As we pass the week of midterms at GMHS, you may have been hoping for a better grade on some of your exams. This article may help give your grades for future tests and final exams a little boost, as it will suggest tips you have never used before, or may help you bring your current strategies to the next level. Whether you are a freshman or an experienced upperclassman, it is always helpful to learn new last-minute study tricks or try out some entirely different strategies.
1. Manage your time effectively. Different tests, quizzes and homework assignments are all assigned for different periods throughout your week. For this reason, it is necessary to manage your time well while studying. Work on reviewing material for your soonest test first, and continue reviewing your next subjects about two or three days before the test occurs. Don’t spend time studying for your last test of the week the night before your first quiz or test. Take one thing at a time to ensure your materials stay organized and you don’t become confused with material from a myriad of different subjects.
2. Use many different study strategies. There are many different methods to review material before upcoming assessments. They may include online review programs such as Quizlet or Duolingo, homemade flashcards (my personal favorite), creating mock tests, studying with friends, creating audio recordings, reviewing old tests and quizzes, and lots more. However, it is important to use all of these strategies for your different subjects. For example, using mainly homemade flashcards to study is a great technique, but using only flashcards means you learn the material just one way and can easily get material from multiple subjects confused. Instead, utilize flashcards for your main units and also try recopying class notes or using a technology tool like Quizlet. This ensures internalizing the information you are reviewing in many different ways, making it easier to recall it at the time of your test.
3. Stay organized. Keeping track of study materials ensures that you will not become overwhelmed or confused during your studying process. Because you will often have multiple tests to study for in a given week, use one folder per class and fill it with all of the materials you will use to study for each test (teacher’s review, past tests and quizzes, flashcards, etc.) Keeping the materials for each assessment separate helps to organize the information in your mind and study more effectively. Only keep what is necessary for you to review the concepts from each unit. Having too much material for review is a lot for your brain to keep track of. An effective study strategy for you in this situation may be putting all the key concepts into one place.
4. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Asking clarifying questions is the key to success on your different assessments. Doing further research on certain topics and asking your teacher and other classmates about specific material, ensures that you do not misunderstand topics or ideas when studying. The different ways of explaining concepts may further your understanding. Never be afraid to ask questions if you are confused on something; after all, that is what teachers are there for.
5. Take care of yourself. High school is an extremely stressful time for students. As the year continues, your academic pressure grows, and so does the importance of taking care of yourself. Lack of sleep or healthy food and water may compromise your test grades, no matter how much studying you have done. Although it is important to study for large amounts of time, make sure you take breaks and try to get at least seven hours of sleep every night. With so much material to cover, it is easy to forget basic things like staying hydrated. Set goals for yourself, such as drinking at least two bottles of water everyday. Make sure to eat full meals (especially breakfast), and avoid unhealthy snacking. Your academic success is extremely important but it never tops your health.
6. Good luck!
Camden Robertson is a GMHS student intern at the Drummer.