Best tricks to help you learn fast
There are so many things to learn and so little time – this is a well-known feeling among schoolchildren, but among adults as well. Hence, fast learning may appear as a superpower everyone desires to possess.
But, what exactly is fast learning?
First, it should be said that fast learning is not the same as last-minute learning or cramming before a test. Although some students resort to this type of learning, it is not very effective given that the knowledge acquired this way is not very durable.
In contrast, fast learning is a set of methods and techniques that help us accelerate our acquisition of knowledge, without having to sacrifice knowledge retention and comprehension.
It is an attempt to reduce the time needed to adopt information, while retaining comprehension quality and its durability in our memory.
Is fast learning suitable for primary school students?
Same as older students, primary school students often feel that they have too many responsibilities:
- Who can manage to cover all the lessons from so many different subjects, and yet have enough time to play and spend time with friends.
Therefore, fast learning can be a useful aid, because it helps students acquire important knowledge quickly and efficiently, leaving them more time for other, equally important activities.
In addition, a quick understanding of new ideas, adoption of information and application of concepts are all very important in today’s world. It is often mistakenly believed that only geniuses have the ability to quickly adopt new ideas. However, anyone can speed up their learning process using certain techniques and strategies. With these tricks, the speed and quality of your child’s learning will increase, so they will have more time for hobbies and leisure activities.
How to learn fast?
Students often deceive themselves when they say they have spent several hours studying. The reality is that a good part of that time is spent checking their social media, daydreaming and stalling. This is why, among other things, the studying environment should be free of distractions.
However, for learning to be truly effective, the only thing that should count is the number of repetitions, i.e. time during which the child was genuinely focused on studying. It is like in the gym: watching TV does not count, the only thing that does is the number of exercises and workout series you did. Hence, the most successful athletes and artists emphasize that repetition is crucial for mastering any skill.
The same goes for learning.
But, how do you apply this principle into practice?
It’s simple: throw away your watch. Instead of saying: “I will study for two hours”, the child should set a task to repeat the material a certain number of times. This way, children won’t deceive themselves, nor wait for the “bell” to save them: studying is over only when the task is done.
This approach will significantly shorten the learning process, and the time the child normally spent trying to get themselves to study can now be spent playing or engaging in another useful activity. In result, children will quickly learn to appreciate this form of studying.
According to some research, micro learning is one of the most effective methods of knowledge acquisition. It involves mastering smaller quantities of information in a shorter period of time. This form of studying is related to the way the human brain operates. Covering each chunk separately will help the child to better master the details of each lesson. When we try to cover a whole lesson all at once, we may be confused by the sheer amount of information, which may cause us to feel perplexed.
How to apply this principle?
It is simple. The child should break a lesson into smaller, meaningful chunks and focus on mastering each chunk individually. They shouldn’t move on to the next chunk until they master the previous one.
After mastering one section/chunk, it is time to complement it with the next one.
How do you apply this principle?
It is simple, each section is complemented with the next one, until the child masters the whole lesson. This way, all parts of the lesson will merge into a whole, and this is useful, because the child will see how different elements relate to each other, thus gaining a deeper understanding of the material. Thanks to this approach, the child will later be able to relate and link the material from different subjects into a whole. Specifically, a lesson from one subject referring to a particular phenomenon will represent one chunk that will be complemented and expanded with the lesson from another subject that addresses the same phenomenon. This way, the child acquires multidisciplinary knowledge which is more extensive, durable and applicable.
Every game entails rules and rewards, and it is the rewards that encourage us to form habits. This is why transforming learning into a game is a good way to make learning into a habit that will be easy to keep.
How do you apply this principle?
It is simple: devise rules and rewards for your child. For example, reward them with something they like for each successfully mastered part/chunk, just make sure you do not go too far with rewards. Children will be motivated to study, and thus master even the more complex material more quickly and efficiently.
Rest and recovery play an important role in the success of every athlete. It is similar in studying. To learn something quickly and effectively, we need to be well-rested, otherwise, our minds will wander, studying will take longer and won’t be as effective. So, let your child rest.
How do you apply this principle?
First, the child should be rested when they start studying. This way, they will be able to focus and be as efficient as possible. When they get tired, they should rest, and then continue studying. Follow this simple formula:
- Study, rest, study.
- Good sleep is crucial.
This tip is related to the previous one. Maybe your grandparents told you to put a book under a pillow and sleep on it. Recent research confirms this folk wisdom, i.e. the connection between sleep and learning:
- Sleeping between two studying sessions may increase knowledge retention up to 6 months.
How do you apply this principle?
Let the child repeat what they learned that day before bed, and in the morning after they wake up. If certain information is the last thing their brain received before bed, and the first thing they recall after waking up, they will memorize them better.
Fast learning techniques
In addition to these general rules that help you to learn faster and retain knowledge longer, there are numerous hacks for fast learning. They are actually tips for faster learning of particular areas or skills, such as reading, mathematics, or foreign languages.
We will present effective and proven techniques to help primary school students acquire some of the most important knowledge and skills quickly and efficiently.
Fast (speed) reading
When they asked Bill Gates which superpower he wished he possessed, he answered: fast reading.
George Stancliffe, a man who discovered tips for speed reading and writing over 20 years ago, says it is easier to teach children than adults.
All you need to do is take care of these 4 items:
- Natural vision: ability to recognize more than one word at a time;
- Visualization: ability to envision stories in your mind as vividly as if watching a movie;
- Ability to relax: you need to be relaxed in order to focus and visualize things more successfully;
- Daily practice; discipline and diligence work wonders, so practice with your child every day.
One of the exercises that helps children improve their reading speed is:
- Reading with a stopwatch.
Set the timer to one minute and ask the child to read a certain passage. Check if they made any errors. Repeat the words they struggle with, and then tell them to read the passage one more time. Reading should be faster and more fluid this time. This exercise is very effective, because it breaks reading into one-minute chunks, which gives the child enough strength and concentration for repetitions. In addition, keep statistics of error reduction and reading speed increases to improve your child’s motivation when they see the progress they have made.
However, although reading speed ultimately affects learning speed, remember: reading speed is not crucial in primary school. The primary goal is to teach your child to read fluently and to understand what they’ve read, so focus on that first.
Quick learning of the multiplication table
In order to be able to learn mathematics fast, the child first needs to learn the multiplication table. After that, everything becomes a little easier.
The multiplication table is daunting to many. At first glance, it contains as many as 100 items that one must memorize. However, if we use the following learning tricks for the multiplication table, the child will master it in no time:
- Multiplying by 1 is easy, each number multiplied by 1 gives the same result as the number itself: 1 x 8 = 8;
- Multiplying by 10 is also easy, we only need to add a zero to the number: 2 x 10 = 20;
- When the factors change places, the result remains unchanged: 3 x 2 = 6; 2 x 3 = 6;
- Multiplying by 2 is easy, you just need to add the target number to itself: 2 x 3 = 3 + 3 = 6.
After this, it is time to learn to multiply by 3 and 4. These multiplications must be learned by heart, however, the good news is that once the child masters them, they are very close to mastering the multiplication table:
- Multiplication by 3 is learned by first learning to add number 3 to the number sequence: 3, 6, 9, 12, etc. It is very important that the child learns this sequence by heart, and to pronounce it quickly and fluently. Then you should ask them how much is 3 x 1, 3 x 2, 3 x 3, and they should give answers one by one, following the sequence they learned previously. Once they master it, you can change the order of questions until they learn to answer them too;
- The same principle applies to number 4. First you teach them to count: 4, 8, 12, 16, etc. and then repeat the same process as when multiplying by 3.
After they’ve mastered multiplication by 3 and 4, your child is very close to mastering the whole multiplication table:
- Learning to multiply by 5 is easy, because the result always ends in 5 or 0;
- The trick for multiplying by 9: the result of multiplying by 9 is a number the sum of whose digits is always 9. For example:
9 x 2 = 18 (8 + 1 = 9).
In addition, the first digit of the result is always a number obtained by reducing 1 from the factor different than 9:
9 x 2 = 18 (number 1 equals 2 minus 1).
This rule applies to all numbers multiplied by 9:
9 x 1 = 09
9 x 2 = 18
9 x 3 = 27
9 x 4 = 36
9 x 5 = 45
9 x 6 = 54
9 x 7 = 63
9 x 8 = 72
9 x 9 = 81
9 x 10 = 90
- After this, the only thing the child needs to remember is that 6 x 6 = 36, 7 x 7 = 49, 8 x 8 = 64, and then only 3 items remain: 7 x 6 = 42, 6 x 8 = 48, 7 x 8 = 56.
Using these techniques, the child will learn the multiplication table quickly and easily.
Quick learning of foreign words
Learning any foreign language involves adopting a series of rules, from grammar to spelling. But, the most important thing when learning a foreign language is to build an extensive vocabulary. Many students struggle to memorize new words, the learning process takes too long, and they often fail to see the desired results unless they move to the country where they have the opportunity to actually use the given language. Applying the techniques for quick learning of any foreign language will help your child to shorten this process and make it more effective:
- Use mind maps
Mind maps can be useful for the acquisition of various information, they strengthen memorization abilities, and are particularly effective in learning foreign words. Different learning styles may require different maps: visual, verbal, etc, but each of them can be adapted to your child’s inclinations and talents.
How do you create a mind map for foreign languages?
Group words together by topic to create a meaningful whole, thus helping the child to memorize them. If the child is learning words related to food, write the central term on the board, paper or another surface in the child’s native language and next to it, the same term in the target language. You can add pictures of the terms to help visual learners. Food includes meals, desserts, meat, fruit, vegetables, drinks. Write the word in the target language next to each word in the child’s native language.
Then write a few common words that refer to these concepts below. For example, you can write the following below the word meal: breakfast, dinner, supper, or bananas, apples, kiwi below fruit.
This way, the words will be grouped naturally and the child will memorize them more easily. However, in order for a mind map to be truly efficient, it needs to be visible so the child can refresh their memory. Repeating the material one has already learned, especially when it comes to words of a foreign language, is the surest way to master a foreign language.
- Songs and cartoons
Children learn best through play, and watching their favorite cartoon or learning a song in a foreign language by heart is one of the most effective ways to adopt new words. There is a small trick that can help you with this.
Find your child’s favorite foreign language cartoon and play it. Since he/she has already watched it countless times in their native language, they will understand what is happening even when the cartoon is in a language they do not speak, and start adopting new words.
- Applications
Language learning applications such as Duolingo can be a great complement to regular foreign language education, and a way to quickly acquire vocabulary. Instead of rote memorization of new words, Duolingo offers interactive lessons and tests that help children to learn new words and expressions simply and efficiently.
- Talk to your child in a foreign language
If you speak the language your child is learning, you can occasionally talk with them in that language. A new language is best learned through conversation and practical use. That way, the child will master the target language, link concepts and expand their vocabulary, but above all, this approach ensures the durability of knowledge, because if a foreign language is not regularly used, it will start to deteriorate.
You know that when you go abroad and use English intensively for a few days, your vocabulary expands and your pronunciation improves. Therefore, encourage your child to use the foreign language as often as possible.
Innovative educational practices for the fastest progress of the child
Fast learning has its place in the order of things, but the most important thing is comprehension and a stress-free learning environment. Therefore, the focus must never be on how to learn fast, but on how to achieve knowledge quality and develop the children’s love of learning.
Education at Allison Academy is based on the most progressive teaching practices that are fully adapted to the individual learning style of each child, thus allowing them to acquire valuable knowledge in the quickest and most efficient way.
Thanks to a personalized curriculum, modern classrooms that encourage studying and research, dedicated teachers, interactive educational technology, and project-based teaching in small groups that allows children to test everything they learn about in practice, Allison Academy guarantees that your child will learn effectively, acquire comprehension and knowledge quality.
The factor that plays a significant role in the speed and quality of knowledge acquisition are multidisciplinary classes where a phenomenon is covered in a unique way and from the perspective of several school subjects. Thus, students learn about the Civil War from the standpoint of geography, history, and literature. This way, learning is contextualized and combined into a whole, and improved comprehension ensures better quality and durability of student knowledge.
From an early age, students at Allison Academy develop their curiosity and love of learning, and once they master these skills, they become lifelong learners who acquire new knowledge with joy and efficiency.
Allow your child to learn with a smile.
