Written by Chan Chia Chee,
Chinese Educational Therapist
“老师，他昨天明明会写这个字，为什么今天又忘了？”
“这个字已经教了很多次，为什么还是不会？”
“我们每天都在复习，为什么孩子还是记不住？”
这些话听起来熟悉吗？
许多家长在陪伴孩子学习的过程中，都曾有过类似的疑惑。面对孩子反复遗忘，家长难免会感到着急，甚至怀疑是不是自己教得不够多，或孩子没有认真学习。这也是许多读写障碍孩子家长常见的疑惑。
作为教育治疗师，我也经常在课堂上观察到类似的情况。有些学生今天能够认读和书写新词，下一次见面却好像没有学过；当我给一点点暗示，学生才开始一点点想起来，有些学生甚至会无奈地说：“老师，我是不是有金鱼脑？”
这并不代表孩子不努力。很多时候，问题并不在于“有没有学”，而是在于“能不能把学到的知识稳定地储存和提取出来”。
在辅导读写障碍学生的过程中，我们发现不少孩子能够在一种情境下掌握学习内容，却难以将所学迁移到不同的活动或任务中。例如，学生能够大声朗读课文中的词语“露营”，看起来已经掌握了这个词；然而，当同样的词语出现在 Wordwall 游戏或其他练习活动中时，他们也未必能立即辨认出来，甚至不知道这是刚刚学过的词语。
对于许多读写障碍学生来说，他们并非没有学习，而是尚未建立稳定的字形、字音和字义连接。当学习内容换了呈现方式或学习情境时，孩子便可能出现“好像没有学过”的情况。
为了打破这个僵局，我们可以尝试调整复习或是听写方式：
在正式听写前，老师或家长可以先带领学生一起朗读和复习当天的词语，让学生再次激活刚学过的内容。接着，不再直接要求学生听写全部答案，而是先透过选择题辨认正确的词语，再进行抄写练习。
这样的调整看似简单，但实际上降低了学生在「提取记忆」时所面对的压力。
对于许多读写障碍学生来说，他们未必完全不认识这些字，而是在需要独立回忆的时候，无法及时从记忆中把正确答案找出来。选择题提供了提示线索（retrieval cues），帮助学生先辨认正确答案；而后续的抄写练习，则进一步加强字形记忆。
这样的调整看似简单，但实际上极大地降低了学生在“提取记忆”时所面对的压力。
在课堂实践中，我们也观察到，当学生能够先透过辨认活动建立成功经验，再逐步过渡到独立书写时，学习焦虑往往会逐渐降低。许多原本对听写充满压力的学生，开始更愿意尝试阅读和书写任务，不再抱着“反正我一定不会”的心态面对学习。
从教育治疗的角度来看，主要有几个原因：
工作记忆就像大脑的临时工作台。
许多读写障碍学生在学习新字词时，需要同时处理字形、字音和字义。如果工作记忆负荷过大，新学到的内容便容易流失。
有些孩子其实知道答案，只是无法在短时间内把答案找出来。
这就像书已经放进图书馆里了，但需要的时候却找不到正确的书架。
认得一个字，不代表会写；会写一个字，不代表能够在作文中使用。
知识需要经过不断重复、提取和运用，才会慢慢形成长期记忆。
在 DAS 的课堂上，我们不会只是让孩子一直抄写、一直默写。同一个词语，我们会透过不同的方法反复练习，例如图像联想、偏旁部首分析、词语运用、朗读和提取练习，让孩子在不同情境下一次又一次接触同一个字。慢慢地，字形、字音和字义之间的联系会越来越稳定，也更容易应用到阅读和书写中。
同时，老师也会根据每位学生的学习步伐给予适当的提示和支持，让他们在不断累积成功经验的过程中建立学习信心，并一步一步迈向独立学习。
与其一次复习二十个词语，不如每天复习三到五个词语，效果往往更好。
除了抄写，更重要的是让孩子尝试回忆。
例如盖住答案后口头说出来，或尝试默写一个字。
学习汉字，不一定只能坐在书桌前。
有时候，不需要特别安排练习时间。其实，认字不一定只发生在课本里，生活中的招牌、路牌和菜单，都是最真实的识字教材。
家长带孩子到小贩中心吃饭、搭地铁或逛商场时，都可以顺便玩一个「找汉字」小游戏。例如，请孩子找一找「碗盘归还处」、「鸡饭」、「果汁」、「出口」等汉字，鼓励他们读出来，并说说是什么意思。
家长也可以请孩子当个「小小汉字侦探」，用手机拍下路牌、招牌或商品包装上认识的汉字，回家后一起分享今天发现了哪些字。
这些轻松的小游戏，就像寻找颜色或数字一样，把认字自然融入日常生活，不但能增加接触汉字的机会，也能帮助孩子把课堂所学和真实生活连结起来。
当孩子在不同地方、不同情境一次又一次遇见同一个字时，大脑会不断强化这个字的记忆连接。比起一次抄写很多遍，这样的学习方式往往更有意义，也更容易把课堂所学迁移到真实生活中。
遗忘并不代表之前的学习白费了。
每一次重新想起，其实都在加强大脑的记忆连接。
不要只看一次听写成绩。
更重要的是观察孩子半年后、一年后的整体变化。
对于许多读写障碍学生来说，学习并不是一条笔直向上的道路。他们可能会前进两步，又退一步；今天记住了，明天又忘记；刚刚学会，又需要重新练习。然而，每一次复习、每一次提取、每一次成功回忆，都是大脑重新建立连接的过程。
下次当孩子再次忘记时，也许我们可以少一句：
“为什么又忘了？”
多一句：
“没关系，我们再试一次。”
因为对于许多读写障碍孩子来说，学习不是比谁学得快，而是在适合的支持下，一步一步往前走。
“Teacher, they could write this word yesterday. Why have they forgotten it today?”
“We’ve taught this word so many times. Why do they still not know it?”
“We revise every day. Why can’t my child remember?”
Do these questions sound familiar?
Many parents have wondered the same thing while supporting their child’s learning. When a child repeatedly forgets what they have learnt, it is natural for parents to feel anxious. They may begin to wonder whether they have not taught their child enough—or whether their child simply has not been paying attention. These concerns are especially common among parents of children with dyslexia.
As an educational therapist, I often observe similar situations in the classroom. A student may be able to recognise and write a new word today, only to appear as though they have never seen it at the next lesson. Sometimes, it takes a small hint before the memory gradually returns. Some students even say helplessly, “Teacher, do I have the memory of a goldfish?”
This does not mean that the child is not trying.
Often, the issue is not whether learning has taken place, but whether the child can store what they have learnt securely and retrieve it when needed.
When supporting students with dyslexia, we often find that they can demonstrate what they have learnt in one setting but struggle to transfer that knowledge to a different activity or task.
For example, a student may be able to read the word “露营” (camping) aloud from a passage and appear to have mastered it. However, when the same word appears in a Wordwall game or another activity, the student may not recognise it immediately—or may not realise that it is the very same word they have just learnt.
This does not mean that no learning has taken place. For many students with dyslexia, the connections between a Chinese character’s form, sound and meaning may not yet be firmly established. When the way a word is presented changes, or when it appears in a different setting, the child may seem as though they have never learnt it before.
To help break this cycle, we can adjust the way revision and spelling activities are conducted.
Before a formal spelling exercise, the teacher or parent can first read through and revise the day’s words with the child, helping to reactivate what has recently been learnt. Instead of expecting the child to recall and write every answer immediately, begin with a multiple-choice activity in which they identify the correct word, followed by copying practice.
This may seem like a simple adjustment, but it significantly reduces the pressure involved in retrieving information from memory.
Many students with dyslexia are not completely unfamiliar with the characters. The difficulty arises when they have to recall the correct answer independently and within a short period of time. Multiple-choice questions provide retrieval cues that help them recognise the answer first, while the copying activity that follows further reinforces their memory of the character’s form.
In the classroom, we have also observed that when students first experience success through recognition activities before progressing towards independent writing, their learning anxiety often begins to ease. Students who once found spelling highly stressful may become more willing to attempt reading and writing tasks, instead of approaching them with the belief that “I won’t be able to do it anyway.”
From an educational therapy perspective, there are several possible reasons.
1. A Weaker Working Memory
Working memory is like the brain’s temporary workspace.
When learning a new Chinese character or word, students may need to process its form, sound and meaning at the same time. For many students with dyslexia, this can place a heavy demand on their working memory, causing newly learnt information to be lost more easily.
2. Slower Retrieval
Some children do know the answer but are unable to retrieve it quickly.
It is like placing a book in a library but being unable to find the correct shelf when the book is needed.
3. The Learning Has Not Yet Become Automatic
Being able to recognise a character does not necessarily mean that a child can write it. Being able to write it does not necessarily mean that they can use it in a composition.
Knowledge needs to be revisited, retrieved and applied repeatedly before it gradually becomes part of long-term memory.
In the DAS Chinese Programme, we do not simply ask children to copy and memorise the same words repeatedly.
Instead, they encounter and practise the same word in different ways. These may include visual associations, analysing character components and radicals, using the word in context, reading it aloud and completing retrieval activities.
Each encounter gives the child another opportunity to strengthen the connections between the character’s form, sound and meaning. Over time, these connections become more stable, making it easier for the child to apply what they have learnt when reading and writing.
Teachers also provide prompts and support according to each student’s learning pace. As students experience success over time, they begin to develop greater confidence in their abilities and gradually take steps towards learning more independently.
1. Revise Small Amounts More Frequently
Instead of revising 20 words at once, it is often more effective to practise three to five words each day.
2. Do More Than Copying
Copying can be useful, but it is even more important to give your child opportunities to retrieve what they have learnt.
For example, cover the answer and ask your child to say it aloud, or encourage them to try writing one character from memory.
3. Use Everyday Settings, Images and Associations
Learning Chinese characters does not always have to take place at a desk.
In fact, you do not necessarily need to set aside a special time for practice. Signboards, road signs and menus can all become meaningful reading materials.
While eating at a hawker centre, taking the MRT or walking through a shopping mall, parents can play a simple “Find the Chinese Character” game with their child. Ask them to look for words such as “碗盘归还处” (tray return point), “鸡饭” (chicken rice), “果汁” (fruit juice) or “出口” (exit). Encourage them to read the words aloud and explain what they mean.
You can also invite your child to become a “Chinese Character Detective”. Let them use a phone to photograph familiar characters on signs, road names or product packaging, then look through the photographs together at home and talk about the words they discovered that day.
Like searching for colours or numbers, these light-hearted activities allow character recognition to become a natural part of everyday life. They give children more opportunities to encounter Chinese words while helping them connect classroom learning with the world around them.
Each time a child meets the same character in a different place or context, the brain strengthens its connection to that character. Compared with copying it many times in one sitting, this form of learning is often more meaningful and makes it easier for the child to apply what they have learnt beyond the classroom.
4. Accept That Forgetting Is Part of Learning
Forgetting does not mean that all previous learning has been wasted.
Each time a child manages to retrieve the information again, the brain’s memory connections grow a little stronger.
5. Focus on Long-Term Progress
Try not to judge your child’s progress based on a single spelling score.
What matters more is how they have developed over six months or a year.
For many students with dyslexia, learning does not follow a straight, upward path. They may take two steps forward and one step back. They may remember something today and forget it tomorrow, or learn it once and still need to practise it again.
Yet every revision, every attempt to retrieve an answer and every successful recollection helps the brain rebuild and reinforce its connections.
The next time your child forgets, perhaps we can say less of:
“Why have you forgotten again?”
And more of:
“That’s okay. Let’s try again.”
For many children with dyslexia, learning is not about who learns the fastest. It is about receiving the right support and moving forward, one step at a time.
