As individuals, we all have our ways when it comes to studying. Some of us can simply remember content by making the focus to understand something rather than memorizing something, others rely on cramming. We all know that the cramming route often leads to only retaining information for a short while rather than being able to remember it for the long term.
One of the gifts I received from my students this year was a deck of mini cards, a game of mythical tales on flashcards. As I went through the deck, reading each flashcard in the deck, I realized that it contains interesting facts. My initial thought was that, that this student knew I needed to sharpen my general knowledge skills. I went through the deck once and decided to look at it again later in the evening.
My friend came over the evening, and we attempted playing this game over supper. As I allowed my friend to read each fact on the flashcards to me (he was not aware that I read through most cards in the deck), I find myself not just getting most cards correct but also giving him the correct fact to the myth.
This year I got schooled by the power of flashcards, I’ve used them in most of my teaching methodologies and it has helped the students remarkably, the mini-deck has just reminded me again, how one cannot underestimate the power of flashcards. I couldn’t believe that a quick scan through the flashcards, helped me to remember the answers on them. What if one uses flashcards intentionally, how much more can it assist you!
What is a flashcard
Small cards on which you write a definition on one side and the explanation on the other side. Flashcards force your brain to retain information in a short time. While you look at the definition and you attempt to give the term before peaking what it is. Through this process, you have already read the definition, the term quietly to yourself, visually seen it, and attempted to recall it. You continue this process until you have worked through the whole deck.
How to make a flashcard
The smaller the flashcard, the better, it allows you to only write key concepts, terms on them, your brain is forced into only writing the most important information that you need to retain. You can make use of color cards and split your concepts according to the different levels of difficulty by color-coding them. Cut out small blocks and use bold letters, so that the term and definition can stand out.
Flashcards are ideal for studying
For almost any studying or information that you need to retain. From the difficult science terms and concepts to simply remembering dates in history. Flashcards can also allow you to remember your favorite soccer players or teams. This fun approach to studying can make it less tedious than having to be overwhelmed by pages and pages that you must remember for your exams. Studies also have proven that flashcards are ideal when learning a new language and allow you to remember vocab better.
When to use flashcards
Using flashcards should be a fun process, but also a passive way of learning. With flashcards, you no longer have to repeat stuff like a parrot. If you find yourself sitting on the couch while watching a game you can quickly pop out your flashcards and test yourself. Before you run to school or work and you are at the breakfast table, use that time to go through a few flashcards. While eating dinner I was learning interesting mythical tales.
Effectiveness of using flashcards to study!
The number of times you look at your flashcards and go through the deck in a random order increases the chances of visually seeing the cards, but also for you to teach your brain to retain what is on the card, despite the order that it is in each time. I am usually the person that enjoys reading for the sake of understanding something and that allows me to remember it, but sometimes when it comes to terminology, even someone who has great memory still needs to find a way to remember the terminology, and there is nothing as fun as flashcards.
It can be tedious to make and cut out small cards but nothing beats it to have some arts and craft fun at the same time. If you are someone who prefers more professional flashcards, you could also purchase them from a stationary store. This year, I also laminated white pages and it allowed me to use the mini white laminated cards as mini-whiteboards to write on. In this way, I can re-use my flashcards.
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