I used to be very bad at remembering things. Now I can recall nearly anything. Here's what worked for me.

I used to have a very hard time recalling what I read or learned in school. I found that some techniques I learned have worked extremely well for me. <br><br>The first I learned is something called the Link System. I don't know if you've heard of it, but I use it to recall lists of things in the order they were given. Essentially, you pretend you see an image of the first thing on the list, then an image of the second item, then an image that connects the two. The image doesn't even have to make sense; I've found that the more absurd the image is to you, the more likely you'll remember it. One of my teachers is a very funny lady, and she told us a story about learning all the parts of the brain by using the Link System and then drawing a map of the brain as a cave system, with connections between each part. I can't remember all of the parts of the brain right now, but I use this technique to remember all the major points I want to make in a speech I give during debate practice. I don't know to what extent this will scale, but it has served me well for so far. If you want an example of how to use this, please let me know and I'll do my best.<br><br>I've also tried mnemonics of course, but I've found the Link System to be the far more helpful. I only use mnemonics when I can't recall a word with a specific sound or spelling, in which case I'll use a word that sounds or looks like the word to make a quick sentence. For example, if I'm trying to recall the order of sharps in music, I would use the sentence "Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle," with each word being the first letter of each successive sharp note. This method is a lot simpler and faster for me than the Link System, but I've found it to be a lot less helpful in practice. <br><br>Another thing that has really helped me is taking notes by hand while I read. This is kind of a no-brainer, but I've found it really helps me retain information if I write it down myself. I make a bullet point for each key term, then use a paragraph to describe it as concisely as possible. After each section, I write a one-paragraph summary of the main points of the section. I think this has really helped me be more attentive as I read because I have to write it down and therefore I don't get distracted, and also it helps keep me accountable. I feel more productive if I'm actively doing something in class to take notes than having to review them later, and I have found it to be far more beneficial to me.<br><br>Lastly, I've been doing a ton of reading in my spare time to improve my memory. Since the beginning of Junior year, I've made a concerted effort to read every day, even if it's just a few pages. I've found that I've become much better at recalling what I read and I think it's because I'm practicing recalling what I read every day. I used to not be able to remember what I had read in a book from the day before, and now I can remember much more from day to day. I can't tell you all the details of the book, but I can recall a general image of the plot progression in my head, and I find that I can usually recall anything that happened in the last hundred pages or so. I think reading regularly has strengthened my ability to recall what I read, and it has really helped me in the long run.<br><br>Lastly, I've been doing a lot of research lately about different types of intelligence, and I think it's really helped my school performance. I used to struggle in school because I was trying to learn in a manner that isn't really suited to my mind, and I think a lot of the methods I've learned about are really helping me adapt to my learning style. If you're interested in learning more about that, I can help you with that and I've got some resources that might help you figure out what your learning style is. <br><br>I just wanted to share this because I really think it can help you. I've struggled with learning and retaining information for years, and I feel really good about my abilities now. I don't have good grades or anything, but I really feel like school comes easily to me and I'm confident in my abilities and I've carried this over into other parts of my life. I have much less anxiety about projects and tests and stuff like that and I just feel like I can learn and retain anything I put my mind to. I have much greater confidence in my abilities and I really think this has improved many aspects of my life. I'll admit that none of the methods I'm talking about here are anything I came up with; I've mostly learned them through debate practice, but I don't hear a lot of people talk about them and they have genuinely helped me so I think you'll find some value in this. If you have any questions or need help with any of this, just ask and I'll do my best to help you.