Ask "why is this true?" of every fact

After reading a fact, stop and answer why it would be the case before moving on.

Why it works

A bare fact has only one route into memory; an explained fact is tied to everything you already know that makes it plausible. Generating the "why" forces you to retrieve related knowledge and build connections, so the fact is stored inside a web of meaning rather than floating alone. More connections mean more cues that can later bring it back.

How to do it

1. Read one fact, then close the text and ask "why would this be true?"
2. Answer aloud or in writing using your own words and prior knowledge.
3. Only move to the next fact once you have produced a genuine reason, not a restatement.

Evidence

Across controlled studies, learners who generate "why" explanations for facts remember them better than those who simply read or reread the same facts, especially for material that connects to knowledge they already have. Dunlosky and colleagues’ review of learning techniques rates elaborative interrogation as moderately useful, with the strongest gains on factual material a learner already has some background in. (rct)

The benefit is strongest when learners already know enough to generate a plausible reason; with wholly unfamiliar material there is little to connect the fact to, so the effect shrinks.

Sources

• Dunlosky, J., Rawson, K. A., Marsh, E. J., Nathan, M. J., & Willingham, D. T. (2013). Improving students' learning with effective learning techniques: Promising directions from cognitive and educational psychology. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 14(1), 4-58.

Common mistake

Answering "why" by rephrasing the fact itself ("it is true because that is how it is"), which feels like elaboration but adds no new connection and produces no benefit.