Strategies to Improve Memory & Learning

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How parents can improve their preschoolers’ understanding of number

A new study shows that preschoolers whose parents engage in the right number-talk develop an understanding of number earlier. Such understanding affects later math achievement.

At every level, later math learning depends on earlier understanding. Previous research has found that the knowledge children have of number before they start school predicts their achievement throughout elementary school.
Using 'hard to read' fonts may help you remember more

Two experiments manipulating fonts to create texts that are slightly more difficult to read has found that such texts are better remembered.

It must be easier to learn when your textbook is written clearly and simply, when your teacher speaks clearly, laying the information out with such organization and clarity that everything is obvious. But the situation is not as clear-cut as it seems.
The right sort of video game can increase your intelligence

Games that use the n-back task, designed to challenge working memory, may improve fluid intelligence, but only if the games are at the right level of difficulty for the individual.

It has been difficult to train individuals in such a way that they improve in general skills rather than the specific ones used in training.
Childhood musical training helps auditory processing in old age

Another study confirms the cognitive benefits of extensive musical training that begins in childhood, at least for hearing.

A number of studies have demonstrated the cognitive benefits of music training for children. Now research is beginning to explore just how long those benefits last.
Working memory capacity affects emotional regulation

A new study confirms earlier indications that those with a high working memory capacity are better able to regulate their emotions.

Once upon a time we made a clear difference between emotion and reason. Now increasing evidence points to the necessity of emotion for good reasoning. It’s clear the two are deeply entangled.
Benefits of childhood music lessons may extend into old age

A new study finds length of musical training in childhood is associated with less cognitive decline in old age.

A study involving 70 older adults (60-83) has found that those with at least ten years of musical training performed the best on cognitive tests, followed by those with one to nine years of musical study, with those with no musical training trailing the field.
Effect of motivation on IQ score

A new review pointing to the impact of motivation on IQ score reminds us that this factor is significant, particularly for predicting accomplishments other than academic achievement.

Whether IQ tests really measure intelligence has long been debated. A new study provides evidence that motivation is also a factor.
Neurofeedback offers hope for attention training

Receiving immediate feedback on the activity in a brain region enabled people to improve their control of that region’s activity, thus improving their concentration.

I’ve always been intrigued by neurofeedback training. But when it first raised its head, technology was far less sophisticated.
Mindfulness meditation changes how decisions are made

Another recent meditation study has found that experienced Buddhist meditators use different brain regions than controls when making decisions in a ‘fairness’ game.

The study involved 26 experienced Buddhist meditators and 40 control subjects.
Mindfulness meditation may help attention through better control of alpha rhythms

New research suggests that meditation can improve your ability to control alpha brainwaves, thus helping you block out distraction.

As I’ve discussed on many occasions, a critical part of attention (and

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