Page 158 - A Mind For Numbers: How to Excel at Math and Science

that chocolate milk! Storytelling in general has long been a vitally important way
of understanding and retaining information. Professor Vera Pavri, a historian of
science and technology at York University, tells her students not to think of
lectures as lectures but as stories where there is a plot, characters, and overall
purpose to the discussion. The best lectures in math and science are often framed
like thrillers, opening with an intriguing problem that you just have to figure out.
If your instructor or book doesn’t present the material with a question that leaves

you wanting to find the answer, see if you can find that question yourself—then
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set about answering it. And don’t forget the value of story as you create
memory tricks.

WRITE ON!

“The number one thing I stress when students come to see me is that there is a direct
connection between your hand and your brain, and the act of rewriting and organizing your
notes is essential to breaking large amounts of information down into smaller digestible
chunks. I have many students who prefer to type their notes in a Word document or on
slides, and when these students are struggling, the first thing I recommend is to quit typing
and start writing. In every case, they perform better on the next section of material.”

—Jason Dechant, Ph.D., Course Director, Health Promotion and Development,
School of Nursing, University of Pittsburgh

Muscle Memory

We’ve already mentioned that writing out a card by hand appears to help cement
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ideas in the mind. Although there is little research in this area, many educators
have observed that there seems to be a muscle memory related to writing by
hand. For example, when you first stare at an equation, it can appear utterly

meaningless. But if you thoughtfully write the equation out several times on a
sheet of paper, you will be startled by how the equation will begin to take life
and meaning in your mind. In a related vein, some learners find that reading
problems or formulas aloud helps them understand better. Just be wary of
exercises like writing an equation out a hundred times by hand. The first few
times may give you value, but after a while, it simply becomes a rote exercise—

the time could be better spent elsewhere.