This article was written for yooou! by one of our Ambassadors, 16 year old, MW.
Well it’s that time of year again. Football games, leaves falling, and pumpkin spice lattes.
However, the return of all of these things also means the return of school. The return of crowded hallways, early morning practices, and the pressure of grades.
School means homework till midnight, cramming for tests, and perfecting the tiny details on projects. Over the past 11 years, these things have taken up about 1980 days of my life and, luckily, I’ve learned a few tricks to make it all more bearable.
Here are some of the best study methods and tips I’ve garnered over the years to get that pre calculus homework done before midnight and ace that biology test.
Methods
1.) Read, write, recite, record
Obviously we’re all different kinds of learners with different ways of absorbing information, but I’ve found that this method usually works best across the board.
Start by gathering your study materials- a textbook, notes you took in class, or just a quizlet.
Then, start reading and write down the most important information. As you go, try to recite some of the facts aloud to see if you’re retaining anything.
Once you’ve gotten most of the information written down, try and recite all of the information aloud without looking at your notes. You can go part by part or try the whole thing at once. I also recommend recording yourself doing this and watching that recording later for extra practice.
This introduced to the information using different kinds of stimuli because, not only are you reading the information, but you are also writing, reciting, and hearing it back. There is a much greater chance for you to retain information this way.
2.) Flashcards
This method is more for short term studying and would work best for vocabulary based studying.
I recommend making your flashcards colorful or even cutting out different shapes so that you associate each vocab word with a different color or shape.
This might make it easier to memorize the vocab since your brain can make connections between the colors/shapes and the specific words.
3.) Spaced repetition
Spaced repetition is repeated exposure to information over multiple days.
Start by creating a study schedule to plan out what information you’ll cover everyday. Maybe you’ll study everyday for 20 minutes leading up to a test. Or maybe you study every other day for 30 minutes.
Whatever the case, make sure you leave time to review the older material in addition to learning newer material.
This method has been proven to be more efficient for long term memory recall and is much more efficient then cramming.
Tips-
1.) TAKE BREAKS– This one is super important and definitely one that I learned the hard way. By sitting down at a desk for 5 straight hours, you aren’t going to retain any information. Give yourself at least a 20 minute break for every hour you study to maximize the amount of information you’re actually recalling.
2.) Use color- As I mentioned earlier, using color in your notes is a super easy way to retain more information. Your brain will likely connect pieces of information to colors, making it easier to recall complicated vocab words or topics.
3.) Study with friends- Studying in a small group is a good way to exchange ideas and information with other people. By combining you and your friend’s knowledge, you have a much broader perspective on the information and more details on the topic.
4.) Put away distractions- There is no way for you to be completely locked in to a topic with so many distractions around you. So, put them away. Maybe power off your phone or place your favorite book in another room. Whatever your distraction is, make sure it wont be bothering you while you’re trying to study.
5.) Prioritize studying/homework- This one is definitely easier said than done. Make the hard decision to focus on schoolwork so that you get the results you want in the future. Stop procrastinating when you know you have homework do. Tell your friends you cant hang out the night before a test and study instead. It’s hard but it’ll be worth it in the end.
So hopefully, thanks to these study methods, not only will you have football games and fall drinks to look forward to, but you can now also add great grades and more bearable homework to that list.
For more study tips from 6 high school seniors, click here.
To read more articles from MW, click here and here.
