How to memorize foreign words and phrases

The topic is hackneyed, I understand. But, as a person who has achieved outstanding success in the development of a vocabulary with AVERAGE memory, I will allow myself a few words. Everyone remembers the information in very different ways, it depends on a number of individual characteristics - the teachers will not help much. Do not believe advertising, there are no universal methods of memorization, everyone should study the work of their memory on their own. In general, our ability to remember is based on 2 pillars:

• Emotions (he has a complicated surname, but I remember it easily, because it seems to me that it sounds funny)
• Associative relations (he has a difficult surname, but I remembered it easily, because my classmate had a similar one).

The more your personal associations are tied to a word or expression, the more likely it is to be remembered. This is partly why it is recommended to memorize words in context, and not separately. If we remember something out of context, it’s idioms, or idioms. They themselves contain a vivid image, and you (as in the Russian idiom) kill two birds with one stone at once - and remember the idiom, and the words of which it consists.

Interesting films and videos provide the closest possible approach to the language environment at home: in addition to using really popular phrases, a large number of associations are attached to these phrases: with what intonation did the actor say it, in what situation, with which expression on his face.

When we sleep, the brain filters the information received during the day for its relationship to “survival”. By default, he relates everything that carries an emotional burden to survival. If the information evokes emotions, he decides to keep it.Does not cause emotions - removes. And the more vivid emotions (no matter whether negative or positive) are attached to information, the more priority this information will be in the eyes of our psyche (we do not take into account the extreme context of crowding out traumatic memories).

Imagine that you leave your apartment and see a man with a knife on the stairwell. He just came to a neighbor to sharpen a knife - well, he doesn’t have a grindstone! You will remember this situation for a long time, if not forever. The brain will give it the highest priority regarding importance for survival.

Contrary to popular myth, the language environment does not produce any miracles. In the same way, you have to remember every word and expression. But there pronounced phrases are directly related to real situations and people. This provides them with a powerful emotional burden, and, as a result, a higher priority in the eyes of our psyche. If you are at home and reading in the phrase book Could you tell me how to get to Trafalgar Square? (How to get to Trafalgar Square?), This phrase will not be remembered. But if you are rushing around in the middle of London, and they are waiting for you in this square, there are much more chances to remember it.

It is not by chance that we remember in detail a huge number of seemingly meaningless situations and dialogues from the past - a huge number of associations are strung on them, besides reinforced by emotions.

For the same reason, independent textbook classes usually give a lower result than live interaction with the teacher. Information from the textbook is not emotionally loaded, does not directly relate to pressing problems, so the psyche believes that it should be erased. And she wanted to spit that you had an important exam. In our minds, we understand that the information from the textbook is much more important, but the psyche is like a stupid teenager: there are funny pictures - interestingly, we keep it. No - ruthless ignore.

LIFEHACK: A psyche preoccupied with the problem of "survival" is easy to fool. If you devote 5-10 minutes daily to repeating the material you've covered, you can convince her that a foreign language is relevant for survival - she also perceives frequently occurring pieces of information as something importantand saves in memory.

Emotionally loaded situations can and should be used to remember idioms . When a person appears next to us, an emotional interaction immediately begins, even if there are no words or gestures. Even a stranger. Even at the other end of an empty subway car. We begin to take into account the presence of this person at all levels.

Interaction with other people is an inexhaustible source of emotionally charged situations. Exploit it in full! Up to the point that, returning from work in the evening, instead of “good evening”, you can voice your English idiom at home. In response to a perplexed look, give a translation of this idiom and explain why it was needed. They laughed, exchanged positive emotions, remembered the situation for a long time, and, with high probability, the idiom itself. But you cannot use the same technique with a lot of material. One idiom - one situation unlike other.

Imagine that you meet a friend whom you have not seen for a long time. Hi Hi. You know, she says, I go to English courses! I remembered 5 new words today - and these five words with translations are dumped on you. You only remember that she moved, it seems, in these courses. A few unrelated words - too much material for one association. But if she says: “Listen, I learned a cool expression in English: And Bob's your uncle! An analogue of our "And you're done!". You will then recall this situation for years and, with a high probability, the idiom itself.

Techniques for exploiting life situations in order to memorize foreign expressions can and often should be non-standard. Option: once in a lifetime, write on your hand with a poorly washable marker one short idiom. You will remember this experience for years. Perhaps the idiom itself will also settle in memory. It makes sense to rename frequently used contacts in the phone into simple nouns or adjectives - you will constantly look at them, an association will arise between this person and this English word. Passwords on emails and social networks are absolutely necessary to make idioms. Why clutter up your memory with meaningless Lenusik87, when, for example, there is a useful, common expression under no circumstances,besides containing a difficult spelling word? Bring on different devices a couple of years in a row - you can’t knock it out of memory afterwards. Of course, these are just auxiliary tricks - you can’t go far by simply renaming contacts in the phone. Learn the work of your memory!