Many a times you read a book and when you close the book and try to recollect what you have read, you are blank. Therefore, you need to know the capacity of your working memory, strategies, metamemory, and content. One can have memory problems like infantile amnesia or eyewitness testimony. Memory improves with growing age, throughout the entire childhood.



Working memory

Working memory is the memory that remains for a short period of time and allows the information to process while it is still in being stored. There is a general improvement in the memory working up to the age of 45 years. Memory development of children is a result of increased capacity and not efficiency. One can easily notice the differences from the performance. Changes in the capacity of working play an important factor of cognitive development.

Strategies

Researchers have found that there are various strategies that would assist memory. These strategies would not only help children but also adults. Even in 18 months old, strategies are obvious. Rehearsal is found in the older children to the younger ones. So also categorization is used by more of older children to younger ones. Changes in the strategies could help the memory with age.

Metamemory

Metamemory is all about having your won memory skills. As compared to the older groups, the preschool tend to overestimate their memories. However, their knowledge does not reflect their performance, is also found by the researchers by investigations. Metamemory improves in a person with age. However it is not necessary that it would lead to better performance.

Conclusion

As the child grows older, the increasing knowledge would help in developing better memory. In some areas, children have knowledge equal to adults. In case of chess, memory of a child is just like the adult. It is found that in 21-23 years olds, script knowledge is more evident. Children tend to remember common sequences of events very well. Most commonly schema knowledge is also found in children. Thus, increasing knowledge about script, and schema would help a child to develop his or her memory. Improvement in a child could lead to memory development. Developed memory mostly is a result of improved capacity, content, and strategies. However, evidence regarding metamemory is not completely clear.

Changes in nature of Memory

Memory is explicit as it depends on the amount of conscious recollection or could be implicit, not consciously recalled. Implicit memory generally is better with children of about age 5 years also with adults. However, explicit memory is comparatively poor in children to the explicit memory. Children's memory differs from one to another. Only few types of memories are poor while the rest are good. Children may suffer from a certain memory problem that may be different from the problems with adults. The amount and type of memory differs from children to adults. In order to assist cognitive development, one needs to overcome the limitations that are influenced by strategies, content, and metamemory. Memory problems like infantile amnesia and suggestibility could be easily reduced. Appropriate social interactions would certainly help one to develop one's memory.