Learning How to Learn
A surprisingly simple way for students to master any subject--based on one of the world's most popular online courses and the bestselling book A Mind for Numbers A Mind for Numbers and its wildly popular online companion course "Learning How to Learn" have empowered more than two million learners of all ages from around the world to master subjects that they once struggled with. Fans often wish they'd discovered these learning strategies earlier and ask how they can help their kids master these skills as well. Now in this new book for kids and teens, the authors reveal how to make the most of time spent studying. We all have the tools to learn what might not seem to come naturally to us at first--the secret is to understand how the brain works so we can unlock its power. This book explains: Why sometimes letting your mind wander is an important part of the learning process How to avoid "rut think" in order to think outside the box Why having a poor memory can be a good thing The value of metaphors in developing understanding A simple, yet powerful, way to stop procrastinating Filled with illustrations, application questions, and exercises, this book makes learning easy and fun.
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13recommend
22mentions
13people
2017–2025years
95% recommend5% neutral
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- there is a book/course by that name, it's decent I would say https://www.amazon.com/Learning-How-Learn-Spending-Studying/... https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn
- My top recommendations for understanding and improving how you learn are the Coursera course Learning how to Learn and the accompanying book, A Mind for Numbers. Absolute game changers for me, and many years later I continue to practice and leverage what I learned from them.
https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn
https://books.google.com/books/about/A_Mind_for_Numbers.html...
- Learning How To Learn (available on Coursera here [0]) and its companion book[1]. That course seriously improved how I learn new topics and has paid dividends many times over since then.
[0] https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Learning-How-Learn-Spending-Studying/...
- There is a good MOOC on coursera on the topic of learning and creative working: Learning How To Learn by Barbara Oakley (there is also a book).
She talks about focused and diffused mode of thinking. The main idea is that to create new neuron connections (memory or understanding) you've to work hard on a topic - the focused mode - and then take a break - the diffused mode.
By switching modes you help your brain. Of course, you can't just go do something else without working hard first ... :)
- This reminds me a brilliant article [1] by Barbara Oakley, who has a _superb_ course on Coursera on "Learning How to Learn" [2].
In this article, Barbara talks about how memorization helped her with Mathematics, a subject that she had previously struggled with. In particular, this line stands out to me
> Continually focusing on understanding itself actually gets in the way.
[1] https://nautil.us/how-i-rewired-my-brain-to-become-fluent-in... [2]https://www.coursera.org/learn/learning-how-to-learn
P.S: Her book is really good too https://www.amazon.com/Mind-Numbers-Science-Flunked-Algebra/...
[Update: Apparently she wrote a book based on the course—https://www.amazon.com/Learning-How-Learn-Spending-Studying/...]
- A Mind for Numbers is the one I read. It also goes well with her Coursera course Learning How to Learn.
