Tip of the Day - Study Skills

Flash Cards. Do they work for you? If so, USE THEM! But don't rely only on memorizing a vocabulary word or date. Learn the information in context. For example:

Learning Vocabulary - now you know the definition... learn the word completely by:

• using it in a sentence at least once a day
• find the word in context and define it on the spot
• use the new word in a writing assignment

Learning "Data" (dates, periodic table elements, etc.) - So you can recite what is on the card, but can you:

• Explain why the data is important?
• Identify the information backwards?
  
• Translate it to the larger concept (I know the periodic number of Gold... but what does that mean in relation to silver?)?

Flash cards are simply for learning arithmetic problems. Think of new uses.

Tip of the Day - Study Skills

How do you prepare for a test? Do you wait until the night before and try to cram in all of the information? I admit, I once operated like this. Did I do well on the test? Yes, because I memorized everything. But did I learn the material and completely understand everything? No. I didn't. And it came back to haunt me when I had to apply the knowledge in a new situation. It wasn't until I was in high school that I learned new ways to study that helped me learn rather than memorize. My personal favorite is the note-rewrite.

Every night, read through your notes from class. When I would do this, I would notice that sometimes my thoughts in class were jumbled, and I would write them out again in a more concise fashion. I continued this every night, adding on the the clearer set of notes, and reading that from the beginning every night. When it came to preparing for a test, I found that I was so familiar with the information, and organized in class to ask clarifying questions, that I no longer needed to cram the night before and the material remained with me after the test.

If you think this might help you, stop by and I will show you what to do. At first it added about 5 minutes to my nightly homework session, but soon made things work faster.

Tip of the Day - Study Skills

Look at your surroundings when you are studying. Is it loud or quiet? Do you have bright light, or are you squinting in the dark? Do you have all of your supplies? Here are some study environment suggestions:

1. Turn off the TV, radio, computer (unless you're using it to write a report), cell phone, I-Pod, etc. A quiet environment provides fewer distractions.
2. Turn on a light. Go into a room with good overhead lighting (like the kitchen). Proper lighting will make it easier for your to read and prevent eye strain.
3. Collect all of your supplies before you begin. Running around the house every minute or two to find something you need will take away precious time.
4. Don't multi-task! Yes, this is a skill we all need, but if you are studying for a U.S. History test, it won't help you to talk on the phone and watch TV at the same time. Concentrate on learning one thing.