Are You Ready?

Memorization is a skill that can be practiced and developed over time.  Everyone has the ability to memorize.  For some the skill comes very easily.  For others it may require a lot of hard work.  But the fact remains, it is an ability that anyone can develop with enough consistent effort.

The Memory Muscle

You may have heard it said that the skill of memorization is like a muscle.  Put it under some stress, give it time to recover, and you will begin to see growth in your ability to memorize.  An easy way to strengthen your memory muscle is to work on short bursts of memorization and review each day.

Imagine going to the gym to strengthen your bicep muscles by performing bicep curls.  In order not to injure yourself, it is important to do a warm-up set of curls before adding more weight to the dumb bells.  This is the same as the review part of memory work.  Start your memorization for the day with a few minutes of review.  This could be the verses you worked on yesterday, last week, or last month.  If you are new to memorizing, then you could begin by simply reading the passage you want to memorize.

After a warm up, you are ready for the real deal.  Add some weight to your dumb bell, perform a set of bicep curls and then put the weight down before attempting another set.  In memorization, the real work happens when you break up the passage into small sections and work on each section in a practice loop.  Say the loop five times (this is one "set") before taking a short break.  Then after about 5 minutes, come back to the loop and practice another set of five.  You could perform a total of 3 sets before finishing.  When you feel up to it, use the break to learn the next section of the passage.

End your memory work session by putting together all that you have learned of the passage you are memorizing.  If you worked on short passages, practice reciting each one you learned.  Then take note of what you learned today so you can use it as a warm up review for tomorrow.

Use It or Lose It

Memorization is a skill that can be gained and lost depending on how often you use it.  This is true in a larger sense with the skill as a whole.  If you take a lot of time off from memorization, it can feel difficult to get started up again.  Like the physical muscles in your body, your memory muscle may atrophy (become weaker) when it is not used regularly.

The same can be said for specific material that you have memorized in the past.  The more you have reviewed it, the more it is cemented in your memory and the easier it is to recall that information at a later time.  Short-term memorization, learning material that you access for a test or other purpose and then never review, will not stick with you long-term.

So, Are You Ready or Are You Rusty?

This brings us to the main point of this blog post.  Are you ready for Bible Bee season?  Is your memory muscle primed and running smoothly?  Or is it a bit rusty and in need of a tune up?  For some, this may be the first time doing Bible Bee and in that case, the memory muscle needs to warm up.

If you want to get your memory muscle moving again or just strengthen it a bit before jumping into the Summer Study, we have compiled a list of the Top 35 Most Popular Memory Passages from the past seven years of Bible Bee.  These are passages that have been on the Primary list of Nationals memory passages at least three times in the past several years.

Will some of these show up on the 2021 list?  We have no idea!  But they are all incredibly encouraging passages that will edify you, and help you get your brain in gear.

Click here to find a printable PDF.  Choose one, two, five, or more passages that you want to memorize and review between now and the start of the Summer Study.

Tips and Ideas

Set a reasonable goal for yourself.  It is great to be excited and ambitious, but it can be discouraging and easy to give up if you set a goal that is not realistic for you to accomplish.  Be sure to consider your school work, family responsibilities, and other priorities when choosing a goal.

Make a plan and stick to it.  This can be as simple as committing to working on memorization and review every week day.  You can be more specific with a plan by setting aside a certain time of day or by making weekly or even daily goals for yourself.

Find fun ways to memorize and review.  Make up some fun songs or hand motions.  Draw pictures or write out the passage you are learning.  Recite for a parent, sibling, or friend.  Here are some things our kids have done while memorizing:

• Sit high up in a tree
• Bounce on an exercise ball
• Walk around the yard
• Do push ups, sit ups, or another activity in between memory work sets
• Work outside in a sunny (or shady) spot
• Knit/crochet or even bounce a ball while working

How ever you choose to do it, enjoy the process of strengthening your memory muscle!