I memorize violent images associated with the words.
Hear me out:
For example:
I visualize a large piece of dinnerware, and see a crack in the middle.
Driven into the dinnerware, and causing the crack is a large pen.
On top of the pen is a Jersey Cow. The blood and gall is running down the pen.
Between the ears of the cow is an overripe peach. It is so overripe, it has split on one side.
Covering the cut on the peach is a large band-aid.
On top of the band-aid is a massive block of ice. It is freezing the band-aid.
Standing on top of the ice is Marilyn Monroe, in a red, white, and blue swimsuit.
Marilyn is holding a streetcar, which is labeled “South Car Line”
Driving the streetcar is a glistening newly baked ham.
Poking out of the ham is a rolled up piece of sheet music, and you can see the song is “Carry Me Back To Old Virginie”
Crushing the sheet music is the Empire State Building.
Balanced on top of the Empire State building, teetering back and forth, is another streetcar, this one says “North Car Line”
Driving the streetcar is a red rooster.
Visualize all that. See the blood dripping down the pen, the frozen mass of ice on the band-aid, and the crushed sheet music.
Got it all memorized? Now, memorize the first 13 states to join the Union:
Dinnerware=Delaware
Pen=Pennsylvania
Jersey Cow=New Jersey
Peach=Georgia
Band-aid (connecting the cut)=Conneticut
Massive block of ice=Massachusetts
Marilyn=Maryland
Streetcar=South Carolina
Newly Glazed Ham=New Hamshire
Sheet music=Virginia
Empire State=New York
Streetcar= North Carolina
Red Rooster=Rhode Island (red)