You may notice that for many things you learned in school, you used acronyms to help you remember them. And chances are, many of them you may still recall to this day. For example, you may have had to remember the five Great Lakes in the United States. It is typical for people to remember them by using the acronym “HOMES”: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior. Many people go their entire lives remembering this acronym, while forgetting other things like important birthdays or events during their lifetime!
There are a few more, including Never Eat Sour Watermelons to remember the points on a compass (North, East, South, West—clockwise) or Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge for the lines of music notes—E, G, B, D, F.
You can even use acronyms to help you remember how to spell words. For example, you can use “A Rat in the House May Eat the Ice Cream” to remember how to spell “ARITHMETIC.” Words that are difficult to spell can easily utilize this trick to help you spell them. This is an excellent way to teach children how to study for difficult spelling tests in school—let them create a funny phrase in order to remember how to spell a certain word.
No matter what lists you are trying to remember, acronyms can help you. Make a fun, silly sentence in order to make it memorable and usable for you when it comes to remembering the list. The crazier it is, the more likely you will remember it for future reference!