How Does Reading Improve Students’ Memory?
Reading carries a lot of benefits for everybody, especially students. The most obvious one is that books help to expand active vocabulary. How many times did you search for just the right word to express your thoughts? If you are not passionate about reading, then probably a lot. Active readers do that less since they have a large vocabulary. New advanced words that they learn from books eventually make their way into speech.
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Reading is the best brain workout for students
What’s more, reading trains your ability to focus. Since readers need to sort things out in their own mind, they must be completely concentrated on the process. As a result, the ability to focus stays high even after the book is put down. Other advantages of reading are improved critical thinking and analytical skills. And that’s not all! There is a strong link between reading and memory, which we are going to discuss later in this article.
First, you should learn how to find time for reading in a busy student schedule. With numerous assignments, regular college assessments and everyday classes, it’s extremely hard to carve out a few spare hours for things that you like. But there is a good solution for students, which is paper writing services. Probably, the best one is called Edubirdie. Thousands of students turn to it for help with their homework. If you are wondering “is edubirdie legal?”, the answer is – yes! This platform works according to existing regulations, so you can be sure that making an order at Edubirdie won’t cause any problems to you. On the contrary, this service will relieve the burden on your shoulders, so you will have a chance to spend a few hours with your favorite book.
Reading and memory
There are many ways to boost your memory, and reading is one of the most effective. As you need to keep in mind some characters, the setting and past events, you are learning to memorize things better. But it’s important to stick to some rules. First of all, you should choose a quiet place to read, so nothing will disturb you. Also, you can use a highlighter to mark key passages that you want to memorize. To get better results, incorporate reading into your daily routine. Of course, it may be challenging to read every day, but it’s definitely worth your effort. Daily practice will help your memory much more than reading once a week.
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Reading tips for students
To make the most out of reading you should consider the following methodology:
The first step is to get a quick overview of what you are about to read. It’s something like setting up the boundaries of what you are going to learn. It won’t take you much time to look ahead in the chapter. Just read all the headings and the summary if it’s included. This way, you are “priming” your brain, so it will absorb key ideas more easily because they seem familiar. Additionally, you can explain to yourself out loud what the topic is supposed to be about. By doing this, you can also discover gaps in your knowledge.
The next step is called active reading. Once you have determined the boundaries of your theme and created a mental outline, you can thoroughly engage with the text. What does that mean? You must ask questions, challenge the author’s ideas, reread the parts that you don’t understand, make connections with your own life, focus on the author’s use of language and discover deeper meanings. To become a better active reader, you should divide your texts into small chunks, like a few pages or a sub-section. It’s also important to highlight key words, while being as minimalistic with that as possible. And don’t forget to explain to yourself what you just read in your own words.
The last step is reflection. Before you can move on to the next page or chapter, make sure that you understand what you’ve just read. Each section in student textbooks always builds upon the information discussed in the previous one. That’s why, it would be great to reflect on what you learned after reading each chunk. Note that it’s more effective to explain what you just read out loud, using simple language.
Final thoughts
Reading is a powerful tool for students to strengthen their memory retention skills. Apart from that, it improves focus and critical thinking. So if you want to experience those benefits, pick a book you like and enjoy your reading!
Author’s bio
Carla Davis is a study coach and academic writer working at one of the top custom writing companies in the United States. Her job is to help students achieve their ambitious study goals by using effective learning techniques. Carla believes that one of the best ways to expand outlook and deepen knowledge is reading, so she does her best to encourage young people to read as much as possible.
