Memory is a very important and fundamental ability. In daily life and work, we often experience some setbacks caused by memory problems (the annoying Ebbinghaus forgetting curve). We also use many checklists and personal knowledge base tools, but our responses are still somewhat sluggish.
According to information processing theory, our memory system is like a storage system. It has sensory memory (sensory memory, short-term “storage” for five major perceptions such as hearing and vision), working memory (working memory, information encoding, extraction and other calculations), and long-term memory (Long-term memory, which is equivalent to the hard disk of a computer and has unlimited capacity). We need to drive children’s memory systems to operate through various game activities so that they can become more and more accurate and efficient. Children will therefore benefit for life.
This article will present some classic memory games according to the classification of two important perception-related memories: visual memory (Visual Memory) and auditory memory (auditory memory), and long-term memory (long-term memory). Parents can adjust the difficulty according to the actual situation of their children.
Visual memory
- Memory detective (Missing item)
Place several items on the desktop. After the child has seen them, quietly take away one item and let the child guess which item is missing. If this memory task is just a monotonous training form, their interest will not last. It should be transformed into a game form that children can easily recognize, as follows:
Change it into a detective game. After the child has seen the items, “close your eyes when it’s dark.” The parent plays the role of a “thief” and takes away one item. “Open your eyes when it’s dawn.” The child, as a “detective,” guesses which item the “thief” has taken. If the guess is correct, not only will the “thief” return the item, but also get 2 points. If the guess is wrong, the thief will keep the item. When there are only 2 items left on the desktop, the thief wins. When there are no fewer items on the desktop and the accumulated points reach 5, the detective wins.
Or change it into a competitive nature. The child and the parents take turns guessing. One point is obtained for a correct guess and one point is deducted for a wrong guess. The one with the most points in the end wins.
In this kind of parent-child game, children always win more and lose less. Let them win, but they can’t always win and make them feel that the game is boring.
- Camera (Memory Master)
Place several items on the desktop. After the child has seen them, let him recall what items there are and even some detailed information. This can be a competition in which adults and children take turns to see whose brain is like a “camera.” The game can be played in multiple rounds, and the difficulty gradually increases. The number of items increases from less to more. The winner of each round gets 1 point. The player who accumulates points first to the specified value wins and gets the title of “camera.”
In this game, you can try to introduce the elaboration strategy of the game, that is, establish relationships between items by means of connection. For example, place on the table: cup, Lego block, toothpaste and toothbrush. Among them, cup, toothpaste, and toothbrush can form a familiar brushing scene for him. Of course, older children can better master this strategy.
- 3D copy (The Coin Game)
Arrange a series of coins on the desktop, such as 2 dimes, 2 nickels, and 1 yuan. After the child observes, cover the coins. The child picks out coins that are consistent with the queue from the piggy bank and “copies” another column in the same order. Compared with the previous two games, this one is not only about the combination of items, but also the arrangement relationship among them.
It is recommended to play this game by replacing coins with dice. In this process, some memory strategies can be introduced to children.
