How to quickly and easily memorize text. Ways that work

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Speed ​​reading is a set of reading methods that allow you to increase the speed of reading without lowering the level of understanding and memorizing the text. We have already published, and today we will supplement what has already been said with a few more tips for those who value their time. By the way, the speed reading method is applicable to both fiction and non-fiction, but it is best to use it when the book need read quickly.

Three basic rules for speed reading:

1. The basis of speed reading is choosing the right place to read.
2. Sliding is the process of speed reading, which includes a visual search on the page for key phrases and sentences to understand the meaning of the text.
3. Guides are visual guides (finger, highlighter, or pen) that help the eye move faster through a piece of text.

Interesting facts about reading

• The average person reads at up to 250 words per minute on average.
• The average reading rate for memorizing a text is up to 100 words per minute.
• The average reading pace for working with educational materials is 100-200 words per minute.
• The average reading pace for understanding the text is 200-400 words per minute.
• Average reading pace by method slip- 400-700 words per minute.

Now try to read the text in the picture below.

Well, how did it work? This means that you can really skim through the text, catching individual words and phrases, while understanding everything that is read.

If you have already learned the rules from the previous publication (focus, do not repeat, evaluate complete picture, make bookmarks and practice), then you will probably find the following useful speed reading tips:

Set Reading Goals

Set yourself a specific and, most importantly, achievable goal - for example, read 100 pages in 4 hours. Being aware of it, you will be able to decide for yourself when you can read more slowly and when you can read faster in order to achieve this goal. This rule is an important part of speed reading, because sometimes it is really important to slow down in order to better understand the context.

Resist the urge to retreat

People return to the initial results by different reasons, but whatever they are, and the speed of reading from them, alas, falls.

Use pre-reading

If you are reading a book, open the content first. If it is an article, read the title, subtitle, signatures, highlighted quotes, look at graphs, diagrams and charts. In this case, they will not distract you while reading the main text, moreover, you will immediately know what will be discussed.

Look for the main ideas

Attention to detail or unimportant facts may well interfere with those who are going to master the techniques of speed reading. These moments often distract from understanding the whole work, its ideas and themes.

Develop eye flexibility

Once you've read to the end of a paragraph, don't sit back, but rather switch to a new line of text.

Get your vision checked

The eyes are not only windows to the soul, but also the means by which we read. If they are dirty, we simply cannot see well. So, if you have already taken up speed reading, you should regularly visit an ophthalmologist and check your eyesight.

And finally one more interesting fact: John F. Kennedy was a supporter of speed reading and urged his employees to master this skill too.

Trying to learn a ton of information or learn a history paragraph before the next lesson? Reading a passage three times before bed, putting a book under your pillow, dancing with a tambourine - all these methods are as popular as they are useless.

How our memory works

Let's start with this very question.

The process of memorizing any information goes through three stages.

1. First - short term memory. Any data is delayed there for no more than a few minutes.
2. The data then moves to the second stage - intermediate memory. Here she can linger for a few days or a month.
3. The third and last stage is long-term memory. The information is always stored there. Even the things we think we have forgotten.

Therefore, in order to use the capabilities of your memory as efficiently as possible, you need to take this into account. Try to immediately translate everything you learn into intermediate memory. And to keep the information with you as long as possible, from time to time revision it and shift it to the departments of long-term memory.

10 ways to remember text

• Tell someone else.

Retell what you read - and remember it 4 times faster. The likelihood that you will master a large text much faster if you read and retell it to another person is much higher. When you tell something, the neurons in your brain work much more efficiently, and you instantly transfer everything that you have learned to the intermediate department.

• Work on the principle of 20/5 or 45/15.

Your brain cannot learn something indefinitely - it needs to be given breaks. Try on yourself the practice of teaching for 20 minutes and resting for 5 minutes; or study for 45 minutes and rest for 15. Your brain will get used to such uniform loads and will work as productively as possible, and you can easily learn even the most complex information.

• Use associative thinking.

What you already know is your best weapon in learning. Draw associations and analogies with the knowledge that is already stored on the shelves of your brain. This will help you not only remember everything quickly, but also then, if necessary, remember much faster.

• Highlight key points in the text with a marker.

Of course, if the text is in a textbook, this is not necessary. But often, these are printouts, photocopies, with which this method will be just great! I did it myself when I was at university - it helped a lot! Believe me, as soon as you do this, everything unnecessary will disappear and will not interfere, and everything you need will "stick" to your memory and will glow in it as brightly as the marker you worked with! Of course, for this you need to have the skill of finding important supporting thoughts in the text. Practice and you will succeed!

• Read the text with expression or using different pitches of voice.

In other words, you can just play around pretending to be an actor (unless you're really an actor :-)). Read the text in a whisper, then in a low voice, then in a thin mouse voice ... Change intonations - from joyful tones to sad and melancholy. In general, feel what you are reading! Believe me, sometimes this becomes the only sure way to quickly memorize the text.

• Don't sit in one place.

Scientists have proven that if, when trying to learn something, you do not just sit at the table over a book, but, for example, walk around the room, then you can learn a text or a poem much faster.
Once we discussed this issue with my student. Her biology teacher noted more than once that during memorization it is best to clean the house, put something in its place, or just walk around. But in very rare cases, sit still.

The person who never ceases to amaze me in terms of memory development is Stanislav Matveev. He got into the Guinness Book of Records thanks to his methods and perseverance. And now Stanislav shares his knowledge with people, helping them achieve their goals.

• Learn in the morning.

It doesn't matter if you are the most "lark" of all larks or a seasoned owl, your brain still remembers information best in the morning or when you just woke up. Of course, there are rare exceptions when human biological rhythms are most active at night. But, nevertheless, trying to remember something before going to bed can not only have no effect, but also ruin your sleep.

• Tired - change the situation.

The main mistake of many is to try to teach without any rest. I remember myself during the sessions. I allocated myself two hours to study in the morning, then I went to training. She returned home and taught for another 2 hours. I constantly diluted my study hours with other classes. And I have always been surprised by the people who, during session did not see friends, did not go anywhere for a walk, but simply closed in the house. Therefore, my friendly advice to you is to change the situation and give yourself a rest.

• Use the possibilities of your brain.

You probably know how you get the best memory. If it’s enough for you to listen to a lecture so that you can retell everything without hesitation, you definitely have a type of memorization based on perception audio information.

For example, I absorb information best if I write it down. It's hard for me to remember something. When I was studying at the university, I wrote notes, and I made all important notes in writing. When I had to remember something during the exam, my notes instantly popped up before my eyes.

So use your strong side in memorization. Let it sometimes take a little longer, but you will be sure of the result.

• In any incomprehensible situation - go to bed.

If nothing comes to mind, go to bed. When you sleep, all the information that enters your brain, let's say, is laid out on the shelves of the long-term department. And in general, never try to learn anything without getting enough sleep. At this moment, your brain is busy only keeping you awake, and there simply aren’t enough resources to remember something.

At the moment, there are many methods, techniques and a wide variety of books to develop your memory and be able to memorize tons of information. You can watch videos or read books to develop your memory skills. Memory is like a muscle - you just need to practice a lot.

A great way for regular memory training that I recently discovered for myself is the online service " Brain Fitness". I spoke in detail about him and our successes with my daughter.

Here, my dear, are the main ways you can easily memorize large text. But I can say one thing: all this works individually for each person. I advise you to try and analyze what you do best.

Share in the comments which learning methods you use and how they help you. And for the curious, there is my mailing list, where I constantly share interesting and useful information about any aspect of the English language.

Subscribe and be fully equipped.

Who learned shorthand? This question is usually of interest to those who want to learn how to read quickly. From those people who have studied and learned speed reading, people want to learn about the very the best exercise which allows you to learn read quickly.

This article talks about how famous people read.

Useful and free on the site on how to learn to read faster and remember more

• Focus your eyes on the center. With peripheral vision, mark the same blocks. The goal is not to find the same blocks as quickly as possible, but to focus on the center of the screen with peripheral vision to find the information you need.

  Speed ​​reading and Lenin Here is what one of the closest collaborators V.I. Lenina V.D. Bonch-Bruevich: “Vladimir Ilyich read in a completely special way. When I saw Lenin reading, it seemed to me that he did not read line after line, but looked page after page and quickly assimilated everything amazingly deeply and accurately: after a while he quoted separate phrases and paragraphs from memory, as if he had studied it for a long time and specially just read. This is precisely what made it possible for Vladimir Ilyich to read such an enormous number of books and articles that one cannot but be amazed. P.N. Lepeshinsky says: “If Lenin read a book, his visual and mental apparatus worked with such speed that seemed like a miracle to outsiders. His receptivity in reading the book was phenomenal.” P.N. Lepeshinsky also conveys the memories of his wife, who sailed with V.I. Lenin on a steamer from Krasnoyarsk to Minusinsk into exile and watched Vladimir Ilyich read a book: “He had some kind of serious book in his hands (it seems in a foreign language). In less than half a minute, his fingers turned over a new page. She wondered if he was reading line by line, or just gliding through the pages of a book with his eyes. Vladimir Ilyich, somewhat surprised by the question, replied with a smile: - Well, of course, I read ... And I read it very carefully, because the book is worth it. – But how do you manage to read page after page so quickly? Vladimir Ilyich replied that if he had read more slowly, he would not have had time to read all that he needed to get acquainted with.

  Franklin Delano Roosevelt was one of the quickest and most voracious readers of all government leaders. Various sources report that he was able to read an entire paragraph at a glance, completing any book, usually in one sitting. Roosevelt studied speed reading with fanaticism.

  It is known that Roosevelt started in this area with average reading speeds, which he decided to seriously work on increasing. Among his first achievements was to increase the area originally covered by the suspension to four words, and subsequently Roosevelt increased this number to six and, further, to eight words.

  Balzac's way of speed reading

  This is how Balzac described his way of reading: “The absorption of thought in the process of reading has reached a phenomenal ability in me. The gaze caught seven or eight lines at once, and the mind comprehended the meaning at a speed corresponding to the speed of the eyes. Often a single word made it possible to grasp the meaning of a whole phrase.

  Chernyshevsky's speed reading skills

  Chernyshevsky could simultaneously write an article and dictate to the secretary a translation from German. Bekhterev explains this phenomenon by the ability to instantly switch his attention from one object to another, creating the appearance of maintaining two centers of excitation.

  How to readWashington

  Washington read the morning papers only aloud. He carefully listened to the text, mumbled and interfered with his neighbors. He claimed that reading aloud helped him understand the meaning of the text and separate the truth from the lies.

  Monk Raymond Lullia knew the tricks of speed reading...

  An Italian monk who lived in the Middle Ages, Raymond Lullia, proposed a reading system that allowed you to quickly read books, but until the 50s of the last century, speed reading was the lot of a few bright thinkers and politicians who developed this skill on their own. Among the famous people who owned speed reading, it is enough to list such great people as Honore de Balzac, Napoleon, Pushkin, Chernyshevsky, Lenin, John Kennedy.

  Speed ​​Reading and Martin Eden

  “Clothes hung in a narrow closet, and there were books that no longer fit either on the table or under the table. While reading, Martin used to take notes, and they accumulated so much that he had to stretch ropes across the room and hang notebooks on them like drying linen. As a result, it became quite difficult to move around the room. Martin often cooked while sitting, because while the water was boiling or the meat was frying, he had time to read two or three pages.

  He worked for three. He slept only five hours, and only iron health gave him the opportunity to endure the daily nineteen hours of hard work. Martin didn't waste a single minute. Behind the frame of the mirror, he plugged leaves with explanations of certain words and with the designation of their pronunciation: when he shaved or combed his hair, he repeated these words. The same leaves hung over the kerosene stove, and he memorized them when he cooked or washed the dishes. Sheets changed all the time. Having met an incomprehensible word while reading, he immediately climbed into the dictionary and wrote out the word on a piece of paper, which he hung on the wall or on the mirror. Martin carried leaflets with words in his pocket and looked into them on the street or while waiting in line in a shop. Martin applied this system not only to words. Reading the works of authors who have achieved fame, he noted the features of their style, presentation, plot construction, characteristic expressions, comparisons, witticisms - in a word, everything that could contribute to success. And he wrote and studied everything. He did not seek to imitate. He was only looking for some general principles. He compiled long lists of literary devices observed in various writers, which allowed him to draw general conclusions, and, starting from them, he developed his own new and original devices and learned to apply them with tact and measure. In the same way, he collected and recorded successful and colorful expressions from live speech - expressions that burned like fire, or, on the contrary, gently caressed the ear, standing out like bright spots among the dull desert of philistine chatter. Martin was always and everywhere looking for the principles underlying the phenomenon. He tried to understand how a phenomenon arises in order to be able to create it himself. Martin could only work consciously. Such was his nature; he could not work blindly, not knowing what was coming out from under his hands, relying only on chance and on the star of his talent. Random luck did not satisfy him. He wanted to know "how" and "why".

  Speed ​​Reading and Stalin

  Stalin's library contained almost all Russian literary classics: both individual books and Collected Works. There were especially many books by Pushkin and about Pushkin. His library contained all Russian and Soviet encyclopedias, a large number of dictionaries, especially dictionaries of the Russian language and dictionaries of foreign words, and various kinds of reference books.

  Stalin looked through most of his books, and read many of them very carefully. Some books he read several times. Stalin read books, as a rule, with a pencil, and more often with several colored pencils in his hands and on the table. He underlined many phrases and paragraphs, made notes and inscriptions in the margins. Iosif Vissarionovich looked through or read several books a day. He himself told some of the visitors to his office, pointing to a fresh stack of books on his desk: "This is my daily norm - 500 pages."

  Karl Marx made books "slaves"

  Karl Marx said: "Books are my slaves" - and streaked the margins of each book he read with marks and notes, folding and laying the pages he needed.

  Hitler's speed reading system Curiously, Hitler also had his own reading system. In his free time and during his unemployment, he indiscriminately swallowed political and scientific and technical literature, which, in pamphlets, treatises, pamphlets and in fast-paced little books, quenches the thirst for knowledge. First, he leafed through the books, usually from the end, and checked whether they were worth reading. If it was worth it, he would read exactly what he needed, in order to defend in his own way with still other examples his ideas, which had been established since the days of Vienna and Munich. He intensively worked through publications only when they reported facts that, as he believed, should someday be ready as evidence. Every day, early in the morning or late in the evening, I worked through one significant book. Hitler did not study thoroughly, universally, but he never studied without diligence. He calmly considered only what he recognized. According to the secretary, in his personal library there were no classics, not a single work characterized by humanity and spirituality. What he sometimes regretted was that he was doomed to refuse to read fiction, and could only read non-fiction.

  Think about what you read Read a piece - mentally repeat what you learned and check how you understood it. Without notes, you are unlikely to understand something. Therefore, students write for the speaker. Are all the terms in the textbook familiar? The more incomprehensible words, the lower the reading speed. You can skip one term, but if there are a lot of them, then the understanding of the text will not be high. Look for Alternatives to Reading Sometimes it turns out that it is much better to ask for advice from a smarter person than to figure it out yourself. It is also possible to reformulate the question and find out some of the information from alternative sources of information. Read at the pace of your thinking Haste is the constant forgetting of something. What doesn't go easy, doesn't go at all. Great is the Lord, who has made everything complex difficult to understand, and the unnecessary incredibly difficult. Mastering the sciences is not running from word to word according to the principle "the faster you run, the more you learn." Reading is study, training, intimacy. Slow reading develops abilities. If we read at the usual speed, then assimilation is complete. When reading, linger on difficult sections of the book. What is familiar - run through your eyes. Read important text very slowly. The effect of speed reading is not to read texts as quickly as possible, but to find solutions from difficult situations as quickly as possible.

Each person periodically faces the need to learn material of various content and volume. This is easy for some, but the vast majority of people face difficulties, not knowing how to quickly memorize a given amount of text.

The work of the human brain has not yet been 100% studied, we only know that we use a small part of the brain's abilities. The psychological processes that take place in the human mind are amenable to daily training. Memory and other mechanisms of consciousness can be developed to unprecedented heights. A strong memory will make it possible to achieve success in any area of ​​human life, it will be needed in "everyday" life, study, and it will easily increase intellectual abilities.

To learn a text, artistic or scientific content, you will need constant memory training with exercises specially designed for this. Human memory is divided into visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory and tactile. It is the ability to memorize and store any amount of information.

Each type of memory develops differently in people. It is easier for someone to memorize the text by saying it out loud, and for someone, on the contrary, it is better absorbed after visualizing what has been read. Therefore, it is important to understand which type of memory is better developed in order to use it for memorization in the future.

The same information can be learned well in several ways. There are three ways to remember necessary material in short time.

• Method of rational memorization;

It is based on the use of logical memory. In the process of rational memorization, the semantic and logical connection of the material with life experience is fixed in the mind. With rational memorization, there is an awareness of the read text and information is easier to perceive. This method helps to remember the material by heart, trains intellectual abilities and increases knowledge.

• Method of mnemotechnical memorization;

This is the most interesting way out of three. It helps to remember non-semantic information, due to processing into images and associative links. Mnemotechnical memorization is based on the life experience gained, translating the text into images familiar to the mind. This method helps to remember a large amount of material that does not carry a semantic load. It can be dates, phone numbers, names, addresses. It helps fight everyday forgetfulness by increasing the possibility of rote remembering what is happening.

• mechanical memory method.

This method involves memorizing the material. It is considered ineffective and difficult to train, as it can fail at any moment, “falling out” of memory. With age, the ability to rote memorization deteriorates.

memorization techniques

To quickly assimilate the text, different memorization methods are used. One of the most effective method thoughtful reading. It is well suited for memorizing large and small volumes. This method is used by actors who, like no one else, need to know how to quickly memorize a text.

• First, slowly and carefully read the text that needs to be remembered. Better to read it aloud. When reading, it is necessary to understand the main idea of ​​the text, its main plot, so that you can remember it faster.
• If the amount of material is large, we break it into semantic parts. Each part must be learned separately, finding in them the main words or phrases in meaning. This will help in the future, restore all the text in order.
• After that, you need to rewrite the entire text, manually. This should be done slowly, delving into the essence of what is written.
• After everything is rewritten, we retell what we remember. You need to remember the smallest details, based on keywords. If you can’t remember some moment, it’s better not to peep into the records, but try to do it yourself. You can only watch in case of emergency.
• Further, we rewrite for the second time only what we remembered without prompting.
• At the last stage, we carefully reread the text again and retell it. It's best to do this before bed.

This memorization method is suitable for learning text verbatim. It will help students, pupils of the school and everyone who needs to know how to learn a large amount of information in a short time. Theater and film actors use this method to remember their roles.

Tricks for quick memorization

There are some more simple but very effective tricks for memorizing the entire text, based on the nuances of how our brain works. For this you need:

• Highlight the main points in the text with a bright marker;

This will allow you not to be distracted by the extra part of the text. Actors thus highlight their phrases in the script.

• Sing words or text;

This is a non-standard memorization method. Having sung the material, he will better get into memory and it can be remembered faster.

• You need to read until the meaning becomes completely clear;

It is very important to feel the feelings and emotions, if it is fiction, that the characters experience.

• After reading, ask yourself questions about the content;
• Read aloud with expression;
• Write the text with the other hand;

If you are left-handed, write with your right, if you are right-handed, write with your left. This tricky way will make the brain spend more effort on analyzing all the written material.

• Find a training partner;

Actors rehearse in pairs, it helps in the work. You can also ask a friend to test you on the knowledge of all the material. In a company, learning by heart is more interesting and much easier.

• Record the text on the voice recorder;

Record the text on a recording device and listen to it during the day, while doing ordinary activities or during a trip. This will help you memorize a voluminous text without being distracted from other things and without wasting extra time.

Memory needs to be constantly trained. Remembering information consists of encoding it and sending it to a special part of the brain for further storage. If information is needed, it is easy to remember. When it is not used for a long time, the brain will remove it as unnecessary. Forgetting is inherent in a person, it happens after a certain time. This is a natural mechanism of the brain and it helps not to overload the brain with unnecessary information, and if it is not used, it disappears from memory over time.

Many stories can be told about the benefits of this skill. Let me give you one of the most striking examples.

In 2007, Englishwoman Anne Jones, a six-time world speed reading champion, read the latest book about the adventures of Harry Potter in 47 minutes. It turns out that she absorbed about 4,200 words per minute. Ann then briefly described the affair for British media(God, not for nothing). A grandmaster result, which was then envied by millions of people all over the world: they had to satisfy their curiosity all night and the next day too.

But is everything as simple as it seems at first glance? Before answering this question, it is worth going over the theory.

How do we read

Reading is a methodical, mechanical process if one is for enjoyment and does not waste time thinking about complex and unfamiliar concepts. Here's how it goes...

You are looking at a word or a couple of words. It is called fixation and takes approximately 0.25 seconds. Then you move your eyes to the next word or group of words. It is called abruptly and takes an average of 0.1 seconds. After several such repetitions, you pause to understand the phrase you just read. This takes approximately 0.3–0.5 seconds. And so in a circle. As a result, we get that the average native speaker of the Russian language masters about 200 words per minute.

Speed ​​reading reduces the duration of delays and their number, due to which it increases.

Speed ​​Reading Techniques

Among the main speed reading techniques, four of the most common can be distinguished.

1. With the method quick slip a person evaluates areas of the text and extracts important parts from them. Despite the fact that this approach is considered to be a speed reading method, you do not learn to read faster, but you train in finding sections of text that can be skipped.
2. With the method regression exceptions a person leads his eyes along the lines with a certain rhythm with the help of a pen (or without it), thereby excluding the involuntary return and rereading of phrases.
3. With the method expansion of peripheral vision a person covers a larger amount of text in one eye contact, reducing the number of glance translations. An additional advantage of this technique is the reduction of eye strain.
4. With the method quick visual sequence the entire text is broken up into separate words, which flash one by one at high speed in the middle of the screen of any electronic device. Eye movement does not occur at all.

What's wrong with shorthand

Speed ​​reading is a good skill see at least 1,000 words per minute. Nevertheless, it is impossible to truly understand the vastness of these words. This is evidenced by a study conducted by a group of cognitive psychologists from the United States led by Keith Rayner, one of the most respected scientists in the study of eye movements, visual perception and reading.

The study found that there is a trade-off between reading speed and accuracy. It is unlikely that readers will be able to double or triple the speed and still maintain their usual level of absorption.

This is due to the anatomy of the eyes, the features of human short-term memory and the limited capabilities of the brain to process visual information. Visual acuity and concentration levels are noticeably reduced when trying to cover a large amount of text.

Speed ​​reading is useful when getting simple information, such as reading news or mail. If a deep understanding is not required at all, then sliding through the text may be in place: you know the proposed material well and want to clarify only a few details. In many other situations, on the contrary, it is necessary to slow down and reread the text in order to.

The surest way to read faster

At the conclusion of their scientific research, psychologists give a simple formula for speeding up the reading process.

Constant reading practice makes you a better native speaker by expanding your vocabulary. This is a sure way to learn to read faster without sacrificing understanding of the meaning.

Do you practice shorthand? Can you confirm or refute the opinion of scientists?