Fun and Effective Memory Techniques for Children with Dyslexia and Learning Differences

Understanding the Challenge: Why Memory Feels Like a Mountain

You're sitting at the kitchen table again. The worksheet is only half-finished. Your child stares at it, lips trembling with frustration. You know they're trying. But what the school labels a "simple review" becomes an uphill climb each evening. You’re not alone in this. Many parents of children with dyslexia or other learning differences feel lost when it comes to helping with memorization. It’s not just about repetition. It’s about connecting in ways that work for how your child thinks and learns.

When memory feels like a struggle, introducing playful, multisensory tools can turn a dreaded task into a doable—and even enjoyable—process. These aren’t magical fixes. They’re bridges that allow your child to cross into understanding on their own terms.

Start with Curiosity, Not Correction

Children with dyslexia often have a different way of processing information. That doesn’t mean less capable—it means different paths. So instead of pressing them harder to do it the “school way,” begin by tapping into their natural curiosity. Ask what they do remember and how they remember it. Was it the silly joke their teacher made about volcanoes? The drawing they did while learning about the water cycle?

As we explored in this article about connecting learning with your child's interests, starting from what sparks their imagination is more effective than drilling flashcards for hours.

Make It Emotional and Personal

Memory locks in deeper when it’s tied to emotion or story. Instead of asking your child to memorize a list of verbs in French, turn it into a mini story where they’re the main character. "Lucas woke up and mange une tartine. Then he cours to school…" Let them act it out, draw it, change the plot. Turn the lesson into a journey they care about because it's theirs.

In fact, tools that personalize learning this way can make an enormous difference. Some platforms even let kids become the hero of their own lesson-based adventure story, using their first name and the subject at hand. (Skuli’s app, available on iOS and Android, offers that very feature—and it’s been a game-changer for many families.)

Use Movement and Voice

For many dys kids, sitting still and staring at a worksheet is the worst way to remember something. Try getting the body involved. Turn vocabulary review into a scavenger hunt—each word hidden behind a clue. Dance or jump while repeating multiplication tables. Make silly voices or songs out of tricky spelling words.

If your child responds well to listening, you can use audio lessons or recordings—especially during “downtime” moments like car rides or bedtime. Sometimes, hearing the lesson in a calm and familiar voice removes the pressure they associate with written texts.

Break Big Tasks Into Playful Bites

Memorization doesn’t need to happen all at once. In fact, it shouldn’t. For children with processing difficulties, small, repeated exposure is far more effective. One helpful strategy is to transform dense paragraphs from their schoolbook into questions and mini-quizzes tailored to what they just learned. That way, they actively retrieve the information instead of rereading passively.

If creating quizzes sounds like extra work for you (and who has time for that?), know that there are tools out there that can help. Some apps, like Skuli, let you take a photo of any lesson and automatically turn it into a 20-question personalized quiz—saving time and giving your child a customized review they can do independently.

Create Safe Spaces Where Mistakes Are Normal

This might be one of the most important tips: don't make memorization about getting a perfect score. Instead, make it about experimenting, trying, making goofy connections, and noticing what works. If your child gets a quiz wrong, that's valuable data—not failure. Treat wrong answers like clues about how their brain is wired.

In our guide on rebuilding the homework connection through play, we explore how important emotional safety is in creating longer-term learning habits. When children stop fearing the "test," they start engaging with the information.

Bring Lessons to Life—Literally

Some parents have found success turning abstract lessons into physical items: use clay to model animal cells, role-play historical moments, or draw a comic strip of how the digestive system works. One parent told me her daughter still remembers the parts of a plant because they taped labels to real leaves in the garden and made up voices for each part.

You don’t need to prepare elaborate crafts. Let your child be the guide—ask, “How could we see this idea in real life?” Keep it light and a little messy. Even ten minutes of hands-on play can root new vocabulary or concepts much more deeply than hours of copying notes.

Final Thoughts: Focus on Connection Over Perfection

At the end of the day, the goal isn’t to memorize faster, but to feel capable. To help your child say: “I can do this. Maybe not like others, but in my own way.” It’s not about giving up standards, but shifting tools. Approaches that work for neurotypical learners might not click for dys children—and that’s okay.

When you meet your child where they are—with stories, humor, movement, sound, and empathy—you’re not just helping them remember material. You’re helping them remember that they are more than capable, and that they’re not alone in the struggle.

Need more ideas to support your child at home? Check out our post on fun solutions for helping distracted learners focus—another piece of the puzzle that many parents of dys kids face.