The Ballard Method

If you feel like you study a lot but retain nothing, the problem isn’t how much you study — it’s how you study.

The Ballard Method, based on the ideas of Philip Boswood Ballard, is a 7-step system designed to improve your understanding, organization, and memorization of any study content.

This method has been successfully used by over 10,000 students and is grounded in scientific evidence on learning. It’s ideal for teenagers, university students, and adults who want to study more efficiently and retain information better.

Learn how to apply this method step by step and transform the way you study.

Step 1. Read and extract key concepts

Step 2. Highlight

The first step for effective studying is to understand the information and organize it visually.

Initial reading: A complete reading of the content is done without stopping at details, ensuring the general idea of the text is understood.
Extraction of key concepts: In each paragraph, the main idea is identified.
Highlighting: If the text is highlightable, keywords, technical data, lists or classifications that summarize the content are marked. Coherence in highlighting is always sought.
If the text is not highlightable: Read and extract key concepts to ensure good understanding.

Highlighting should be done strategically: if reading only the highlighted parts doesn’t make sense, it means it was highlighted poorly.

Step 3: Make a summary

The summary allows you to reduce the information and structure it better in memory.

It is preferably written by hand, which improves retention.
Own words are used, keeping keywords and technical data intact.
It should be brief, logical, and coherent, without unnecessary information.
Key concepts and difficult-to-memorize data can be highlighted.

A good summary is not a copy of the text, but a structured synthesis of the essential.

Step 4: Question sheet

Questions allow memory to be activated and improve content retention. There are two types of questions, each with a different purpose:

Paragraph questions: These are made for each paragraph and serve to memorize specific information. They are useful for remembering specific details.
General questions: These are created about topics and subtopics and serve to review and compact the memorization of the paragraphs together. They help to connect ideas and see the information as a whole.

To apply this method correctly, you should try to answer without looking at the text and then check the answer.

Step 5: Mind map (classic, lateral, and visual)

Mind maps organize information visually, making its structuring and memorization easier.

5.1. Classic Mind Map

A blank sheet in landscape is used.
The title or main topic is placed in the center inside a circle or a drawing.
Main branches are created with key concepts, and secondary branches with keywords or technical data.
It is recommended to use colors and images to reinforce visual memory.

5.2. Lateral Mind Map

A blank sheet is placed to the right of the summary or highlighting.
A tree of ideas is drawn to represent each paragraph with keywords and connections.
It is useful for organizing information in cause-and-effect structures or hierarchical relationships.

5.3. Visual Mind Map

It is made only with pictograms, without words.
Drawings are used to represent each concept of the content.
It is ideal for those who learn better with images and prefer more intuitive memorization.

The use of these maps helps to structure information clearly and to remember it easily.

Step 6: Active memorization

Memorization is not just repeating the content, but interacting with it to reinforce its retention.

Read each paragraph out loud, using the mind map if necessary.
Answer questions from the Question Sheet without looking at the text.
Explain the content to another person without help from the material.
Analyze the errors: if you forget something, ask why you didn’t remember it and repeat it in another way.
For the most difficult content, use mnemonics or flashcards.

This step avoids passive memorization and guarantees that learning is more lasting.

Step 7: Spaced repetition

The brain forgets information that it doesn’t use, which is why spaced repetition is essential.

Recommended review schedule:

Day 1 – First review
Day 3 – Second review (optional)
Day 7 – Third review
Day 14 – Fourth review
Day 30, 90, 180, and 365 – Later reviews

Doing reviews at progressive intervals ensures that the information is fixed in long-term memory.

The final review before the exam is mandatory to consolidate what has been learned.

If you want to learn how to study effectively and improve your academic performance, sign up for our study techniques course, where you will receive personalized guidance and practical exercises.

Learn to learn with the Ballard Method

The pedagogical approach of Philip B. Ballard, focused on understanding, structure, and the development of thinking, continues to inspire educators today. If you’re interested in seeing how these ideas translate into concrete study techniques applicable to students of all ages, you can discover them in our study techniques course based on the Ballard Method.