Slip-Sliding Away (Memory)
Don’t you just hate it, when after you’ve spent time committing something to memory and then it escapes you? That is one of the prime reasons that people who love the game of scrabble steer away from playing competitively. Those folks don’t want to tax their memories and possibly look awkward if and when they misspell some word. The truth is, when I misspell a word and take the time look at it afterward, I rarely misspell that same word again. That’s how the learning process works for most.
New club players want to know where to jump in. What does one memorize first?
Memory is like a muscle. The more you work it, the stronger it becomes. People who say and believe that they have a bad memory most likely have a bad memory. They haven’t worked that muscle in years. Maybe they haven’t discovered a memory system that works for them.
The truth is, most of us are able to improve our memories and some can expand our memory beyond our wildest notion. It all begins like most other things: Attitude and Effort.
I tell people to begin by learning the Official 2-Letter Word List. Those of us who play in the US and use the OWL2 dictionary (Official Word List, 2nd Edition) , have to learn 101 words. 2-Letter Words are not abbreviations. Just because you don’t know a word doesn’t mean it is not a real word. Definitions for most words can be found in the OSPD4 (Official Scrabble Players Dictionary, 4th Edition.)
The OSPD4 is published by Webster, has definitions and parts of speech, but is missing 303 naughty words, due to political correctness. Those words include racial slurs and cuss words heard on every playground, but unacceptable to use when addressing the Queen.
The OWL2 is self-published by the National Scrabble Association and includes all the words, nice and naughty, up to 14-letters long. This publication is strictly an alphabetical word list and does not include definitions or other information.
An additional publication called The Long List contains longer words, beyond 14-letters long, legal for play in scrabble competition.
The OSPD4 is available at most book stores. The OWL2 is not. I am prepared to secure copies of the OWL2 and/or The Long List and deliver via mail in the US for $25 each. Contact me at: jftsoi.moss@gmail.com
Every players must know the 2 Letter Words down cold to be competitive. Those small words are used to hook words together when you place your next words onto the board.
Learning the 3-letter words required a lot more commitment; there are 1015 3-letter words.
How it is possible to learn so much? Easy! The same as eating an elephant, one bite at a time.