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Page 102
The Alphabet System
The alphabet system is for remembering letters of the alphabet. It can help with spellings. It works by linking permanently in your mind short words starting with each letter of the alphabet. The words should obviously start with the letter itself. This should be followed by the earliest letter of the alphabet available to make a monosyllabic word. Use a dictionary for this; it will make the task even easier. Here is an example list.
A Ace
B Bee
C Cab
D Dab
E Eat
F Fag
G Gag
H Hag
I Ice
J Jab
K Keg
L Lab
M Mad
N Nag
O Oak
P Pad
Q Q(u)ad
R Rag
S Sac
T Tab
U Up
V Vat
W Wag
X Xmas
Y Yard
Z Zap
Remember to exercise both sides of the brain, the sequential processing left hemisphere and the spatial processing right hemisphere, as you build your stories. Use all the sense impressions, and exploit qualities such as humour, exaggeration, and so on.
Furthermore, the first connections, associations, or rhymes that spring to mind are often the best. Stories with personal meanings are very useful. Stories or statements relating directly to the essence of the material being memorised are particularly so.
Remember, also, that your linkings between the images should be simple. (See page 99.)
Rehearsing the Story
It is not sufficient to simply build a story. You have to rehearse it. This amounts to some degree of overlearning. There is evidence that overlearning strengthens the memory trace and aids recall. Indeed, this is why actors and actresses go over their lines time and time again.
Making Poems Instead of Stories
The technique for making poems is basically the same as for making stories, except that you include rhythm and, in these kinds of poems, rhyme. Poems are easier to remember than stories. Indeed, they were used as memory aids before most people became literate enough to write things down. In oral cultures, knowledge was carried over from generation to generation by means of poems and maxims. The latter

 
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