Font and Memory
Class syllabuses. Handouts. Lecture notes and presentations. Throughout the learning process, students come into contact with various forms of written material/information that, in order for them to be successful, needs to be internalized and remembered. Ever wonder if the font of the document has any effect on memory? We found a science fair project over at Science Fair Adventure that seeks to explore this very question! For elementary/early middle school students interested in life science and neuropsychology, this project is sure to offer an interesting look at what affects human memory!
Project Suggestions
- We suggest selecting 3-5 fonts to test. Consider including a mixture of serif fonts (fonts that have little tails) and sans serif fonts (fonts without tails), as well as cursive.
- Compose sentences/statements of different lengths - short, medium, and long. You'll want to create 2-3 sentences of each length. [NOTE: Be sure to tailor the sentences to your proposed audience. You do not want the sentences/vocabulary to be above their reading level since the goal is to test their memory and not their reading skills!]
- When typing out the sentences in the different fonts, be sure to keep everything the same - e.g. font size, spacing, etc.
For the full project and tips on devising your own study, be sure to visit Science Fair Adventure!