The last time I did a Bible study ed by our pastor's wife we did something cool. Each time we completed a chapter, she encouraged us to go back and review in one or two words the theme or topic found in the previous chapters. This became really helpful in solidifying what we had read, and now, even though I can't remember exact chapters (I probably didn't review enough on my own), I can remember that a certain topic is found someplace in the first few chapters of a certain book, helping me to retrieve it more quickly. I plan to do the same thing with this study and wanted to encourage you to join me. Here is what I have so far:
chapter 1 - light
chapter 2 - love and antichrists
Each time we finish a chapter, go through and review the topics of the previous chapters until you know them by heart. That way, when someone says, "Where does John talk about the antichrist?" you will know that it is in chapter 2. I would also encourage you at the end of each chapter to go back and reread the whole chapter (or in this case, even the whole book up to that point, since it is such a short book), helping to really seal in what you've learned and put it back into context.
Just an idea... Hope it helps!