Review Systems

Posted on November 10, 2014 Bethany Meckle 29 comments

As many of you reading this probably already know, Memverse has a great review system. The Memverse review system is probably one of the best ones out there on the internet. But what about when you don't have access to the internet or a computer? How do you both memorize those flash cards and keep them up to date?

There are many ways you can do this, but I've combined a few and added some things of my own to create a review system that has been helping me. Now, I only started using this review system a couple of weeks ago, so I can't say for sure how it will work out in the end, but it seems to be working so far.

Set Up
I have a wooden box that is divided into four squares. Each of the four squares just fits the width of an index card, so I use index cards as my flash cards (at least until Bible Bee starts up again; then I'll have to trim down their verse cards to fit). Of course, you don't have to use a box! You can use piles of cards on your desk, plastic bags, flower pots - whatever works for you.

On each of my flash cards, I drew eleven circles. That's right, eleven - not ten. (This will be important later.) Every time I recite the verse correctly (no prompts, start-overs, or mistakes), I make a mark in one of the circles. One catch - I can only make one to two marks per day, no matter how many times that day I recite it correctly. But if I want to make two marks, I must recite the verse once in the morning and once in the evening, not back to back. (Reciting them with a good amount of time in between is important! When I was memorizing the short passages for Bible Bee Nationals, I often memorized the verse quickly and recited it quickly and considered it memorized, but I wouldn't be able to recite it the next day. I had it memorized in my short term memory, but not long term.)

The System
Step One: "Don't Know It Yet"
This is the first square in my box, the first place a verse card goes once I've made the card. The cards in this box are those I am not actively trying to memorize but know I will be working on soon. I read through these three or more times per week to get an idea of what they are about.

Step Two: "Working On It..."
This is the second square in my box. Once I am ready to begin memorizing a verse, the card is moved here. I read through these at least five times a day, not counting the times I try to recite it without looking. I can start making marks in those circles on the cards now. A card stays in this square until I have recited it two times.

Step Three: "Almost There..."
This is the third square in my box. Now that I have made two marks on my verse card, the card moves here. These verses I read through at least ten times a day. I must recite this verse correctly five times before it can move on. (Like I said in the "Set Up" section, though, only 1-2 correct recitations per day count towards the marks.)

Step Four: "Got It!"
This is the last square in my box, but it's not the last step. Verses move here once I have recited them correctly five times. I only read through these one or two times a day (variable depending on how long or hard the passage is). Once I have every circle filled in on my cards, then they can leave this box. Now is where that eleventh circle comes in. If you're anything like me, you might think once you fill in the tenth circle, "Ten times? That's a good, even number, and I've done a lot of work to get it this far. I'll just be done with it now." At least, I think like that sometimes. But by filling in that eleventh circle, I've done an extra review and the verse should be extra solid.

Step Five: "I Don't Know What To Call This Yet!"
I just implemented this into my system, so I haven't been able to test it yet, but this is how it should work. Once a verse has been recited perfectly eleven times, the card moves here. If you have a box with five squares, use that fifth square for this. I only have four squares, so I'll find a place to put the stack of verses in this category. Maybe right next to my box. Anyway, these verses are the ones that I have completely memorized, so I'll read through and review these a couple of times per week. If at any time I find that I can't remember a section or a word in the verse, I'll move this back to the "Amost There" or "Got It" stage to work on it some more.

Well, that's the system I've come up with! How do you keep verses up-to-date aside from Memverse? I'd love to hear your thoughts!