Signs of Weak Working Memory + How to Strengthen It
Working memory is a critical skill for life and learning. However, for many students especially, weakness in this area contributes to struggles in the classroom, on tests and assignments, and even at home. Everything we do goes through working memory, so it’s vital to identify where your child’s struggles may be and to train those skills that are weak.
Before we discuss the signs of weak working memory, let’s briefly understand what working memory is. Working memory refers to the brain’s ability to temporarily hold and manipulate information needed for cognitive tasks. It plays a vital role in learning, problem-solving, decision-making, and even social interactions. It’s like your brain’s mental “bucket”: it holds onto critical information while you use it. However, many students have “holes” in their “bucket,” leading to downstream impacts on their academic performance, confidence, and more.
Signs of Weak Working Memory:
- Forgetfulness: Individuals with weak working memory often struggle to remember information for short periods. This may manifest as forgetfulness in daily tasks, like forgetting where they left their backpack or why they walked into a room.
- Difficulty Following Instructions: Weak working memory can make it challenging to follow multi-step instructions. This can impact academic performance, as students may struggle with complex assignments or struggle to follow classroom directions.
- Poor Concentration: Working memory and focus go hand-in-hand, especially when faced with distractions. If working memory is weak, kids have trouble shifting back to the task at hand (because they forgot where they were or what they were doing).
- Struggles with Problem-Solving: Working memory is essential for solving problems and making decisions. Individuals with weak working memory may find it difficult to think through complex issues, leading to challenges in problem-solving scenarios.
Beyond these big-picture struggles, some practical struggles for kids (and adults) with weak working memory include:
- An inability to do mental math well
- Poor reading comprehension
- Struggling to complete tests or assignments
- Frequently needing to re-read a text to remember what it says
- Slow work
- Difficulty with word problems in math
- Not being able to keep up or participate in conversations or read social cues
- Trouble following directions or remembering all the steps to a task
Is It Weak Working Memory or Slow Processing Speed?
Often parents suspect their kids have slow processing speed but are surprised when working memory is actually the culprit. Many of the struggles overlap, but it’s important to tease it out to figure out what’s really driving your student’s struggle.
Weak working memory often looks like slow processing speed because the brain has to frequently “reload” information or re-process it because it leaked out the first time. This refreshing takes time, leading to a longer task duration (even if they are thinking quickly).
A cognitive assessment is the best way to figure out which area is the root cause of your child’s unique struggles. Click here to learn more.
Ways to Target & Train Working Memory
Just like any weak skill, working memory is an area that can be strengthened and trained! Here are some ways to build your child’s (or your own) capacity to hold onto information:
- Practicing mental math. If your child struggles in this area, the best way to make it easier is to do it over and over again!
- Have them recite back 3-5 letters or numbers. This is easy to do in a car. Give your child a few letters or numbers from a car’s license plate that you see, and just have them recite them back to you. For more of a challenge, have them recite them backwards, in alphabetical or numerical order, or with a longer string of characters.
- Break down tasks into smaller chunks. If your child struggles with instructions like “go get ready for school,” help them break this large task down into a tangible sequence of events that they can get used to. They’re more likely to remember to brush their teeth if they always do it after getting dressed, for example.
- Train it with brain training. Games, activities, and at-home supports are all great tools, but targeted intervention is critical if weak working memory is impacting your child’s performance in school or other areas of life. Learn more here.
- Play games. Games are great tools to build working memory, focus, thinking speed, and so many other critical learning skills!
