Build your first memory palace.
Give every idea a place to remember. Learn the method of loci with a simple route, a few memorable images, and a little recall practice.
Try LectureSketch freeChoose a familiar place
Picture a room or route you know well. Pick a few clear stops you can follow in order.
Add an image for each idea
Connect what you want to learn to something distinctive at each stop.
Walk back through your ideas
Mentally revisit the places and explain what each image helps you remember.
What is the method of loci?
The method of loci is another name for the memory-palace technique. “Loci” means places: you connect information to a series of locations, then revisit those places in your mind to recall it.
Your palace can be as simple as your kitchen. The door, counter, sink, and window give you an order to follow. An imagined object or action at each place reminds you of one idea you want to learn.
1. Choose a short, familiar route.
Pick a place you can picture easily, such as your home or your walk to class. Choose a few distinct stops and move through them in the same order each time.
For your first attempt, keep it small. Try naming five stops from memory before adding any study material. Pick locations that are easy for you to tell apart.
2. Give each stop one clear idea.
Choose the key points you want to remember from a topic. For each one, write a short explanation in your own words, then assign it to a stop on your route.
If you’re learning a process, put the stages in order. If you’re comparing terms, focus on the feature that makes each one different.
3. Turn the ideas into memorable images.
Imagine an object or action that reminds you of each idea. Make the connection easy to explain, and give the image enough movement or detail to stand out.
Try the water cycle: picture a kettle sending steam up from your counter for evaporation, a cloud forming at your window for condensation, and rain falling by your door for precipitation. Walk that route in order and explain each stage.
4. Close your notes and walk the route.
Revisit each stop in your mind. Recall the image, name the idea, and explain it in your own words. Give yourself a chance to answer before checking your notes.
If you miss something, review the explanation and strengthen the image that reminds you of it. Then try that part again. Finish with a practice question that asks you to use what you’ve learned.
5. Come back and see what you remember.
Try the route again after a break and on a later day. Start from memory, then check your answers. Give the ideas you find hardest a little more attention.
As you grow more familiar with the material, practice answering questions in a different order. Explain an idea, compare it with another, or use it to solve a problem from your course.
Start with one lecture.
Turn the material you already have into a memory palace you can learn, revisit, and recall.
Create your first memory sketch