Tricks to help us remember 

By Shawn Everett Submitted to Corner Post

Mnemonics (pronounced nee-MON-ix because the first letter is silent) are hints that jog our memory. The most common among English speakers is the ABC song. It uses a tune to help us remember the letters of the alphabet in order. (You’re singing it now, aren’t you?) Other examples include:

When did Columbus reach the “New World?” “In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue.”

Name the Great Lakes. HOMES (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior)

What are the colors of a rainbow? ROY G BIV (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet)

How many days are in each month? “Thirty days has September, April, June and November. All the rest have 31, except February, that stands alone. When it’s Leap Year, that’s the time February has 29.”

Another form of mnemonic for remembering which months have 31 days is to make a fist with your fingers facing downward. As you recite each month in order, touch your pinkie knuckle (Jan), the valley next to it (Feb), the ring finger knuckle (Mar), the valley next to it (Apr), the middle finger knuckle (May), the valley next to it (Jun), the pointer knuckle (Jul), then touch the pointer knuckle on the other fist (Aug), valley (Sep), middle finger knuckle (Oct), valley (Nov) and ring finger knuckle (Dec). Knuckles have 31; others have 30, except for Feb.

Multiples of 9 from one to ten. Two-digit numbers with 1st digit going up from 0 to 9, and the 2nd digit going down from 9 to 0. (x1 = 09, x2 = 18, 3 = 27, x4 = 36, x5 = 45, x6 = 54 63, x7 = 72, x9 = 81, x10 = 90)

Stalactites & stalagmites — which point upward, and which point downward? “When the mites go up, the tights come down.”