How to use flash cards to study?

Have you heard of flash cards? Also known as study cards or flashcards, these little cards have become popular in recent years. as a study method that, without being too complex, has proven to be one of the best systems for to study.

They can be done in many ways and with them we can study practically anything. However, no matter how simple they may seem, it requires some synthesis and reflection when preparing them so that their use is profitable for us.

For this below let's see how to use flash cards to study, in addition to reflecting on what are its multiple benefits.

• Related article: "The 13 types of learning: what are they?"

What are flashcards?

Flash cards, also called flashcards, study cards, or flashcards, are small cards that contain key ideas related to a topic. On one side the concept is put to study and on the other the answer or its development. Flash cards are one of the most useful tools in the study, helping to synthesize the most important concepts when studying such as definitions, formulas, data or dates key code.

According to educational psychologists and other professionals related to the world of didactics, these cards are among the best learning and memorization methods because they allow to acquire knowledge by memorizing their content through the spaced review of the cards. Its consultation is quick, simple and, above all, very effective when you have to memorize a lot of content.

At first glance, flash cards seem too simple to be of any use. However, the habitual use that is made of it by students from both high schools, institutes and even universities shows that they are very useful. They combine text with visual elements, which facilitates the retention of information. In other words, they are one of the most productive methods when it comes to studying.

• You may be interested in: "Types of memory: how does the human brain store memories?"

How to use flash cards to learn and memorize?

Learning to use flash cards for study is relatively straightforward, although it does have its trick. The way to elaborate them is easy, rather than making an outline, although it is necessary carry out some process of reflection and synthesis to make sure that the significant information to be studied is entered and that the cards do not become too heavy to review. We just have to write the question or a keyword on one side of the card and the answer on the other.

We must make sure to easily distinguish which is the face where we will put the question and where the answer will go. On the face of the answer we will place words, pictures or symbols that are either the answer itself or that evoke it. That is, if the answer is very long and complex, what we can do is instead of putting it directly on the other side, put keywords or symbols that help us review it aloud.

It is advisable to make these cards immediately after you have studied a topic. Throughout the consultation, it is advisable to ask yourself questions, write them down on a piece of paper and put also their answers, preferably reduced to the list of ideas that are needed to answer correctly. Once this is done, it will be time to capture these questions and answers on flash cards, making use of our synthesis capacity combining it with imagination and creativity.

Once these flashcards are made, use them daily for review. The longer you are in advance of the exam and the more times you review them throughout the day, the better. This is an advantage because if you have doubts while you are reviewing them, you will have more scope to ask the teacher any questions that were not too clear to you while you were studying.

Added to this, our memory stores better what it has been reviewing with more time in small sessions than what has been memorized at once, because this second situation is more tiring. A daily review of between 5 and 10 minutes with flash cards ends up recording the information in a systematic way in our brain, being stored in long-term memory.

So, once done, flash cards can be combined with spaced repetition method, a way of learning in which memorization and constant review of what has been learned intermingle and acquire importance at the same time.

• Related article: "Spaced repetition (memorization technique): what it is and how to use it"

How to make them

If we prefer to make flash cards manually, we have many alternatives to make them. They can be made with cardboard, paper or post-its, in different formats, colors and shapes. Our imagination and creativity unfold here, and we must know how to use any tool or format that we know works best for us visually.

The best way that studying with flash cards works for us is that we have made them ourselves. Of course we can use those of other colleagues, but it is better that we have our set at our disposal of cards, made by us and, therefore, produced in the way that best suits us to to study.

In addition to this, when we do them we are also studying, making a mental effort to select the most important information and investing time that is, in reality, a review of the agenda to to study.

Too it is important to use several different fonts and colors. By doing so, the cards will be more striking, breaking the monotony and being more visually attractive. Variety helps to memorize better. In addition, drawings related to the concepts we are studying can be included, an excellent way to make the process more fun while facilitating the memorization task and keeping our mind awake. attention. And you can add any element that makes it easier to remember the concept studied, such as mnemonic rules or acronyms.

By last, the ideal is to use a single card for each concept to study and, when reviewing it, read it aloud. By listening to what we have written we will remember it better later.

• You may be interested in: "10 tips to study better and efficiently"

Benefits of using flashcards

The benefits of using flash cards to study are many. There are so many that it is totally advisable to introduce it into our study routine. This method contributes to the following:

1. Active memory

Flash cards involve active memory. When we look at one of these cards and we are thinking about what its answer is, what we are doing is engaging a mental faculty known as active recall, trying to remember the concept from scratch. This active memory creates stronger neural connections. As these cards are used repeatedly, because they are easy to use, they are the best way to review several times and, in turn, improve the memory of the concept to be learned.

2. Use of metacognitive faculties

Turning the card over to check how correct the answer was, the student performs a profound act of self-reflection, a faculty within what is called metacognition.

This makes the student know his own abilities, such as, for example, how easy it is for him to first review, if you have to pay more attention to a certain point that you have forgotten or if you are often wrong much. Whatever it is, knowing it will make it easier for you to hone your weaker skill and, consequently, to study better.

• Related article: "Metacognition: history, definition of the concept and theories"

3. Improve confidence

Flashcards improve repetition-based confidence. The more you repeat, the more aware you are that you know it by checking for yourself that it is. You have an empirical test of your memory performance and how he remembers what he is studying, which generates better confidence, something essential for the exam since emotions also influence his academic performance.

• You may be interested in: "Evidences of learning: what they are, types and characteristics"

4. They allow studying any subject

There is no academic subject that resists the use of flash cards. Even more practical subjects like mathematics, chemistry or physics can be studied using this technique putting, for example, formulas, physical concepts, symbols of elements chemicals ...

5. They allow you to study anywhere

Flash cards take up very little space, fitting in a pocket or kept in a bag, which allows us to take them anywhere and study them there. And if we take into account that there are hundreds of applications that offer among their functionalities to develop this type of cards in digital format, it is enough to have a computer, a tablet or a mobile phone at hand to be able to review them.

6. Ideal for sharing knowledge

Flashcards are a great way to share knowledge. We can use them individually or with another person, having one ask the questions and check the answers the other gives. Thus, it can be said that they favor team study and contribute to making each one aware of what they lack to know thanks to the fact that another person realizes it.

7. Doing them is reviewing

The simple fact of preparing the cards helps to review the syllabus. In its preparation, it is not enough to put a word on one side and the written answer on the other.. For this, it is necessary to synthesize, choose the most important ideas, think about how to write them and choose a visual support to help deepen the learning. This whole process implies that the student makes an effort while handling the information, knowledge that will remain in one way or another registered in her memory.