Summary Skills
Every student will have summary methods that are individual to them as the subjects they are using them for. It is important to vary your summary skills set and not get stuck on one method that you have always done and have had success with. Some methods are better suited to different subjects and tasks e.g. mnemonics may fair better for learning lists or facts while spider diagrams better for linking concepts.
Mnemonics: This is a very old method of memorizing lists and organising them. As they are often funny, rude, or explicit, they are sometimes not seen as the creative and effective memory devices that actually aids the process of categorising information that occurs in the brain when trying to remember new facts by linking them to an event, word, or location.
Example 1: A simple childhood mnemonic is used for learning the points of the compass. Naughty Elephants Squirt Water reminds us not only of the points of the compass but in the order they occur when encountered clockwise.
Example 2: Unlike elephants and compasses the best menomics actually relate directly to what it is that has to be learnt. A medical example of this is related to the four muscles surrounding the shoulder (the menomic taken from the first letter of each muscle givens SITS) and it is said that anyone hurting these muscles SITS out from sports or other activities. Given context the mnemonic itself is more useful as a memory tool despite also reminding you of the names of the muscles, the order in which they are located and so on.
Hybridize all of the above: Since each of the above methods is proven to improve study outcomes, it makes sense that the ideal should be to do all of the above at once. Checkout study software generally for this approach where a hybrid of the above is emphasised.
The best menomics are generally personal ones that you generate at the point of learning and if possible are arranged to be in context. You can also use the imagery created e.g. an elephant with a compass in the first example, to remember the information more as images and stories in a method often praised by people who teach people to improve their memory.
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Study skills