It’s a familiar frustration: you know your child has been revising, practising or listening attentively, yet some of what they learn seems to vanish almost overnight. When children struggle to recall what they have just learnt, it can knock their confidence, slow their progress, and leave you asking: What more can I do?
The good news is that forgetting parts of lessons is completely normal. The brain is still developing and learning how to manage and store new information. The even better news is this: there are proven strategies you can use to help your child not only learn, but remember, build on and use what they learn, and feel confident doing so. In this post, we explore six research-backed ways to improve memory and recall in children aged 5–12.
Many children simply listen or read and expect the information to stick. In reality, passive approaches give the brain less to engage with and therefore less to store. Active learning means doing something with what has been learnt, such as explaining it to someone else, writing it out, drawing it, or applying it.
For example, after a maths lesson, ask your child to teach you how they worked out one problem. Or after they finish a reading task, ask them to retell the story in their own words. Active recall strengthens the memory trace and improves the likelihood of future retrieval.
Research shows that spacing out revision over time is far more effective than cramming. This is called the ‘spacing effect’. Early years experiments found that children who learnt material with spaced breaks retained it better than those who learned everything in one go.
Practical idea: Once your child learns a new topic, revisit it the next day, then again two to three days later, then a week later. This repetition gives the brain multiple opportunities to rebuild and reinforce the memory pathways. Even short review sessions (5–10 minutes) help.
Memory consolidation happens during sleep and during periods of rest. A child who finishes homework, then plays on screens into the night and arrives the next day tired, is much less likely to effectively recall yesterday’s learning. Good routines help.
Encourage a consistent bedtime, reduce screen time at least an hour before sleep, and build in short brain breaks during study time (for example, a two-minute walk or stretch after 20 minutes of work). These habits support the brain’s ability to consolidate and recall information.
Our brains remember better when information is linked to images, stories or associations. Mnemonics, visual mind maps, colourful diagrams, or turning facts into little stories make material easier to recall.
Encourage your child to draw a picture of what they just learnt or create an acronym for a list. These simple tools make recall more automatic and less stressful.
When learning is meaningful, children are far more likely to remember it. Connect lessons to everyday experiences. Cooking can help with fractions, sports with angles and measurements, and nature walks with science topics.
Ask questions like:
"Why do you think the tree has ridges on its bark?”
"How many tiles fit around this corner?”
These connections give children something to ‘hook’ their learning onto and therefore make recall easier when they are faced with a similar problem at school.
Even the best learning technique will not work if a child is anxious or lacks confidence. Stress interferes with memory formation and retrieval. Children who feel ‘stupid’ or behind can shut down or avoid revision. That is where a tutor or supportive adult helps.
Praise small wins ("You remembered three new words, that’s brilliant!”), focus on progress rather than perfection, and make mistakes part of the learning process. When children believe they can learn and improve, their memory and recall get a boost too.
Sometimes forgetting is just part of learning. But if your child is repeatedly struggling to recall basic facts, avoiding schoolwork, or seems unusually distracted, it may be a sign of underlying issues such as attention difficulties or auditory processing problems. If you are concerned, speak with their teacher, and if needed, a GP or specialist.
At Primary Tutor Project, we know that learning is not only about acquisition, it’s about retention, recall and confidence. Our talented tutors use techniques like spaced practice, active recall questioning, and linking learning to real-life tasks to help children remember better and engage more deeply.
If you’d like your child to build habits that stick, regain momentum and feel proud of their progress, book a free consultation today to see how our 1:1 tutoring can support their learning journey.
1. Why does my child forget what they learn so quickly?
Often it is because the memory was not actively used or revisited. Without review, forgetting curves show that information can fade within days.
2. What’s the best way to help my child remember homework or lessons?
Encourage them to use what they have learnt, revisit the topic over several days, relate it to real situations, and build confidence rather than fear around forgetting.
3. How much revision time is best for a 5–12-year-old?
Short, regular sessions of 10–20 minutes are more effective than long, one-off marathons. Over time, build repetition and variety.
4. Can tutoring improve my child’s memory and focus?
Yes. A tutor can personalise strategies, pace learning correctly, support recall, and build confidence, all of which feed into better memory and performance.
5. What should I do if my child struggles to recall basic information?
Monitor whether this is persistent, speak to their teacher about underlying issues, reduce distractions, build structured review sessions, and consider professional evaluation if needed.
Forgetting is part of learning, but you can help your child remember more and forget less. Encourage active learning, revisit material in spaced intervals, support good sleep and breaks, use visuals, connect learning to life, and build their confidence. Small consistent changes add up to big improvements.
