The healthy human brain has a phenomenal capacity for memory. “Construction of a learners’ brain continues throughout childhood and adolescence, and school years are a golden opportunity to build a better brain rather than watering down assignments and wasting the brain’s potential, Secrets of the Teenage Brain, Sheryl Feinstein (9). True learning has its basis in words and concepts experienced in the past. Remembering is a skill used in learning and should be encouraged as part of the process for making meaning of new information and skills. Many of us remember words from the past that have shaped our ideals and values of today.

Memory work familiarizes learners with language patterns, context, and vocabulary that aid them in making meaning of new concepts. Memory work can also be used as a hook, or thread, between past learning and new learning. Analysis, discussion, and memorization of quotations, poems, famous speeches, etc. and the study of their origins adds to learners’ understanding of the “common knowledge” or “collective memory” of our society, Cultural Literacy, E. D. Hirsch, Jr. Building a strong basis for new learning is a Great Expectations educator’s goal.

Writing is an avenue for learners to manage their emotional lives through self-assessment. Having a strong intrapersonal skill will “increase their enjoyment of life and contribute to their success,” Raising Self-Reliant Children, H. Stephen Glenn, et al (109). Writing can be used to nurture individuality, develop self-expression, and to promote creativity. Speaking and writing are skills learners will need to be workplace-ready and to be life-ready. Offering a variety of venues for speaking and writing builds a habit of putting learning into meaningful context. These skills should be used throughout all learning events as a part of learning not as a separate event or skill used occasionally to meet an objective.

Click on the arrows below the circles to learn more about memory pathways.