of the right neurons are fired at
the right time, you get retrieval.
– When people here certain words like school, Party,
football, a thunderstorm of activity is stimulated,
hundreds of neural circuits may be activated
Memory
The science of memory
• There is not one place that memories live,
they are distributed in neurons throughout
the cortex
• The fact they are spread out protects a person
from the effects of brain damage.
– A person can lose 20 percent of their cortex and
still have a “good Memory”
Memory
The science of memory
• Memories are generated from all over the brain,
– Memories of sound are stored in the auditory cortex
– Memories of names, pronouns are traced to the
temporal lobes
– Emotional memories are stored in the amygdala
– Learned skills in the basal ganglia
– Memories related to the precise timing of motor skills
are stored
– The hippocampus is involved in speaking memory,
reading, recall about emotional events
Memory
The science of memory
• Looking at the brain in this manner helps
explain the idea of an “internal Voice”
• Your brain remembers something only once,
and after that, it remembers the memory that
was created by the brain
• The memory can have color, sound , smell,
• The recall of the memory, only takes an
instant
Memory
The science of memory
• As you can imagine, the recall of the memory,
can change over time• Ever remember something and someone
remembers it differently, and you are sure
they are remembering the same event
differently?
• Well one or both of your memories have been
changed
• Green overcoat
Memory
The science of memory
• The believe that the brain has an index of
sorts, when instructions are given to recreate
a memory, messages are sent out to recall the
different components from different parts of
the brain
• A simultaneous message is sent to get the
“audio file, the visual fine, the emotional file ,
the olfactory file etc
Memory
The science of memory
• This is often why children have difficult
recalling a particular word for a sentence they
are constructing
• They may be trying to recall classroom, but
lost of words are associated with that word,
school, a teachers name, desks, books and so
on
Memory
The science of memory
• The term scientist use to describe where and
how these memories are stored is called (LTP)
Long Term potentiation
Memory
Chemically Speaking
• One problem with poor memory is the loss of
calcium.
• Vitamin A can assist in the formation of
memories
• Adrenaline- acts as a memory fixative and
helps lock up memories of traumatic events
Memory
• As we have seen before, mental states of
anxiety, stress and some other emotional
states hamper memory, they bind up
information- the memory can only be
retrieved by returning to the state in which
the event was first stored
• Learning that occurs un these conditions is
called state dependent
Memory
• Some ways to facilitate the memory of state dependent
learning
– Facilitate reviews that engage all five senses
– Encourage discussions about the learners feelings of new
information
– Get the learners to incorporate the learning in their
personal lives
– Use story boards to present ideas
– make video tapes of more complex concepts
– Use peg words to link numbers or pictures to an idea for
ease of recall
– Create a redo song with lyrics that represent the new
learning
Memory
peg words
• Pegwords
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FJG5Rle
5ZU
Memory
the science
• Context bounded Memory
– Each memory is linked to a moment in time and to
that emotional state at that time and the context
of the situation
– Therefore cramming, which is done in a hyped up
state, hyped up on coffee, the brain has a hard
time recalling the information unless you are
taking a test in the same situation.
Memory
• Context bounded Memory
– Have you ever gotten up and went to another room
and then forgotten what you want and then gone
back and your remembered? That is a great example
of context-bounded Memory.
– Role playing is an excellent tool at dealing with
context bond memory. Students learn a situation in
how it will eventually be used and under a similar
environment
– War games are and example of this/ fire drills/ mock
emergency situations are all a part of this
Memory
• Glucose
• Excessive amounts of glucose or deficient amounts of
glucose have a negative effect on learning
• Moderate, normal and elevated levels of glucose have
found to have and advantageous impact on learning
• These levels can be brought on by eating or exercise
Memory
• Sleep
– Cutting sleep by two hours a night may impair
your ability to recall during the next day
– The more complicated and complex the material
is, the more important sleep is
– Sleep acts a a means of unlearning and cleaning
up your memories much like defragging/
optimizing is done on your computer
Memory
• Time of day and learning
– Adults can recall information learned in the morning
better
– Young adults can recall and perform better of
information learned in the afternoon
– May et al, found that when adolescents were allowed
to learn at their preferred time of day, their
motivation, behavior and scores in math improved
– Obviously, we can not allow students to pick when
they will learn
Memory
• Memory
Memory
Children seem to remember learning when it is
associated with field trips, a performance, a
guest speaker, a disaster, complex projects, or
study in a novel learning environment?
Why do you think that is?
Memory
• Children learn better in these situations, because
all of the senses are stimulated and multiple
memory pathways in the brain are activated.
• There are two main types of memory pathways
– Implicit- learning is automatic, reflexive( handshake),
procedural ( riding a bike)
– Explicit- Learned by an effort, Semantic( learned by
words, symbols, videos) Or Episodic ( locations ,
events , or circumstances
Memory
• Semantic is learned by reading and studying– Is usually formed by deliberate or rote memory, it
requires rehearsal, it inherently lacks meaning and
is independent of context
• Ex- who is the author of the textbook we are using?
• Episodic is easily updated, and is used by
everyone naturally.
– What did you have for dinner last night? That is
drawing on an episodic memory.
Memory
• Engaging multiple memories
– Much of the learning we expect our students to
learn, is explicit and not a natural type of learning
• To help with this, you can try to create a more
contextual learning
–
–
–
–
–
Through real life simulations
Story telling
Filed trips
Visual learning
Cultural celebrations
Memory
• BEM learning
– This is a theory that what is presented at the
beginning of a the lesson is most memorable
– Then what is presented at the end and finally
what is presented in the middle BEM
Memory
• Memory Storage Ideas
– Increase the use of storytelling, visualization, and
metaphors in your presentation
– Attach a strong to new learning with a purposely designed
intense activity
– Review or repeat new learning within 10 minutes, then
after 48 hours, and again after a week
– Attach concrete reminders to new learning, like a token or
an artifact
– Act out new learning in a skit or a role play
– Attach and acrostic to new learning( the first letter of each
key word forms a new word) and other mnemonic
Memory
• Memory Storage Ideas
– Depict new learning on a large colorful poster and put it
up in the classroom
– Asks students to identify patterns and look for connections
to prior learning
– Personalize the lesson by incorporating students' names,
ethnic customs, and real life issues
– Ask learners to summarize new learning with a mind map
– Give new learning strong context with field trips, guest
speakers, and concrete objects to touch and feel
– Have students identify, “what is in it for me?” to increase
meaningfulness and motivation
Memory
• Memory Storage Ideas
– Start a new learning session with something exotic,
then familiar then unusual again
– increase accountability with frequent reviews and
check-ups
– incorporate real life problems and situations to teach
about the content as well as process
– Facilitate frequent group discussions on new material
– Incorporate journal writing and other forms of
personal reflection
– Provide downtime and frequent short breaks
Memory
• Often poor memory is due to poor study skills
– Get good nutrition
– Set goals and develop a purpose
– Browse material, learn how to identify key concepts, and
build perceptual maps
– Develop mind maps that reflect their thoughts, questions,
concerns and connections to prior learning
– Read with a highlighter in hand and make notes in the
margins
– Summarize what you have learned, reflect on it, and ask
questions
– Act on the learning, build models, do projects, give
PowerPoint presentations
Memory
– Pre- exposure
• If students have pre-exposure to information, memory
is facilitated
– Priming is the most notable way to do this, priming can be
accomplished sometimes by just asking questions before the
material is presented
– Torpedo- try to get students to solve a problem when you
know they do not have a skill yet needed to do so, very
effective in math
Memory
• Mind Mapping
– The cortex has the ability to detect and create
patterns of meaning- the brain needs to decipher
cues, recognize relationships, and indexing
information
– Best when done in a non-linear manner
– We can never really understand something until
we can create a model that is derived from our
unique personal world
Memory
• Mind mapping
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wZ5wV
5dPZc
Memory
• One of the greatest strengths of the cortex is for
it to see patterns and relationships.
• Jensen- feels that teachers too often break down
and present material in a linear format and this
bores the child’s mind,
• He feels teachers need to use a more Gestalt
format
• He feels that you never really understand
something until you have created your own
mental model of it
Memory
• Mind Mapping Think of how your mind works
when you go into a mall you are not familiar
with or a town
• You first figure out where you RE ( look for you
are here)
• Then you try and find where you are going
and look for path to get there
Memory
• Posting mind maps in the room helps improve
learning
• It makes the learning personal and helps the
students visualize how it is all connected and
helps them conceptualize ideas
• Mind maps are great at introducing lessons or
pre-exposure/ you can post them and not
explain them weeks ahead of time and allow
them to try and put it together
Memory
• Five Stages of optimal learning
– Preparation
– Acquisition
– Elaboration
– Memory formation
– Functional integration
Memory
• Five Stages of optimal learning
– Preparation
• Provide a framework for the new learning, prime the
learner brain with possible connections
• Provide background, the more background that
learners have, the faster they will absorb the subject
Memory
• Five Stages of optimal learning
– Acquisition
• Can be achieved through direct means or indirect
means
– Direct means Is a handout
– Indirect is putting up related visual
– Both approaches work and can be used together and
compliment each other
Memory
• Five Stages of optimal learning
– Elaboration
• Explores the interconnectedness of topics and
Encourages depth of understanding
– Memory formation• Cements the learning so what was learned will be
retrievable at another time
– Functional integration
• Reminds us to use the new learning so that it is further
reinforced and expanded upon ( homework)
Memory
• Acquisition- the neurological definition is the
formation of new synapse connections– When information or experiences are mundane these
connections remain unchanged, when the experience
is unique and novel, the connections are
strengthened
– Do not confuse ha ha with ah ha, insight is not
learning
– A Chinese proverb says, learning is not a singular
event, but using it over time
– Fly tying homework and not doing it
Memory
• Elaboration
– An enormous gap exist between a teacher
explains and what a learner understands
– Teachers need to sue implicit and explicit methods
to close that gap ( examples are next)
– Once a learners is lost, the mind shuts off or stress
out
Memory
Explicit elaboration
• Discussion
• Reading
• Listening
• worksheets
• lectures
• Spelling
• Math facts
• Q&A
Implicit Elaboration
• Simulations
• Theater projects
• Field trips
• Role playing
• Complex modeling
• Role modeling
• Life experiences
Memory
• Memory Formation even after doing much of
the preparation, acquisition and elaboration,
the memory is not quite formed to stand the
test of time
• Other factors such as emotional state, rest,
stage of development, nutrition all play a role
in this
• Memory – once we believed that our brains
could fill up with information,
• However, we now know that our brains grow
with the more we learn
• A brain of a musician that continues to play
his entire life, continues to grow
• The brain needs to consider the information
important enough to commit to long term
memory
Memory
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