Memorizing can be done easily by some people, but others have to work hard to do it. There is no magic pill that will instantly improve your memory, but by changing your thinking habits, you can harness the full potential of the memorization skills you already have. You can use memorization strategies to remember dialogue in plays, remember poems to perform in front of the class, or memorize verses for personal use.
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Method 1 of 4: Memorizing Dialogue in Scripts
Step 1. Adapt to the mindset of the character you are playing
It's a good idea to take the time to read the script carefully and think about the character you'll be playing. This will make it easier for you to memorize the dialogue. Diving into a character's motivations and emotions can help to see character dialogue as a reaction to other characters and situations rather than simply memorizing words printed on paper. Read the script thoroughly and ask yourself questions about your character, such as:
- What is he like?
- What emotions does he experience at various stages in the script?
- What does your character want?
Step 2. Identify which one is your dialogue
You don't have to memorize the entire script from cover to cover, unless you're doing a solo show. Before you start memorizing the dialogue your character has to say, it's good to visually identify the dialogue so you can read the script quickly and find your part.
- Use a highlighter to mark all of your dialogue in the script.
- Choose highlighter colors to mark the dialogue before you, which is called the cue dialog. Consider using different colors for each character's cue dialogue if you're going to be speaking after more than one actor.
- When studying dialogue within a script, you can now take a quick look at the page and recognize the introductory dialogue to your dialogue (which you must respond to), and your own dialogue.
Step 3. Write down your dialogue
This step may not be as easy as writing a poem or verse, but it can still be done depending on the length of the script and the amount of dialogue you are part of. Until now, writing is still considered as one of the best ways to help someone memorize something.
- Write your dialogue in handwriting. Writing by hand is more effective at helping you memorize than typing.
- Try to write all of your dialogue in one large paragraph. Then rehearse the scene according to the notes, and practice breaking the paragraphs into separate dialogues based on rote.
- Use a split strategy. Don't write down all the lines of the entire play; break it up into chapters or scenes for easier handling.
Step 4. Practice speaking the dialogue using memory
Just as memorizing poetry is easier if you focus on rhythm, memorizing dialogue in a script is easier if you combine dialogue with physical action. Engaging muscle memory into your workout while you do something distracting can help your brain concentrate on the dialogue and put it into memory.
Try practicing dialogue while cooking, cleaning, or walking/jogging
Step 5. Practice the dialogue with someone
The best way to learn drama dialogue is to practice it with someone else. That way you'll learn your own dialogues as well as learn the cues for when you should enter each one.
- Take the time to listen carefully to the words in the sign dialogue. This should start when you're rehearsing at home with friends, but it's very important to learn the inflections and tone changes of other actors during rehearsals on stage.
- Consider why your character said what he said after the cue dialogue. This can help you memorize the words, and will almost certainly help you develop some kind of emotional component to bringing the words to life.
- Don't forget to inhale while practicing the dialogue. Your breathing pattern should be well-regulated as you step onto the stage, so practice learning the dialogue with proper breathing from the start.
Method 2 of 4: Studying Poetry
Step 1. Choose a poem
As with memorizing verses, it may be easier to start by memorizing a poem you know well. If you have a favorite poem, use it. If not, find a poem that is at least familiar to you.
- It may be helpful to start with a short poem. Trying to memorize a long, lined, whole book of poems can be difficult enough to make you lose your zest for memorizing them.
- In addition to being concise, look for poetry that has a strong rhythmic component. Rhythmic rhythms can help you remember words by nodding or tapping to the beat.
Step 2. Read the poem over and over again
The first step to memorization is appreciation, and poetry is no different. Read the poem over and over again, as many times as possible until you can hear the rhythm and remember each part of the poem from memory alone.
- Make sure you understand the content of the poem before you start memorizing it. What is the poem about? What does the poem mean? Memorizing or writing it down from memory will be much easier if you have a deep understanding of the intricacies of the poem.
- Try combining the tactile components by using your finger to trace the letters in the words printed on the page.
- You can also whisper the poem in a low voice to remember it further.
Step 3. Write the poem
Writing poetry by hand on scrap paper will help to stick the poem into memory. This action forces you to develop muscle memory that relates to the words in the poem.
- Try breaking up, or cutting the poem into easily manageable parts.
- Write down the first or second line of the poem, then practice rewriting one or two lines over and over again. Set a significant, but easy-to-handle number of repetitions (15 or 20 should be enough to make you remember them).
- After you've written one or two lines many times, move on to the next line, and so on.
Step 4. Practice reading poetry from memory
Reading poetry to yourself can test your memory skills as well as help put parts of the poem together that may be difficult for you. Write the poem down on a piece of paper so you have something to reference, and keep it in your pocket and only take it out when you really need it.
- Try combining physical movement with the rhythm of the poem. Go for a walk and use each step as the "footstep" of the poem.
- Check the written (and correct) poetry from time to time to make sure that you haven't memorized it wrong.
Method 3 of 4: Memorizing Verses
Step 1. Choose the verse you want
Instead of starting with just any verse, it might be easier to start with one of your favorite verses. That way, you have some kind of closeness to the verse, and you will be able to remember the general concept of the verse very easily.
- Choose a favorite verse to start with.
- If you don't have a favorite verse, choose a verse that is familiar to your ear and can be easily recognized when you hear/read it.
- Reread the selected verse several times until it is fresh in your memory.
- Also think about the meaning of the verse. What does that verse say? Is there a lesson related to that verse? If so, what lessons are you referring to?
Step 2. Remember where you found the verse
If you are trying to quote verses from the Bible, it is important to know the location of the verse as well as the verse itself. Quoting the Bible requires some skill, but without knowing the appropriate location, you will appear to be not as knowledgeable about the Bible as others.
- Write the location of the verse on a piece of paper, for example, “Peter 2:24” which is an abbreviation for the Book of Peter, chapter 2, verse 24.
- Practice writing verse locations over and over again. This exercise is called rote learning (learning through repetition), and it is considered a very effective memorization technique.
- Say the verse location aloud to yourself as you write it down. Combining the location of the spoken verse with the written number can help stick it into memory.
Step 3. Read the actual verse
Once you have memorized the location of the verse, you are ready to remember the verse itself. This may be more difficult than remembering the location of the verse because the verse is longer and complex compared to the location.
- Write the verse repeatedly on paper. This step can help make the verse stick to memory in the same way you wrote down the verse location.
- Practice saying your chosen verse aloud over and over again. If possible, try to repeat the verse in its entirety without looking at the written version.
Step 4. Combine everything
After studying the verse itself and its location, you should memorize both. You can do this using the same written method used to memorize each component, or you can use a lost word practice to test memory.
- Take a chalkboard or a large sheet of paper.
- Write down the location of the verse, followed by the verse itself. If you are using a whiteboard, write them both down with a marker; if you're using paper, use a pencil or keep an index card nearby to cover the words you want to eliminate.
- Delete or mask various parts of the verse and their locations. Wait a few minutes before you go back to working on the line you're memorizing, see if you can remember the missing words or numbers from the board.
- Another variation of this exercise is to write parts of the verse separately, on the same piece of paper. Then shuffle the pieces of paper and try to arrange them in the right order.
Method 4 of 4: Using Memorization Techniques
Step 1. Use the mnemonic device
Mnemonic sets are memory tricks to help you remember larger pieces of information. The mnemonic kit will be very helpful regardless of what you want to memorize because it will connect the lines you are learning with something you are already familiar with.
- Having a mnemonic device like an acronym (which uses the first letter of each word to form a word or phrase) can make it easier to trigger a memory if you find yourself searching for a word. You may remember at least a few words from that line and may be able to remember the rest of the words if you can remember the acronyms.
- Try memorizing those words by pairing them with the music from a song. Music has proven to be a powerful and reliable technique for doing all kinds of memorization, so linking the line of a verse/poem/script to a familiar and catchy melody can help you remember the line later.
- Use visual associations by associating each word with a visual image that you are quite familiar with. As you read the line of the word you want to memorize, close your eyes and imagine any visual cues to help you remember the line (this technique works best if you can find some sort of correlation between the image and the word line).
- You can also use associations with “stake words” (also called hooks) by listing numbers for each word in the line in question. Match the sound of each number to a visual image (for example, one - me, two - old, and so on), then try to relate the image to the appropriate word in the word line.
- Grouping/breaking up word lines means joining words or lines into one based on common characteristics. This can be helpful if many of the lines you're trying to memorize relate to a particular scene.
- You can use rhyming as a way to connect lines of poetry you need to memorize with words that sound the same. Try saying the word out loud until the rhyming word pops into your head, then say the two words together until they stick to your memory.
Step 2. Develop kinesthetic memory
Kinesthetic memory association uses physical sensations or actions as cues to remember something (in this case, a line from a verse, poem, or text). For example, you can use certain actions/movements when training a word line so that you later associate the word line with the appropriate movement. Or, you can imagine how something would feel (for example, getting into a warm bath slowly) and use the memory of that physical sensation as a cue/hint for a line of words that reminds you of that sensation.
Step 3. Try downloading the app
You can download a number of apps for your phone or tablet. Some apps give you advice or tips, while others allow you to actually download the script and practice with the device.
- Search the internet for the appropriate application for your device.
- Try to strike a balance between price and usability. If you can afford it, it can't hurt to spend some money on apps that are really useful and can help you learn lines of words faster.
Step 4. Develop the memory palace technique
If you've watched the television series Sherlock, you're probably familiar with the titular character's “castle of mind.” However, you may not realize that the technique is actually a real memorization trick. The memory palace, also called the locus (location) method, has been in use for more than 2,000 years, since the time of the Greek poet Simonides. Today this technique is used by some memory experts to remember 100-digit numbers, the order of a deck of cards, and so on.
- Visualize a physical place that is complex and large enough to hold a pool of physical memory (if such a thing exists).
- Many people use their childhood home because it is the easiest to remember, but any physical space (indoor or outdoor) can be used.
- If using an indoor location, break the room into separate rooms, then make different locations for each room. If using an outdoor location, try something specific like a specific street with multiple addresses.
- Give a little ornament or overstatement for the "thing" that you will "keep" in memory. For example, instead of a wool blanket, imagine a sheep that can talk and shears its own wool.
- Keep verses, stanzas, lines or any type of writing that you have to memorize on the walls and corners of every room in your memory palace.
