How to Create a Memory Palace for Spanish Learning
Learn how to build a learning palace—also called the “memory palace technique” or the “method of Loci” and benefit from your brain’s hidden abilities to learn a new language!
There are many memory techniques out there, but this one is different. It allows you to use creativity to tailor it according to your needs.
Keep reading to find out what the mind palace technique is, how to create a memory palace, and how to use it for everything. I’m sure you’ll find this how-to guide useful while learning Spanish or any other subject.
¡Descubramos la técnica del palacio de la memoria para aprender español!
Let’s discover the memory palace technique for Spanish learning!
What is a Memory Palace?
The memory palace technique involves having an imaginary place in your mind where you have certain images so you can remember things. This location—”Loci” in Latin means “location”—is somewhere you know by heart, like a house, an establishment, or a street.
Your journey inside has to be the same every time so that you remember these images. This brain palace memory technique is perfect for studying, remembering more, following a book, and language learning.
If you google the term “memory palace technique,” you will find many results with the name of Sherlock Holmes in them. This is because this 2,500-year-old Greek approach was the preferred one of this famous literary character.
Memory champions around the world use it to remember huge amounts of information. Today, it is proven that these kinds of exercises also improve your memory while training your brain.
Studies show that those who use the memory palace technique can remember more and longer than those who used other brain training or none at all. One of the reasons is that the brain connectivity increases while doing this exercise.
Check out: 8 Language Learning Styles: Which Type Is Yours?
How to Create a Memory Palace
So, how do you build a memory palace?
First, you need to pick a loci. It should be someplace you know like the back of your hand. It could be your home, school, office, or a relative’s house. It needs to be indoors.
Now visualize a route from the front door all the way to the backyard or the attic with all its stops. Depending on the place, you can plan out a linear or circular journey.
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Make Your Memory Palace List
The next step is to make a list of things you want to remember. It can be a grocery list, the US presidents, the periodic table of elements, or the slides of a presentation you’re studying.
Some memory palace examples look like this:
| Route | Things to Remember |
| front door | apple – la manzana |
| staircase | broccoli – el broccoli |
| bathroom | cucumber – el pepino |
| living room | onion – la cebolla |
| kitchen | tomato – el tomate |
| washing room | potato – la papa |
| backyard | beet – la remolacha |
See also: How to Build a Memory Palace
Memory Palace Visualization
After creating your list, visualize walking through your memory palace and seeing each item at its assigned location. Imagine the smell and taste of things if possible. For example, when you walk through your front door, you see fresh, tasty, red apples.
So, say you’re learning Spanish and you want to remember the names of these fruits and vegetables in Spanish and you want to use the mind palace technique.
You can place a man holding the apples at your front door. Why? Because apples translates to manzanas, and the first syllable is “man.”
With some training you’ll be doing the memory palace technique easily and frequently, almost involuntarily to remember lists of things or for language learning purposes. Regular practice will get you there.
Watch this Art of Memory YouTube video to see a creative example of the memory palace technique.
Check out: Develop Perfect Memory With the Memory Palace Technique
Memory Palace Technique Apps and Resources
To learn more about the mnemonic memory palace technique, download the Memory Palace – US history app. With it, you can see another example and get ideas of how to use the method of Loci while learning US history.
Read any of the Seven of the Best Books On the Memory Palace Technique. In here, you will find Unlimited Memory by a guy who remembers 10,000 digits of Pi.
Or read Moonwalking With Einstein by Joshua Foer and let him take you on his year-long journey to improve his memory, guided by the best.
I highly recommend reading Magnetic Memory Mondays, where Anthony Metivier explains all you need to know about the memory palace technique, thoroughly but not tediously. He focuses on using this method to learn a second or third language, this one’s ideal for you as a Spanish learner.
Also, if you’re curious about the origins of the memory palace technique, read this Memory Palace Technique PDF.
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Use the Memory Palace Technique to Learn Spanish
Learning Spanish is a brilliant idea! And it doesn’t hurt to use resources and hacks like the memory palace technique. Learning a new language is the sort of activity that enhances your life in so many ways. Becoming bilingual could help you get a cooler job or upgrade your paycheck. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, five of the fastest-growing job opportunities are those related to interpreting and translation. Also, The Economist published the amount of money anyone can earn from knowing a second language and it goes as high as $125,000 dollars.
Plus, you can travel easier to Hispanic countries if you are into learning from other cultures. Imagine going abroad and feeling comfortable asking for directions, tips, and even chatting with locals and making new friends. Connecting with people is an important and satisfying thing you can do with your time and with your Spanish skills.
Where to start? Get in touch with one of our friendly teachers from Guatemala here at Homeschool Spanish Academy. Let’s tailor a Spanish package that suits your interests and practice the memory palace technique with our certified native Spanish speakers. By doing that you can greatly speed up your learning process.
Check our affordable pricing and flexible programs. Try it out for yourself by signing up for a free class today!
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“It’s great being able to interact with native speaking people and having a conversation with them not just doing all the work on paper. It’s also an amazing opportunity to speak with native Spanish-speaking people without having to travel to a native Spanish-speaking country.”
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“HSA offers very affordable, quality, one on one classes with a native speaker. My son has greatly benefited from taking classes. We have seen his confidence increase as well as his pronunciation improve, because he learns from a native Spanish speaker. HSA has quick, personal customer service. Our family has been very pleased with our experience so far!”
– Erica P. Parent of 1
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