Working memory involves the ability to keep information active in your mind for a short time (2-3 seconds) to be able to use it for further processing. Working memory is a temporary storage system and is vital for many day-to-day tasks (e.g. following instructions, responding in conversations, listening and reading comprehension, organisation).
Working memory can be commonly confused with short term memory. Short term memory refers to the short term information required for a verbal or visual task (e.g. remembering a phone number, blending sounds into words when reading, remembering objects, colours, location, direction). Working memory involves the manipulation and transformation of verbal and visual information (e.g. remembering instructions and their content to then carry it out, remembering what to say when called upon, keeping your place on the page when reading, reverse sequences of objects/numbers).
BOOK AN ASSESSMENT FOR YOUR CHILD
Working memory is important for putting information that we are learning together with our current knowledge base (i.e. long term memory). When we hear new information we rely on our working memory to keep the information active so that we can focus, organise and problem solve. Easy retention of information allows our skills and knowledge to be automatic and it minimizes the need to give active thought to each and every step of a task.
Working memory is crucial for academic performance as it is an important part of executive functioning (e.g. planning, initiating, task monitoring, organisation). At school, the areas of learning that are greatly affected by poor working memory are: maths, reading comprehension, complex problem solving, and test taking. The biggest impact on school work occurs from difficulties with maths and reading comprehension.
Analogy: Working memory is much like a bucket that you can keep filling up using a glass of water. Every drop that you add remains in the bucket unless over time memory evaporates through lack of repeated use.
In children with poor working memory it is much like the bucket has a hole in the bottom. You can keep tipping in glasses of water (information/knowledge) but it continually drains out.
We use working memory to meaningfully participate in everyday skills such as:
If a child has difficulties with working memory difficulties they might:
for a language assessment to rule out possible underlying language concerns and to probe working memory skills.
and use strategies to reduce the working memory load (e.g. break large goals into smaller ones, simplify information, chunk it, slow down the pace of delivery of information)
for coping with working memory inefficiencies (i.e. minimize the load on working memory so the child can increase their capacity to learn).
to strengthen working memory capacity (this is still an area for further research, however, training within specific activities has been proven to increase working memory ability for that activity).
It is most important to target coping strategies to support the child to achieve success in the classroom/at home. Training can also be used to strengthen/improve the child’s working memory capacity. It is important to note however that improving working memory through specific working memory training can be a lengthy process and requires a high frequency and high repetition of tasks to make any changes. Furthermore, training may improve working memory for a particular skill (i.e. mathematic sums) but may not result in improvements in multiple areas.
Structuring the environment to reducing working memory load includes the following:
Support your child to make a picture in their head of what they have just read or heard. Ask them to mentally picture what they need to do for a specific task (e.g. get everything ready to make a cake) and then get then to draw that picture. As they get better at visualising then just get them to describe what they can see in their head without having to draw it.
Matching games are great for visual memory (e.g. Memory, Snap, Pairs, Bingo). You might also make up games that require visual memory (i.e. in the car recite letters and numbers on licence plates then say them backwards).
Encourage them to explain how to do a new skill they are learning and teach you how to do it. By working on their explanation it will support them to make sense of what they have learned and file it away in their memory.
This can support working memory through both remembering the rules of the game and remembering which cards they have in their hand and which ones have been played already (e.g. Go Fish, Uno, Crazy 8’s).
Teach them to use highlighters, sticky notes, take notes, underline text to help them keep the information they have read active for long enough to respond to questions about it. Asking questions about what they are reading and talking out loud can also help them to actively read and develop good strategies for all reading.
If they are presented with opportunities to process the information in many different ways it will help with their working memory and transferring new information into long term memory.
Use mnemonics (e.g. ‘Roy G Biv’ for the colours of the rainbow) to help connect information and from new and old memories.
Using colours, shapes, food items, days of the week, clothes, animals, numbers, friends’ names.
such as “I went to the shop/zoo/beach and I saw….”.
The child has to eliminate characters by asking questions about what their character looks like using memory of the facial features.
Give the child more than one instruction at a time and see if they can remember them all (e.g. “sit down, put your hands on your head then blink three times” or ‘Obstacle Courses’ where your child needs to complete an obstacle course to reach a ‘goodie’ by remembering the instructions to get there (e.g. ‘Go under the table, behind the chair, and through the tunnel”)
Sit in a circle with a group/or face to face and each person takes a turn to say two colours that you both need to thread/build. Take in turns to tell each other two colours and slowly increase the number of colours to get to thread/build onto their tower.
Put pirate hats on and pretend to be pirates, set up two pirate ships with pictures of items for the ‘loot’ and explain that each child needs to get 2 things from the other pirate ship to bring back. Get the child to say the things they need to get 3 times before they go and get it. Increase the number of items to get.
Give your child the name of 2-3 things that they need to collect to bring to a picnic. Have them collect the items and bring them to a picnic rug (you can use pictures of items or the real item).
Simply put, working memory difficulties result in missed learning opportunities.
Over time these frequent missed learning opportunities may result in slow educational progress and poor academic achievement
as well as challenges with every day tasks like dressing, packing school bags and develop independence in regular routines like bedtime readiness.
When children have difficulties with working memory, they might also have difficulties with:
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