Memory Techniques for Controlled Assessment

Memorise the following ten items.

You will see each one for 5 seconds.

cat

120

3.57pm

magnanimous

Now write down as many of them as you can remember

How many did you get?

Which ones were hardest/easiest to remember? Why?

Which learning style suits you best?

Visual Learners:

Maps

Posters

Charts

Spider diagrams

Cartoons

Summary notes

Mental pictures

Mind maps

Auditory Learners:

Record ideas on your phone/iPod

Say key words aloud

Tell another person

Make a presentation

Get someone to test you

Exchange ideas with your friends

Play quiet, relaxing background music

Kinesthetic Learners:

Walk ‘n’ talk

Draw cartoons

Posters & storyboards

Make a model

Role play/drama

Make a mind map

Write a story

Annotate diagrams

Make cue/flash cards

Use a mix of these different techniques to

help you!

Preparing for your ORAL

• Record yourself on a phone

• Play the recording back and pause it after a few words, then see if you can complete the sentence

• Type up your paragraphs with words gapped out or just the first letter of each word

• See if you can say each paragraph aloud, using this to help you

• Give a friend the full script and get them to check it as you go along

• Practise with a willing friend or native speaker

• If they don’t live near you, try using Skype or phoning them

www.cueprompter.com

• Paste your text into cueprompter and it will scroll up the screen for you to read like a newsreader.

• You can change the speed so it goes faster or slower and test yourself.

www.naturalreaders.com

• If you are unsure about the pronunciation, paste your text into this website

• Make sure you change the voice to the correct language!

Now, without looking at your previous list, write down as many of the 10 items as you can remember

How many did you get this time?More or fewer than last time?

Which ones were hardest/easiest to remember this time? Why?

Preparing for your WRITING

• Type up your paragraphs and print each one on a different page

• Highlight different tenses in different colours

• Underline key vocabulary

• Write each word on a different post-it note, then muddle them up and try to reorder them

• Gap out all the verbs in your paragraph and print it out again

• See if you can fill in the verbs without looking

• Do the same thing using just the first letter of each word

• Put a copy of your paragraph on the wall

• Walk over and look at it, then go back to your desk and try to write down what you saw

• When you have finished, check it against the original text

For both the oral and written…

Make a note of the words you struggled

with and include them in your 40 words!

Now, without looking at your previous two lists, write down as many of them as you can remember

How many did you get this time? More or fewer than last time?

Are you getting the same ones every time?

What does this suggest about learning things?

1. Cat2. Hammer3. 1204. Cute puppy5. 3.57pm6. Scary clown7. Spanish book8. Magnanimous9. Church10.Ed Sheeran