Explain the Difference Between Short-Term and Long-Term Memory to a New Student

Most students spend more time reading and less time remembering. The cognitive science of why that strategy fails takes about five minutes to understand and changes how you approach everything else. This explains working memory versus long-term memory in plain language, with a concrete example and three study behaviours that actually promote retention.

Explain the difference between short-term and long-term memory to someone who is starting to study a large amount of new material and wants to understand why some things stick and others do not.

Cover:
1. What short-term (or working) memory is, how much it holds, and how long information lasts there without reinforcement
2. What long-term memory is and the two main processes that transfer information into it
3. Why reading and re-reading feels like learning but often is not
4. Three study behaviours that actively promote transfer to long-term memory

Use one concrete example throughout (a student learning {SUBJECT_AREA} is a good anchor). No academic jargon. Keep it to [400] words or under.