I tend to prefer trying to fully understand something rather than trying to memorize it. Memorization only lasts so long; if you only try memorizing words or numbers without any deeper understanding of their meaning, it will be harder to retain. My last precalculus teacher was a big believer in this method and was fantastic because of it. Instead of making us remember formulas, she would make sure we would understand and be able to explain certain mathematical functions in words. Logarithms used to be my enemy, but now they’re super easy for me and that is the reason.
But in cases when you have to memorize something (like digits of pi, random technological terms, etc) song or rhythm is definitely the way to go. I can still remember all the countries of Central and South America (and their capital cities) because of a song I learned almost a decade ago.
The power of association, as @NaturalMineralWater said, is also incredible. I’m currently studying Chinese characters, and I bought a book that explains the pictorial origins of each one (for example, the character for “big” was originally a person standing with their arms and legs outstretched). That is much easier than trying to remember them via memorization alone.
Good luck with your learning, and welcome to Fluther!